COLCHESTER, Vt. - With the first season of varsity outdoor track at Saint Michael's College rapidly approaching, the Purple Knights competed in four indoor meets during their non-traditional season this winter. The Purple and Gold's inaugural outdoor campaigns begin next Thursday in Myrtle Beach, S.C., for day one of the three-day Alan Connie Shamrock Invitational at Doug Shaw Memorial Stadium.
 
Under the guidance of head coach Molly Peters, the Purple Knights visited Plymouth State University on Dec. 5 before trekking to Middlebury College on three consecutive Saturdays in January. Peters recently finished her 20th season leading the women's cross country program and fifth with the men in addition to mentoring the fledgling track squads. She added varsity track duties after previously also coaching the Nordic skiing program for 13 years. Fourth-year cross country assistant coach Ryan Robitaille joins her on the track coaching staff.
 
The Plymouth State Winter Classic featured half a dozen top-five performances, including senior Braden Butler (South Berwick, Maine/Marshwood) winning the mile (4:37.46) and junior Adam Bilodeau (Lewiston, Maine/Lewiston) capturing the 1,000-meter run (2:50.46). Butler and first-years Pierce Coughlin (Oakland, Maine/Messalonskee), Josh Pelletier (North Andover, Mass./North Andover) and Matthew Petersen (Madison, Conn./Daniel Hand) combined to win the distance medley relay (11:15.77). First-year Maggie Crawford (Granby, Mass./Granby) was second in the 600-meter run (1:51.41) and third in the 60-meter hurdles (10.40), and sophomore Norah Stubbs (Essex Junction, Vt./Essex) placed third in the 1,000 (3:44.36) and fifth in the mile (6:12.64). Coughlin (3rd), Bilodeau (tie for 6th) and Pelletier (9th) also ran the mile, while first-years Chloe Drown (Saco, Maine/Old Orchard Beach) and Lambert Byamungu (South Burlington, Vt./South Burlington) entered the 60 hurdles and 60-meter dash, respectively.
 
On Jan. 10, Saint Michael's took part in the Middlebury Snowflake Invitational, where Butler had another strong performance by taking third in the mile (4:37.04). Bilodeau (7th), Coughlin (10th), sophomore Taggart Schrader (East Montpelier, Vt./U-32) (11th) and Pelletier (15th) following. Junior Meredith Reilly (Ashland, Mass./Ashland) was fourth in the 3,000-meter run (11:33.89), and Crawford took fifth in the 200-meter dash (27.66) and sixth in the 60 hurdles (10.26). Bilodeau claimed seventh in the 3,000 (9:31.87), ahead of Pelletier (12th), Coughlin (13th), Schrader (14th) and first-year Tommy Fogarty (Peabody, Mass./Essex Tech) (15th). Stubbs placed 12th in the mile, first-year Torrey Hanna (Addison, Vt./Vergennes Union) was 12th in the 800-meter run, and Drown placed 12th in the 60 hurdles and also ran the 200.
 
At the Middlebury Winter Classic on Jan. 17, Pelletier was third in the 5,000 (16:56.10), Hanna took fifth in the 800 (2:47.23), and Crawford finished seventh in the 600 (1:48.96) and eighth in the 60 hurdles (10.61). Drown notched a 14th-place showing in the 200 (32.49), and Butler took 18th in the mile (4:39.72), with Coughlin (21st), Bilodeau (22nd) and Schrader (28th) trailing. Stubbs was 19th in the 1,000 (3:53.69) and 25th in the mile (6:31.66), and Bilodeau finished 25th in the 3,000 (9:30.36), with Pelletier in 28th.
 
During their winter finale on Jan. 24 at Middlebury's Luke Hotte Field and Track Meet, the Purple Knights saw Pelletier (17:10.74) and Fogarty (17:55.64) go 1-2 in the 5,000. Bilodeau, Butler, Coughlin and Schrader were runners-up in the 4x400-meter relay (3:57.72), and Reilly finished third in the 5,000 (20:23.46), with sophomore Jordan Munro (Holliston, Mass./Holliston) fifth (20:41.21). Crawford was fourth (11.19) and Drown fifth (11.44) in the 60 hurdles before they went sixth (27.07) and 15th, respectively, in the 200. Junior Rylee Burnham (Hartland, Vt./Hartford) took sixth in the 3,000 (12:17.32) with Stubbs seventh, and Hanna captured sixth in the 800 (2:52.20). Butler and Coughlin were 12th and 13th, respectively, in the mile, and Bilodeau finished 14th in the 3,000.
 
Starting in the spring, Saint Michael's will become the ninth member of the NE10 to offer track. The immediate entry into the NE10 track sphere will allow Purple Knights to compete for additional NCAA Championship berths and in-season and postseason awards, both athletic and academic. Saint Michael's will utilize local high school and college tracks for indoor and outdoor training. Based on 2023-24 rosters, track & field programs at NE10 institutions average squad sizes of 76 men and women; the inaugural Saint Michael's outdoor track rosters count nearly three dozen student-athletes. The College aims to increase its roster sizes in the coming years while also enhancing the athletic experience of existing and future student-athletes with additional competitive and training opportunities throughout the school year.
 
Peters, who earned her U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Track & Field Academy Sprint, Hurdle and Relay Specialist Certification last June, returns to her track roots after previously serving as an assistant coach at Middlebury, her alma mater, for four years and at nearby Burlington High School for five. Between her Saint Michael's cross country and Nordic skiing coaching career, Peters has sent five individual qualifiers to four NCAA Championships while qualifying her women's cross country team for the 2014 championship.
 
"It's really a dream come true to add a track program at Saint Michael's College," Peters said in October 2024 upon the announcement of the addition of varsity outdoor track by President Richard Plumb, Ph.D. "Adding this program will be a game changer for recruiting, as most runners want to compete in cross country in the fall and track in the spring. We really couldn't ask for a better time for this to happen." The addition of track follows decades of intermittent club teams that date back to the 1970s, soon after cross country was added at the College.