Final Results

GRANTHAM, Pa. - The women's track and field team took first in the Messiah Multi Invitational with a dominant performance across the board, scoring 221 points, beat second place Mount St. Mary's (90 points) by 131 points. Highlighting the Falcons' efforts was Taylor Wiederrecht, who won the women's heptathlon with a lifetime personal best and won the women's high jump with a program record and facility record. The McMinn twins both won in their respective events with Alyssa McMinn taking first in the discus and Abby McMinn winning the 100m hurdles with a lifetime personal best time of 14.91 seconds. 

In The Results
Kathryn Wiederrecht took first in the 100m dash with a time of 12.44 seconds. That time puts Wiederrecht third all-time in program history. Messiah had three runners go sub-28 seconds in the 200m with Rebecca Crosley (27.18s, fifth place), Julia Geisheimer (27.60s, ninth place), and Ellie Longshaw (27.62s, 10th place) compiling that trio.

The Falcons swept the 400m with freshmen Ellissa Slader leading the charge. Slader come through the line in 58.56 seconds, putting her eighth all-time in program history. Rebecca Crosley was the next Falcon to finish the event, coming across the finish with a time of 1:00.75 while Kelsie Kennedy rounded out Messiah's efforts with a time of 1:01.55. 

Messiah had four runners run under 2:30 in the 800m with Leanne Weaver charging through the line in 2:19.91. Brieanna Hess (2:24.38) and Emma Johnsen (2:27.86) were the next two Falcons to come through line, finishing in fourth and fifth, respectively. Ashlyn Stonge was the last Falcon to go sub-2:30 as she ran a 2:29.78 to take eighth. 

Maddison Landis led the way for the Falcons in the 1500m with a time of 4:56.83. Leigha Southall followed closely behind, coming through the finish line in 4:58.94. 

Leanne Weaver highlighted the Falcons' efforts in the 3,000m steeplechase as she took third place with a time of 11:48.20. Ally Austen (12:58.88) and Emma Fertig (13:04.71) also competed in the event, finishing in ninth and 11th, respectively.

Ally Bishop competed in the 10,000m earlier in the day, finishing the race in fifth with a time of 44:38.48.

In the 5,000m, Messiah took four of the top-five spots with Sarah Codd leading the charge. Codd ran a dominate race, finishing with an 18:34.73. Leigha Southall came through the line in second place with a time of 19:09.94. Danielle Cardone and Cera Gaston took fourth and fifth with times of 19:28.90 and 19:38.94, respectively. 

Abby McMinn stormed through the line in the 100m hurdles, finishing the race in 14.91 seconds, good for first place on the day and fourth all-time in program history.

In the 400m hurdles, McKenna Welshans and Aja Cunningham highlighted the Falcons' efforts with a time of 1:11.88 and 1:13.48 to finish in second and third. 

The Relays
Messiah put together a 4x100m relay squad that ran a 49.32 to become the third best relay team the program has ever seen. Kathryn Wiederrecht ran the lead off leg and passes the baton to Abby McMinn. McMinn made her way down the back stretch and passed the baton off to Ellie Longshaw. Longshaw maintained the Falcons' lead through the turn and gave the stick to Taylor Wiederrecht, who brought it home for Messiah. The Falcons also won the 4x400m relay with a team of Rebecca Crosley, Emma Johnsen, Brieanna Hess, and Ellissa Slader coming through the line in a total time of 4:11.96. The Falcons finished in third place in the 4x800m relay with a time of 10:17.26. 

In The Field
Taylor Wiederrecht put on a show in the high jump after missing two attempts at 1.68 but clearing on her third attempt then setting a new program record and facility record of 1.72m on her first try. Emily Gourley set a new lifetime personal best in the event with a clearance of 1.53m, marking the first time Gourley has jumped over the five ft barrier.

Julia Gesheimer led the way for the Falcons in the long jump after she jumped 4.95m on her final attempt of the day, moving her into third place on the day. 

Alecia Rohrer and Alyssa McMinn were only separated by two centimeters in the shot put with Rohrer edging out McMinn. Rohrer hit a mark of 11.47m while McMinn threw 11.45m, finishing in second and third, respectively. 

McMinn took first in the discus after fouling her first two attempts and qualifying for finals with a power throw. In the finals, McMinn threw 39.24m on her final attempt, finishing the day in first. Alecia Rohrer finished the day with a mark of 35.56m and Amanda Brown finished with a mark of 34.42m, putting them in fourth and sixth, respectively. 

Rohrer highlighted the Falcons' efforts in the javelin with a throw of 39.02m. 

What's Up Next
The Falcons don't have a lot of time to rest as they get ready for a mid-week meet at Shippensburg University on Apr. 17.

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