GORHAM, Maine -- Senior Hattie Landry (Acton, Maine/Wells) won three events to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies women's indoor track and field team to a first place finish at the 2008 Maine State Indoor Track and Field Championship Friday night at the Costello Sports Complex field house in Gorham.

Southern Maine edged Bates College, 154-149, to capture the team title. Bowdoin College placed third with 142 points, while Colby College rounded out the scoring in fourth with 135 points. The title is the third in the last four seasons for Southern Maine which previously won the title in 2005 and 2006.

Landry, who scored 38 points for USM, had a spectacular meet winning the 200-meter dash, 55-meter hurdles and 55-meter dash, earning three of the Huskies' seven first place finishes. In the 55-meter dash, Landry established a new school record with a time of 7.51 seconds in the finals, breaking the previous mark of 7.55 set by Josie Marshall in February 2006. Landry claimed the top spot in the 55-meter hurdle with a personal best time of 8.66, and crossed the finish line in first place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.98. Landry capped off her meet with a second place finish in the long jump with a jump of 16-7.

Southern Maine received strong contributions in the field events, led by junior Emily Poliquin (Lisbon Falls, Maine/Lisbon). Poliquin placed first in the long jump with a distance of 16-8 1/2 (5.09 meters). In the triple jump, Poliquin leapt 34-11 1/4 (10.65 meters) to place second.

Junior Brenna Widdis (Portland, Maine/Gorham) and freshman Cristina Connolly (Boise, Idaho) also recorded winning performances for Southern Maine. Widdis captured the top spot in the high jump clearing 5-1 (1.55 meters), while Connolly won the pole vault competition handily setting a personal best mark with a vault of 10-4. Connolly achieved the personal record on her third attempt at that height. Southern Maine won the pole vault for the seventh
consecutive year (2002-2008). Widdis also earned a fourth place finish in the triple jump with a distance of 31-8 3/4 (9.67 meters).

Southern Maine won the 4 x 200-meter relay for the fourth consecutive year (2005-2008). Junior Anna Biasin (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy), senior Christa Hutchinson (Gorham, Maine/Falmouth [Mass.]), Poliquin and sophomore Sarah Hale (Napes, Maine/Lake Region) teamed to win the event in a time of 1:55.66. Hale earned a second place finish in the 55-meter dash behind Landry in a time of 7:72, while Hutchinson claimed a second place mark in the 600-meter run with a time of 1:40.44.

Sophomore Emily Artesani (Orono, Maine) and junior Gabby Cyr (Fort Kent, Maine) also competed well for Southern Maine. Cyr had a pair of fourth place finishes in distance events, finishing the mile-run in 5:18.41 and then crossing the finish line in a personal best 10:50.69 in the 3000-meter run. Artesani placed second in the 200-meter dash (27.08 seconds) and third in the 400-meter dash (1:01.00).

Southern Maine will host the 2008 Little East Conference and New England Alliance Championships on February 16 (12:00 p.m.). The Huskies will attempt to defend their string of seven consecutive LEC and Alliance Championship titles.