College Teammates Earn Track And Field Honors

A pair of former high school opponents, who are now college teammates as freshmen for St. Mary’s College of Maryland, is getting noticed after impressive track and field performances.

Broadneck graduate Avery Arizzi was named Women’s Track Athlete of the Week for the United East Conference in mid-January, the same week that Severna Park graduate Jillian Zukley earned Women’s Field Athlete of the Week honors.

Arizzi contributed to three school records at the Spartan Invitational hosted by St. Thomas Aquinas College in New York on January 12. The 5-foot-3-inch sprinter clocked a school record and personal-best time of 27.92 in the 200-meter dash to finish 25th. She also posted a school record and personal-best time of 1:04.52 in the 400-meter dash for 28th place. Arizzi also led off the record-setting 4x400-meter relay, with her team finishing 11th with a school record time of 4:29.94.

Her time in the 400-meter relay currently ranks 17th in the mid-Atlantic region while leading the United East Conference. She ranks 31st regionally and sixth in the league with her time of 27.92 in the 200-meter.

It may not be obvious by her impressive totals, but Arizzi battled nerves before the event.

“I listen to a lot of upbeat music to combat that, and I try to visualize each phase of my race (getting into the blocks, coming out of the blocks, when to relax, when to start pushing) to the beat of the song,” she said. “The 400 was slightly disappointing for me. Because I am a freshman and this was my first time running a 400 at the collegiate level, I got entered into the meet as a 'no time' athlete. That led me to get ahead of my heat pretty early on in the race, and I guess I assumed I was running a lot faster than I was. I've since reset that record and I am much more pleased with my new time.

“However, I was very happy with my 200,” she continued. “I hadn't run under 28 seconds in a 200 before that meet, so I was very excited and proud of that record. (The) 4x400s are my absolute favorite event; it combines my favorite distance to run (400-meter) with three other amazing athletes. It's also almost always the last event to run at a meet, so everyone is watching, which makes it really exciting. I always love running 4x400-meter relays.”

Zukley also had an impressive performance. She placed ninth in the shot put as she tallied a distance of 11.12 meters. She also finished 24th in the weight throw with a distance of 11.16 meters. The 6-foot-3-inch thrower was the highest-finishing Division III participant in the shot put as the meet was full of Division I and Division II programs.

“I would say that good results like these come from putting in hard work when no one is there watching you, like coming early and staying late for practice and lifts,” Zukley said, reflecting on the competition. “I am grateful to now be on the same team with Avery, who was once on an opposing team during our high school years.

“I am really looking forward to seeing what the rest of the season will bring, especially now that I have just qualified for AARTFC (All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference) indoor regionals,” she said. “I definitely wouldn’t have gotten this far without the help of my amazing coaches throughout the years, both from Severna Park and St. Mary’s.”

The AARTFC indoor championships are set for March in New York.