With less than two weeks before the Atlantic-10 Championship, the women's track and field team tuned up this weekend at the All-Ohio Championship at Ohio University.

The Flyers continued producing positive results during their outdoor campaign after tying for first place with Charlotte at the A-10 Indoor Championship, their first-ever conference win in indoor. For the indoor season, junior Mallory Barnes, a thrower, became the first-ever All-American in Dayton program history.

In UD women's track and field history, no one has ever won an All-Ohio Individual Championship. Doing well at the tournament was important, but the bigger picture lies ahead at the University of Massachusetts, site of the A-10 Championship.

"We finished sixth last year in the All-Ohio tournament, so realistically we are shooting for at least the top five," head coach Adam Steinwachs said. "Overall, we see it as more of a preparatory meet for the A-10 Championship. It's a team score meet, so it will serve as a good gauge as to where we are at this point."

That prediction was right on the money for Steinwachs and UD, as the team finished fifth at the tournament. Barnes barely held on to win the long-distance throw at the competition, while Maureen Bulgrin won the 5,000-meter race as well.

Based on how the spring has gone, the Flyers are prone to make noise in Massachusetts. They placed first out of 17 schools a month ago in the Early Bird Relays and have posted several other successful finishes. Much of this success can be contributed to being a true team.

"Every year we have a select few people who step up," senior jumper Andrea Funk said. "But this year we've had everyone, including underclassmen, step up, especially toward the end of the season. It's been a tremendous group effort."

These championships are coming at a difficult time. This is generally the busiest time of the school year with teachers cramming in tests, papers and projects with exams next week. The team has a big workload to handle between academics and preparing for the A-10 Championship.

All athletes have to balance their sports with their work in class, but this time of the semester makes it even more difficult. The team has done a tremendous job of working hard in and out of the classroom, Steinwachs said.

"The girls do a great job of getting things done," Steinwachs said. "They are phenomenal students who can regulate themselves. You can see the stress levels rise, but they've done a good job managing it."

Steinwachs trusts his team to get its work done, but he expects the focus to be on practice when the time comes. The players have responded well and have noticed the coaches' recognition of their busy schedule.

"We've had really good practice at doing this during the end of the season, but it doesn't get any easier," Funk said. "We're doing a good job of staying focused, and the coach does a good job relieving the stress. Practice takes the stress off a little bit, but the coaches pull back the reins slightly to help us out."