LANCASTER, Pa. - The Messiah Women's Track & Field team had a number of incredible performances to open their indoor track season at Franklin & Marshall's Diplomat Open, hosted on Friday, Dec. 5. The Falcons' efforts were highlighted by five All-Time Indoor Top Ten performances alongside 14 Falcons punching their ticket to the Middle Atlantic Conference championships with MAC-qualifying performances. The Falcons also finished inside the top three in the finishing order of five different events, showcasing their competitiveness with the rest of the 14 other teams in attendance.
The Falcons will resume their season after Winter break and will compete next at the Alvernia Winter Invitational on Saturday, January 17.
On The Track
The 5000 Meter Run, the first final of the evening, opened the meet with an array of spectacular performances for the Falcons.
Ella Swayne captured the Falcons' sole event win on the day with a come-from-behind victory behind a fantastic MAC-qualifying time of 18:07.92, a lifetime personal record by roughly 30 seconds that places her second all time.
Delaney Turk trailed closely behind her teammate for much of the race, hanging on during the last two kilometers to also register an enormous personal best of 18:31.24. Turk's time also qualifies her for MACs by a wide margin and places her eighth all time in the event.
Madison Kimmel slotted two places behind in 10th all time with a time of 18:37.62, a personal best by 1:02, an astounding feat made possible by her consistent splits and quick close.
Emmie Battersby also broke the 20-minute barrier for the first time with a MAC-qualifying performance of 19:38.96, while
Allison Keller broke 21 for the first time in her career with a time of 20:56.28.
Lia Widenhofer concluded the Falcons' efforts with a time of 26:47.88.
The Falcons had a number of quick performances in the 800 Meter Run, with
Kerrigan Lebo leading the way with her fastest-ever season opener in a MAC qualifying time of 2:28.15.
Alleha Glenn finished just behind with a MAC qualifying time of 2:28.77, closing quickly to make up the gap on her teammate.
Elizabeth Biehl was the next across the line with a time of 2:34.56, followed by Helen Blakeless (2:38.63) and
Paulina Torres (2:40.74).
Linnea Haney earned an indoor personal record time of 2:42.19 with a quick season opener, while
Abigail Smith was the final Falcon to compete with a 3:12.42 clocking.
Kara Brown took her place in the final of the 60 Meter Hurdles as the sole Falcon in the event after a MAC qualifying 9.48 clocking in the preliminary round. Brown matched both her time and her third-place finish from the prelims with a third place finish in a time of 9.48 in the final, a pair of quick times that stand as her quickest-ever season openers.
Arwyn Gruenwald ran similarly over the 60 Meter Dash, running her quickest time of the day in the preliminary round (8.22) before finishing in sixth in the final with a MAC qualifying time of 8.34.
Kaitlyn Albrecht also qualified for MACs and became the 10th fastest performer in program history in her first ever collegiate race, running a quick time of 8.39 in the preliminary round.
Lily Scheetz finished with a time of 8.80.
Meagan Kime led the way for the Falcons in the Mile, finishing just outside the MAC qualifying time with a personal best 5:44.40 clocking after an exceptionally quick close.
Allison Keller ran a very strong time of 6:10.65 despite having just raced in the 5000 Meter, followed closely by
Katie Gardner's personal best time of 6:14.74.
Kelsey Hoffman rounded out the Falcons' efforts in the event with a 6:54.39 performance.
Two Falcons toed the line in the 400 Meter Dash, with
Grace Burns finishing as the top of the two in her collegiate debut with a time of 1:09.30.
Kaitlynn Yeager was close behind in a time of 1:20.16.
A large contingent of Falcons finished close together in the 200 Meter Dash, with
Kaitlyn Albrecht leading with the way after stopping the clock at 28.84, a time that sits just outside of the MAC qualifying mark.
Kara Brown finished just behind with a time of 28.92, while
Grace Burns and
Lily Scheetz ran almost identically to turn in respective times of 29.14 and 29.15.
Kyra Dillon turned in a time of 30.27 in her collegiate debut.
In the 3000 Meter Run, the Falcons made up seven out of the 11 competitors in the field.
Ava Shirk led the Falcons with a time of 11:48.39 to finish third overall, with
Aubrey Yeager close behind in a time of 11:52.50.
Olivia Miller (12:43.94) and
Elizabeth Anthony (12:46.34) finished close together, with Anthony earning a new lifetime best in the event by roughly half a second after a very quick final lap.
Grace Bath also finished under 13 minutes with a time of 12:59.94, while
Abi Ferry finished with a personal record of 13:16.30 not far behind.
Lexi Lapp concluded the Falcons' efforts with a time of 14:42.66.
The Falcons had three different teams compete in the 4x400 Meter Relay, with the "A" team, consisting of
Grace Burns,
Elizabeth Biehl,
Alleha Glenn, and
Kerrigan Lebo, finishing as the top of the trio in third overall with a collective time of 4:25.41 behind Lebo's strong anchor. The Falcons' "C" team, comprised of the distance squad with the top four Falcon finishers from earlier in the day in the 5000 Meter, finished with a strong time of 4:36.08 with particularly strong performances by
Delaney Turk on leadoff and
Madison Kimmel on anchor. The Falcons' "B" team, made up of
Lily Scheetz,
Paulina Torres, Helen Blakeslee, and
Linnea Haney, finished with a time of 4:40.17.
In the Field
Events in the field opened with the Weight Throw, with
Jaclyn Steenstra leading a quartet of Falcons behind a top performance of 12.99 meters (42' 7.5") to qualify for MACs.
Lucy Colyer was the second Falcon finisher with a distance of 10.17 meters (33' 4.5"), with
Ella Axtell (9.07 meters, 29' 9.25") and
Sidney Avers (8.54 meters, 28' 0.25") also competing well.
In the Pole Vault,
Alivia Ritenour made her collegiate debut with a top clearance at 2.45 meters (8' 0.5").
Kaitlyn Albrecht was the sole Falcon in the High Jump, clearing the bar at 1.47 meters (4' 9.75") to qualify for MACs and finish in second place overall in the event.
The Falcons' efforts on the day concluded in the Shot Put, with
Lucy Colyer registering an incredible collegiate debut in the event with a top throw of 11.14 meters (36' 6.75") to qualify for MACs and move into a tie for the 8th best performance in program history.
Leah Ritzman also qualified for MACs with a best throw of 10.00 meters (32' 9.75"), while
Ayva Sechman snuck past the qualifying distance with a 9.78 meters (32' 1") throw.
Libby Jones (8.59 meters, 28' 2.25"),
Ella Axtell (8.41 meters, 27' 7.25"), and
Morgan Deibler (5.87 meters, 19' 3.25") also competed for the Falcons to conclude the event.
Up Next
The Falcons will resume their season after Winter break and will compete next at the Alvernia Winter Invitational on Saturday, January 17.
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