Elizabethtown College’s track and field teams returned to Susquehanna University on Saturday to compete in their last meet before the Indoor MAC Championships this upcoming weekend.
Senior Lucas Dayhoff took first place in the weight throw with a throw of 14.95m (49’0-3/4″). Junior Andrew Khela, also competing in the weight throw, took eighth place out of 18 other throwers with a throw that measured in at 12.48m (40’11-1/2″). This throw was three feet farther than his previous throw and gave him a fourth place spot on the indoor top ten list. Senior Kevin Brady took first place in pole vault with a jump of 4.40m (14’5-1/4″) and qualified for the finals in the 60-meter hurdles. He ran 8.99 to give him fourth place.
Another first-place finish for the Blue Jays went to first-year Max Mahan, who jumped 1.88m (6’2″) in high jump. Mahan also competed in long jump and received third place with his 6.23m (20’9″) jump. This jump gave him third overall at the meet and ninth on the program’s all-time list.
Racing the mile was sophomore Zach Trama, along with first-years Andrew Lesko and Jon Anderson. Trama crossed the finish line in 4:31.88, giving him third overall. Lesko finished in 4:37.19 and Anderson finished just .64 seconds after Lesko with a time of 4:37.83. Lesko and Anderson finished in ninth and tenth places, respectively.
Junior Dan Gresh and sophomores Sam Cooper and Ryan Conway all competed in the 3k. Gresh placed third with a time of 9:05.07, and Cooper and Conway crossed the finish line in 9:15.98 and 9:22.54, respectively, to give all three runners a top-ten place on Saturday.
The women’s team also had an eventful day at Susquehanna University. First-year Alexis Groce set her second school record this indoor season. She already held the 500m dash record and secured the 400m dash record on Saturday. Her time of 1:00.12 placed her in third overall at the meet. Another promising performance going into MACs was from senior Monica Loranger, who took first overall in pole vault with a jump of 3.20m (10’6″). She also competed in high jump and took eighth place overall with a height of 1.52m (4’11-3/4″).
The distance runners had a successful day on the track as well. Senior Megan Tursi raced the mile and finished in 5:21.83, earning her ninth place on the all-time list and first overall at the meet. Second to cross the finish line in the mile was junior Amelia Tearnan in 5:27.77. Senior Amanda Kerno finished in 5:29.12 in fourth place, with first-year Liz Wedekind in seventh at 5:34.41. First-year Casey Quinto came in ninth place in 5:41.65.
Senior Traci Tempone took first place in the 3k with a time of 10:11.23 First-year Samantha Gehly took sixth in 11:20.74 and senior Elaina Nellis placed eighth overall, finishing in 11:26.09. Senior Eileen Cody finished the 5k in 19:27.82, giving her a second-place finish. First-year Samantha Zarzaca placed sixth in the 5k with a time of 21:09.93.
On the field, first-year Amanda Porter achieved a new personal record in the shot put with a throw of 11.24m (36’10-1/2″), giving her third overall. Senior Eileen Kroszner took sixth place overall with a throw of 10.94m (35’10-3/4″).
Both the men and women’s track and field teams will be competing in the Indoor MAC Championship meet this weekend at Lehigh University.
