WALTHAM, Mass. – Brandeis University has had four student-athletes selected as University Athletic Association Athletes of the Week for the week ending February 11th.
From the Brandeis track and field team, sophomore Emily Bryson of Quincy, Massachusetts, and graduate student Irie Goude of Portland, Oregon, were each honored for the second time in three weeks.
Competing at the Boston University David Hemery Valentine Invitational, Bryson placed 20th overall, 12th among collegiate runners from Division I, II and III, and tops among Division III runners in the mile with a time of 4:46.63. In addition to lowering her own school record by nearly than five seconds, Bryson posted the sixth-fastest time in Division III women's history in the event. She leads all Division III runners by more than five seconds. Bryson also ran the lead leg in the Judges' distance-medley relay team that placed seventh among DIII teams at the meet and is ranked 10th overall for the season with a time of 11:57.84.
Gourde also turned in the top time in the nation in his event, the 400-meter dash. Gourde ran a personal-best 47.81 to place second in his heat, 1st among Division III athletes and 12th overall in a field which included professionals as well as athletes from Division I, Division II and Division III schools. Gourde currently sits first in the in the Division III rankings by nearly four-tenths of a second, with the next closest runner on the list coming in at 48.19. He also ran the 12th-fastest time in DIII this season in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.87 seconds.
Brandeis fencing produced two winners as well, seniors Liz Feller of Cortlandt Manor, New York, for the women and Eli Litle of Haifa, Israel, for the men, while competing at the Duke Invitational.
Feller was the Judges' top performer on the women's side, producing an 8-3 overall record. She was 7-2 in epee, helping her squad to one Brandeis's two weapon wins on the day. Feller went 3-0 as the epee squad defeated #7 Temple, 6-3. Feller also picked up the saber for Brandeis's final match, going 1-1 against North Carolina. Overall against a difficult schedule, Brandeis fell to #3 Penn State (5-22), #7 Temple (8-19), #10 Duke (3-24) and North Carolina (10-17).
Litle matched Feller on the men's side with an 8-3 record, posting a winning record in three out of four matches for the men's foil squad. He went 3-0 as the Judges pulled a 5-4 win over #5 Penn State in the foil, then went 2-0 against Johns Hopkins and 2-1 against North Carolina. Overall, Brandeis defeated Johns Hopkins (17-10) but dropped matches against North Carolina (13-14), #9 Duke (5-22) and #5 Penn State (6-21).
Bryson is a 2015 graduate of North Quincy High School.
Gourde is a 2013 graduate of York Academy in Toronto.
Litle is a 2013 graduate of Reali – Beit Beram.
Feller is a 2014 graduate of Hendrick Hudson High School.
For more information on Brandeis Athletics, visit our homepage at http://www.brandeisjudges.com or follow us online on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram, @brandeisjudges.