The Slippery Rock outdoor track and field team had three more athletes reach PSAC qualifying marks last Saturday at the Ashland Alumni Invitational.
The event was the final meet before the PSAC Championships.
The past two years at the PSACs have produced two second place finishes from the women’s team and two fourth places from the men’s team.
Freshman high jumper Amelia Wren, sophomore thrower Allyson Hubble, and freshman thrower Nick Garuccio met qualifying marks in their events.
In the pole vault, senior Kelly Fischer and sophomore Julia Cain both hit NCAA provisional marks.
Cain cleared 3.67 meters to hit her season-high clearance and place third. Fischer placed seventh with a clearance of 3.55 meters.
Two javelin throwers also met NCAA provisional marks in the javelin throw.
Junior Lexi Arnold hit the mark with her season-best throw of 43.04 meters and earned second place. Arnold was followed by junior Kim Goth in third with a mark of 40.30 meters.
Running her season-best in the 400-meter hurdles, senior Jayme Stanek took first with a time of 1:03.63.
Freshman Katelyn Wetzel took first in the 100-meter dash at 13.08 seconds.
The 4×400-meter relay team of Stanek, Wetzel, freshman Janine Powis and senior Caitlin Hancox clocked in their best time of the season, 4:01.01, for the win.
In the 4×100-meter relay, the team of Stanek, Wetzel, freshman Samantha Zampetti and sophomore Christina Ransom placed third with a time of 49.53 seconds.
In the 800-meter run, Hancox took second with a time of 2:14.47. Powis placed sixth at 2:22.21.
Wren hit her PSAC qualifying mark in the high jump at 1.60 meters for a ninth place finish.
Recording a win for Slippery Rock in the triple jump was sophomore Dilshani Madawala with a mark of 10.40 meters.
Hubble finished in 14th in the shot put with a qualifying throw of 11.41 meters.
The Rock’s men’s relay teams had another set of strong performances at the invitational.
The 4×400-meter relay team of senior Vanere Maynard, junior Kevin Jewel, sophomore Trevor Foley, and freshman Hunter Williams ran their season-best time of 3:18.15 to earn first place.
The 4×100-meter relay team of Williams, Maynard, junior DJ Chisom, and junior Mason McLaughlin also ran their season-best time of 41.97 seconds for third place.
Jewel placed third in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:53.52 and Chisom took second in the 100-meter dash at 11.15 seconds.
Garuccio placed 14th place with a throw of 40.38 meters. In the 400-meter dash, freshman Monte Chapman led The Rock in fourth place at 50.98 seconds.
Chapman was followed by freshman Nick Shrift in fifth at 51.25 seconds and sophomore Nathaniel Helfferich in sixth with a time of 51.94 seconds.
Junior pole vaulter Cameron Daughtery took third with a clearance of 4.75 meters.
Freshman Jerrod Galloway threw for 48.90 meters in the javelin throw to place third.
Also recording a third place finish was sophomore Sam Lotz in the triple jump with a leap of 13.20 meters.
In the 100-meter hurdles, junior Dan Hedglin placed seventh at 15.44 seconds and sophomore Jonathan Boyd finished eighth at 15.53 seconds.
In the 400-meter hurdles, junior Ethan Geisler ran a time of 54.60 seconds to place third and Foley placed fourth with a time of 54.86 seconds.
Heading into the PSACs, Jewel feels that Shippensburg will be The Rock’s toughest competition. They are a massive team with a lot of talent, but we are capable of beating them, Jewel said.
“The atmosphere at the PSACS is just so charged,” Jewel said. “It always brings out the best in everyone.”
Slippery Rock will travel to Bloomsburg, PA for the PSAC Championships May 3-5.
