Lady Tiger Track & Field Inks Five During Fall Signing Period

Nov. 17, 2006

The Clemson women’s track & field team has signed five prospects to National Letters of Intent, Head Coach Marcia Noad announced Friday. Three distance runners, a jumper, and a pole vaulter are the first signees for Clemson’s freshman class of 2007-08.

The distance runners signed include a pair of twins from the state of Delaware, Annette and Joan Castagno. Their father, Chris, actually raced against current Tiger assistant Gordon Thomson in high school. Annette owns personal bests of 5:10 in the 1600m and 18:27 in 5000m cross country.

“Annie’s high school team, Tatnall, has been invited to the Nike Team Nationals in cross country, an honor reserved for top 20 teams nationally,” Noad explained. “We are looking for her to do the same for Clemson. She is a very coachable young lady who is going to be a great asset for our program, on and off the track.”

Joan Castagno owns personal bests of 5:15 in the 1600m run and 19:09 in 5000m cross country racing. “Joanie’s third-place finish in Delaware’s cross country meet helped her team to a state championship,” Noad said. “We are looking for her to help us climb the ladder in the ACC. Joanie loves running so much that she went to a running camp in Kenya last summer! That kind of enthusiasm is going to help lift our team.”

Abigail Iselborn was the third distance runner to sign with Clemson in the early period. A native of Portland, ME, she attended Catherine McAuley School. She posted times of 5:01 in the 1600m and 17:34 in cross country (5K).

“As a multiple state champion over various distances, we are expecting Abby to be a big part of our resurgence in distance running at Clemson,” Noad said. “She will benefit greatly from the favorable weather and varied terrain Clemson provides.”

April Sinkler was signed to compete in jumps for the Lady Tiger track & field squad. A native of Stafford, VA, she attended Brooke Point High School. Sinkler was a Virginia runner-up and Nike national runner-up in the triple jump. She owns personal bests of 5’9″ in the high jump, 18’6″ in the long jump, and 39’6.5″ in the triple jump. Sinkler also was recruited to play Division I soccer, but opted to sign with Clemson.

“I saw April compete at the Virginia state meet last year, and was impressed with her athleticism,” Noad said. “She is someone that will benefit from training solely as a track & field athlete in college. She will make an immediate impact in our jumps program. We are very excited that she is joining the Clemson family.”

Amy Morrison was added in the pole vault. A native of Michigan, she has cleared as high as 12’1″ for Fenton High School.

“Amy is a great student and a natural athlete,” Noad said. “She has excelled at swimming, diving, volleyball, and water skiing. She has a great physique for vaulting. We are excited to see what happens with year-round coaching and facilities available to her.”