NEW ORLEANS, La. – The Plymouth State University men's and women's outdoor track & field teams both improved their regional standing following a successful weekend at the Little East Conference (LEC) Championship, as the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) released its fifth Track & Field Rating Index (TFRI) of the season this week.
 
The men jumped three spots to No. 19 in the region with 92.72 points, while the women moved up one place to No. 20 with 103.08 points.
 
The men recorded their top regional marks of the year in eight events at the championship. Freshman Enzo Valenti (Montville, Conn.) broke the school record in the discus (45.99m) to earn bronze and move into sixth in the region. PSU's 4x400-meter relay – freshmen Jiasen Smith (Lisbon, N.H.) and Cam Lee (Northwood, N.H.), sophomore Isaias Aguasvivas Pena (Marblehead, Mass.) and senior Zach Hodge (Springfield, N.H.) – clocked 3:22.82 to set a program record and sit eighth regionally. The 4x100-meter relay of Lee, sophomore Gabe Kean (Thornton, N.H.), Smith and freshman Griffin Massahos (Londonderry, N.H.) also set a program record (42.43) and ranks 10th in the Northeast.
 
Massahos also broke the school record in the 100 meters (10.84) to rank 11th in the region and is 20th in the 200 meters (22.21), while Lee set a new program mark in the 400-meter hurdles to move into 14th. Junior Ben Colby (Manchester, N.H.) also appears among the regional leaders in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, sitting 18th.
 
The women also saw standout relay performances. The 4x400-meter squad of sophomores Ani Flynn (Plymouth, N.H.) and Amelia Lefebvre (Greenland, N.H.) along with freshmen Lisi Palmer (Brunswick, Maine) and Clare Tuohy (Sunapee, N.H.), posted a program-best 4:00.55 to win gold and rank fifth in the Northeast. The 4x100-meter team of senior Cass Hanson (Stetson, Maine), Lefebvre, Palmer, and Tuohy also set a school record (49.22) and sits 11th.
 
Individually, Flynn ran 15.50 in the 100-meter hurdles to place 15th in the region, while Tuohy clocked a program-best 58.08 in the 400 meters to move into 16th. Junior Rose Karow (South Yarmouth, Mass.) also posted a top-20 regional time in the 800 meters (2:19.56), sitting 18th.
 
The TFRI is a complex mathematical system used as the benchmark to rank collegiate track and field teams since 2008.
 
Qualifying athletes will compete at the NCAA Division III New England Regional Championship this weekend at Springfield College, with events scheduled for Friday (May 1) and Saturday (May 2) at Blake Track.