LANCASTER, Pa. - The Messiah Women's Track and Field team competed today at the Mini Dip Invitational hosted by Franklin & Marshall college, enjoying a fantastic assortment of results as their season begins to peak towards its culmination in the Indoor MAC championships. Despite the Falcons resting quite a few of their stronger athletes, the team still earned a new entry on the program's all-time top ten lists alongside three new MAC qualifying marks and four top three finishes amongst a competitive field made up of 14 other schools.
The Falcons will look to keep their momentum going as they travel to Susquehanna University for the Susquehanna Valentine Invite on Saturday, February 14.
On the Track
Aubrey Yeager opened things up on the track for the Falcons in the 5000 Meter Run, turning in a fantastic performance as the only Falcon in the race with a time of 20:03.20 behind a very strong closing lap.Â
Kenzee Wiker ran a fantastic race to lead the Falcons in the 800 Meter Run, improving significantly on her 2:39.35 season opener in January to win her heat in a time of 2:30.59 and qualify for MACs.
Katie Gardner also finished with an indoor personal best time of 2:39.76, shortly ahead of
Linnea Haney's 2:43.78 clocking.
Kara Brown had a fantastic race in the 60 Meter Hurdles, finishing in third place overall with a time of 9.48 that ties her season best. Brown has steadily worked her time in the hurdles down from 9.70 to 9.48 over the last two meets, signifying a definite trend in the right direction as the season progresses. Katelyn Albrecht also competed in the 60 Meter Hurdles, finishing with a time of 10.60.Â
In the flat 60 Meter Dash,
Arwyn Gruenwald's performance tells a similar story to Brown's with a season best of 8.14 that represents a significant improvement on her other times so far this season.
Dajea Batchler also finished with a personal best time of 8.53, while Pole Vault specialist
Alivia Ritenour also raced in the 60 meter and finished with a 9.65 clocking.
The Mile enjoyed a strong contingent of Falcons, with
Kerrigan Lebo and
Alleha Glenn both earning new MAC qualifying marks with respective times of 5:32.39 and 5:39.86, both personal bests. Lebo ran an exceptionally patient race, coming through the first half in a time of 2:52.8 before surging in the second half with a 2:39 last 800 meters to move up into second place. Glenn followed her teammate's surge to break 5:40, while
Meagan Kime also finished under six minutes with a time of 5:50.19. Pauline Torres finished with a time of 6:21.86 in her first collegiate attempt in the Mile, while
Abigail Smith rounded out the Falcons' efforts in a season best time of 7:23.11.
The Falcons benefitted from two competitors in the 400 Meter Dash, with
Elizabeth Biehl remaining very consistent in a time of 1:06.75 over two laps.
Kaitlynn Yeager also finished with a season best time of 1:18.89.
Arwyn Gruenwald also led the Falcons in the 200 Meter Dash longer sprint, finishing with an impressive time of 27.03 that inches closer to her indoor personal best of 26.70 to place second overall in the competition.
Lily Scheetz closed well in her heat to finish with a time of 28.99, just ahead of
Kyra Dillon's personal record clocking of 29.09 and
Dajea Batchler's strong run in a time of 29.16.
Samantha Mynio had a fantastic race in the 3000 Meter Run in her return from injury, finishing with a surprise indoor personal record with a time of 11:55.13.
Elizabeth Anthony ran a strong race despite running in almost total isolation from any competitors, finishing near her personal best with a 12:35.85 finish.
Grace Bath finished with a time of 13:14.91 and
Kelsey Hoffman with a time of 13:33.56, with
Lia Widenhofer breaking 15 minutes for the first time this season to stop the clock at 14:47.74.
The Falcons concluded the meet by running three relays in the 4x400 Meter Dash, with the top team of
Kyra Dillon,
Alleha Glenn,
Meagan Kime, and
Kerrigan Lebo finishing with a strong time of 4:20.38 to finish second overall. The Falcons fielded two other teams, with the second team, made up of
Elizabeth Biehl,
Kenzee Wiker,
Paulina Torres, and
Abigail Smith, winning their heat to finish fifth in a time of 4:41.67. The final Falcon team of
Lily Scheetz,
Katie Gardner,
Kaitlynn Yeager, and
Linnea Haney finished with a time of 4:51.37.
In the Field
The Falcons earned their new all-time top ten mark on the day in the field, with
Jaclyn Steenstra setting a new personal best throw of 13.74 meters (45' 1") in the Weight Throw to improve on her own third all-time mark.
Ella Axtell finished as the second Falcon with a mark of 10.22 meters (33' 6.5"), followed by
Sidney Avers (10.12 meters, 33' 2.5") and
Lucy Colyer (7.32 meters, 24' 0.25").
Lucy Colyer returned in the Shot Put to lead the Falcons with a top throw of 11.21 meters (36' 9.5"), followed by
Ella Axtell's top effort of 10.19 meters (33' 5.25") on the day.
Leah Ritzman continued her very consistent season with a best throw of 9.78 meters (32' 1"), while
Libby Jones also demonstrated her own consistency in her third competition as a Falcon with a mark of 8.46 meters very close to her best.
Alivia Ritenour was the sole Falcon to compete in the Pole Vault, with the freshman earning an impressive second-time clearance at 2.73 meters (8' 11.5") to achieve her top vault on the day. Ritenour overcame a scare at 2.43 meters (7' 11.5") with a third time clearance before ultimately concluding the competition with three strong attempts at 2.88 meters (9' 5.25"), finishing just two centimeters adrift of her personal best.
Kara Brown and
Kaitlyn Albrecht also participated in the vertical jumps with their performances in the High Jump, finishing with respective heights of 1.45 meters (4' 9") and 1.40 meters (4' 7").
Up Next
The Falcons will look to keep their momentum going as they travel to Susquehanna University for the Susquehanna Valentine Invite on Saturday, February 14.
