GRANTHAM, Pa. – The Messiah women's track & field team competed in the Messiah Invitational at Starry Track on Saturday, placing first out of nine teams with a total of 278 team points. The Falcons turned in a considerable number of first-place finishes, highlighted by a 800 performance from
Esther Seeland, placing second on the all-time Messiah list with a time of 2:07.72.
Track Events
Messiah swept all relays, which included the 4x100, 4x400, and 4x800. A of Kathryn Weiderrecht,
Emily Gourley,
Ellie Longshaw, and
Ellissa Slader edged a DeSales relay team in the 4x100, crossing with a time of 50.38.
Kathryn Wiederrecht was the first leg for the 4x400, passing off to
Cassidy Chandler, as Slader and Seeland closed out the race with a top time of 4:05.58. In the 4x800,
Olivia Cory,
Cera Gaston,
Laura Kruth, and
Madison Myers posted a collective time of 10:15.26, besting DeSales, who finished in 11:05.92.
Longshaw exhibited her speed in the 100, topping all runners with a time of 13.13.
Bayley Hess (14.05) and
Noelle Crowley (15.08) each contributed quality times in the same event, as a trio of Falcons dominated the 200.
Kathryn Wiederrecht placed a winning time of 25.67 the second-best time in the 200 in Messiah's all-time list. Following Wiederrecht was Slader and Longshaw, posting times of 26.28 and 27.26, respectively.
Slader placed a top time in the 400, turning in a first-place finish of 57.98.
Emma Johnsen finished behind Slader with a time of 62.92, as Longshaw placed yet another top-three finish, earning a time of 63.27.
Seeland turned in another dominant performance in the 800, just a day after setting a new program record in the 1500. Seeland's time of 2:07.72 bested the second-place time by more than 13 seconds as multiple Falcons notched quality times in the event. Among the notable finishes were
Ashlyn Stonge (2:26.30),
Brieanna Hess (2:27.01),
Kathleen Walstrom (2:28.45),
Olivia Cory (2:28.54), and Kruth (2:29.57).
The Falcons turned in several notable second-place finishes throughout the competition. Of those second-place places,
Claire Miller finished the 100 meter hurdles in 16.54, also turning in a time of 72.15 in the 400 meter hurdles.
Krystalyn Super performed well in the 3000 meter steeple chase, crossing the line in 13:37.88.
Field Events
Taylor Wiederrecht shined in the field events for the Falcons, earning first-place finishes in the high jump and long jump. Wiederrecht leaped to a top distance of 5.23 meters in the long jump, while clearing the bar at a winning mark of 1.55 meters in the high jump.
Elena Vargas turned in a second-place finish in the long jump with a distance of 4.84 as
Emily Gourley competed in the high jump, clearing 1.40 meters, placing third.
Vargas topped all competitors in the triple jump, leaping to a winning distance of 10.36 meters, improving on a distance of 10.19 meters at Messiah's first competition of the year (Mar. 19).
Lila Goodhile,
Brynn Gaugler,
Ruby Ramsey, and
Justine Eckert represented the Messiah throwers. Goodhile competed in the shot put and javelin throw, earning a distance of 10.70 meters in the shot put, while launching the javelin 36.81 meters, topping all competition. Gaugler and Ramsey each competed in the javelin throw as well as Gaugler achievied a distance of 33.86 meters, while Ramsey notched a distance of 30.59 meters. Eckert represented Messiah in the discus throw and the hammer throw. The sophomore placed third in the discus (31.31), turning in a distance of 23.69 in the hammer.
Cadee Wood and Hess each competed in the pole vault. Hess placed second of six competitors, clearing a height of 2.96 meters. Wood contributed a quality performance, vaulting over the bar at 2.51 meters.
Messiah's 278 team points topped all nine visiting teams, as Lebanon Valley earned second place (142), followed by DeSales (111).
What's Next
The Falcons will be back in action next Saturday, Apr. 17, competing at Lebanon Valley College.
