SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Golden Eagle track & field team finally enjoyed some decent weather during their outdoor season, and the team made it count with a strong effort at the Dave Labor Invitational hosted by Slippery Rock on Saturday.
(Pictured Above: Sadie Leisinger. Photo Credit: David Hague)
Mackenzie Carver hit a PSAC-qualifying mark in the 1500m on Saturday, locking up her spot in the event at the conference outdoor championships in May. The senior and reigning PSAC Track Co-Athlete of the Week took second overall in the field, crossing the line in a time of 4:52.21. That was just two seconds shy of the PR she set at last year’s conference championship.
Also locking up a spot at the conference championships on the track was Allison Farson. The junior long-distance runner took third in the 10,000m, completing the grueling circuit in a time of 40:07.07. Farson came within one place of scoring in the event at last year’s PSAC Outdoor Championships.
The top field performance of the day came courtesy of Autumn Pettinato. The senior – who hit a PSAC-qualifying mark in the Javelin at last week’s Carnegie Mellon Invitational – placed second in the field with a toss of 36.25m. That mark also cleared the conference qualification standard. Leah Perry PR’ed in the event with a mark of 24.79m.
Perry just narrowly missed out on a PSAC-qualifying mark of her own, coming up just hundredths of a second shy of hitting the time in the 100 Hurdles. She won her heat and took ninth overall in the event with a time of 15.92, putting her close to the qualifying standard of 15.85. However, it did represent a huge improvement over her first two attempts at the event this spring, coming in nearly three-tenths of a second faster than her last competition.
Also coming within just a few ticks of a conference-qualifying mark was Cheyenne Mehl, who took eighth place in the 800m. The freshman crossed the finish line in a time of 2:23.65. Nicole Carroll was just a few seconds behind her, at 2:28.05, and Caleigh Aigler finished in 2:36.03. Rounding out the track action was Paige Brewer, who competed in the 3000m Steeplechase and took 12th with a time of 13:08.52.
Elsewhere in the field:
Sadie Leisinger authored her best performance in the outdoor High Jump of the season to date. The senior cleared the bar at a height of 1.50m, doing so on her first attempt at the height.
Emily Pleslusky took 13th in the Pole Vault, clearing a height of 2.85m.
