By James Eddy II

Due to bad weather conditions and the Easter holiday, Northeastern track and field head coach Sherman Hart decided to send most of his athletes home for the weekend, missing the Husky Spring Open Saturday.

The decision to allow many of his runners to miss the first home meet of the season also meant they could rest up for their upcoming push at a conference title.

The wild Boston weather limited the Huskies to indoor practices for most of the week. After an attempt to practice outside, Hart decided the team should remain inside due to winds, he said.

“Me and my coaching staff went outside to dig out the pit [for the long jump],” he said. “But we spent about 30 minutes outside and decided we were going to have to stay inside.”

Though Hart decided to send most of his athletes home for the weekend, this did not stop the rest of the Huskies from having a strong showing at the Husky Spring Open.

The women’s team took first in five events and placed high in a number of others. Despite having most of their sprinters absent, the Huskies were strong in distance events. Freshman Brittanie McDonald finished first in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, while junior teammate Colleen Hill finished first in the 400-meter.

Not to be outdone, freshman Seri Gordon finished first in the 1,500-meters followed by teammate and fellow freshman Christiana Gallagher in a tight race. Gallagher would avenge her loss to Gordon by taking first in the 800-meter. Both women were followed by teammate Courtney Mortimer who finished third.

The women’s team also held its ground in the field events. The Huskies took two events with junior Nancy Rowe taking the javelin, and freshman Shaina Petit taking the discus. The Huskies finished high in both the shot put and the pole vault. Senior Patricia Harrison took second in the shot put with her teammate, freshman Althea Charles placing third.

In the pole vault, freshman Ashley Furlong finished behind teammate sophomore Kristen Hafford, who finished second and third, respectively. Junior Kirsten Ripple finished third in the high jump.

The women again outdid the men, as freshman Pablo Rodriguez took first in the pole vault. Junior teammate Daniel Anderson followed Rodriguez, placing second in the event.

The men had only two other top-three finishes, with sophomore Matt Bowen and freshman Nicholas Kafkas. Bowen finished second in the high jump, while Kafkas placed second in the 400-meter hurdles.

The team’s next meet is away at the Florida State Relays in Tallahassee, Fla. from Thursday to Saturday.

“Next week is when it’s important,” Hart said. “That is when we can make a real push toward winning conference.”