SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - At a meet filled with Division I and II competitors, the Messiah University Track and Field team strung together a number of strong performances in the final regular season meet at the Paul Kaiser Classic in the week before the Middle Atlantic Conference Championship Meet (MAC). The Falcons will travel to nearby York College of Pennsylvania on the days of May 4th through 6th to compete at the Conference Championship.
On Friday, April 28th, Messiah sent a 4x400 Meter Relay to the historic Penn Relays at the University of Pennsylvania's Franklin Field. The team of
Elena Vargas,
Kerrigan Lebo,
Halle Jennett, and
Emma Graybill earned fourth in the College Women's 4x400 Centennial/MAC after combining for a time of 4:05.52, the fastest Messiah has ran this season.
Strong Efforts on the Track
The Falcons added a number of new MAC qualifiers on Saturday afternoon.
Jillian Brotherton qualified for the 3000 Meter Steeplechase after being just shy on two previous occasions this season. Her time of 13:38.96 on Saturday afternoon earned her a trip to MACs.
The 1500 Meter Run was full of Falcon highlights as four runners claimed new personal bests and a fifth earned her way to MACs. Leading the pack was
Kate Dickow who crossed the line in 4:44.26 to finish fifth among a strong field of runners from across the three divisions. That time puts her ninth on the Messiah Top Ten list.
Finishing eighth overall with a new personal best time of 4:48.74 was
Katie Anthony.
Connor Coggins (5:06.10) and
Amber Swaisgood (5:15.97) both added new personal bests as well.
Amber Fogelsanger crossed the line in a time of 5:07.17 which is just shy of her personal best of 5:07.12 but is a season-best and new MAC qualifying performance.
Messiah added three more personal bests in the 800 Meter while also adding a MAC qualifying time.
Kathleen Walstrom ran a new personal best of 2:24.72 while
Kiersten Burch ran a new best and MAC qualifying time of 2:27.70.
Juliette Safer added a personal best of 2:37.62.
A trio of Messiah hurdlers continued their strong season in the 100 Meter Hurdles.
Kara Brown took 11th overall with a new personal best of 15.96.
Claire Miller (16.78) and
Clara Benner (17.08) also ran well. Among Division III competitors, the three finished in third through fifth, consistent with their near-weekly top ten finishes throughout the season.
Benner and Brown took to the 400 Meter Hurdles where they were joined by
Natalie Hamlen. Benner crossed the line in a time of 1:11.08 while Hamlen crossed in a new personal best time of 1:12.46.
Kara Brown finished closely behind in 1:12.78.
There were also a number of strong performances in the sprints of the afternoon. In the 100 Meter Dash,
Arwyn Gruenwald finished 20th overall, with the sixth fastest Division III time in the field, running a new personal best of 13.14.
Gracie Barton crossed the line in 14.31 while
Rachel Hartman ran a new personal best of 14.69.
In the 200 Meter Dash,
Cassidy Chandler (28.74),
Megan Raab (28.79, season best), and
Gracie Barton (29.74, personal best) all ran well for Messiah.
Kerrigan Lebo (1:01.98),
Cassidy Chandler (1:03.52), and
Megan Raab (1:06.03, personal best) all ran the 400 Meter on Saturday.
The Women's lone relay of the day came in the 4x100 Meter. The team of
Arwyn Gruenwald,
Emma Graybill,
Halle Jennett, and
Elena Vargas combined for a time of 49.84 to finish seventh overall. They finished behind only one other Division III team and it was by only half a second. Their time of 49.84 is the Falcon's best of the season and the eighth fastest time to be run at Messiah.
Highlights in the Field
Hannah Witter jumped a new personal best height of 3.05 meters in the Pole Vault to claim ninth. That height puts her tenth in the Messiah Top Ten.
Olivia Call cleared a height of 2.45 meters.
Elena Vargas jumped a season-best of 10.76, claiming 12th overall and third among Division III competitors.
Emma Graybill added a season-best jump of 10.27 while
Claire Miller added a new personal best and MAC qualifying leap of 9.73.
In the Long Jump,
Natalie Hamlen finished with a mark of 4.61 meters.
Kara Brown cleared a height of 1.46 in the High Jump.
In the throws,
Ruby Ramsey led the way for the Falcons, tossing 32.32 meters in the Javelin. Evangeline Soerens threw a nearly five-meter personal best to claim a spot at MACs with a mark of 28.14 meters.
Leah Ferster finished with a mark of 33.67 meters in the Hammer Throw.
Next in Action
The Messiah University Falcons will next set their eyes on the Middle Atlantic Conference Championships to be held at York College of Pennsylvania over the three-day stretch of May 4th through 6th. The Falcons were named fifth in the Pre-Championship Coaches' Poll.
