LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. - The outdoor track season got underway as multiple Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference women's track and field teams competed.
Five SCAC teams competed at the Trinity Open over the weekend.
Austin College's Hannah Richards highlight the 'Roos performance, breaking two program records while placing in the top five in both events. Richards placed fourth in the 1500 meter event, crossing the finish line with a time of 5:02.19 and breaking her own school record in the process. She would later break a record that had stood for nearly 30 years in the 5000 meter race, finishing with a time of 19:24.17 and breaking the previous mark of 19:36, set back in 1989 by Lisa Lucky. Richards placed fifth in the event.
The University of Dallas also competed at the Trinity Open, with Diana Hassink claiming the highest spot for the Crusaders individually in the Shot Put with third place thanks to a 10.98 Meter throw. Anna Brunk and Hannah Green represented Dallas in the Pole Vault for the first time in 14 seasons. The duo each broke the program's record by clearing 8'0" set by Kristin Condotta at the University of Dallas Invitational on April 3rd, 2004. Brunk notched fifth with a 2.65m (8'8.25") result to set the new record. Green cleared 2.50m (8'2.5").
Southwestern University's performance was highlighted by multiple top-five finishes. Jalynn Ashley was fifth in the 100m at 13.40 while freshman Sofia Garcia earned a fifth place finish in the 800m at 2:35.79. Ashley also added a fifth place finish in the long jump at 4.88m.
For Texas Lutheran, Courtnee Prior took third in the 100m with a time of 13.35 seconds, while Kaitlyn Rodriguez took fourth in the 400m (1:03.25). Ashley Rynard and Kylee Garcia went 1-2 in the 800m event, respectively. The women also claimed the 4x400 relay title with a time of 4:04.04. In field events, Ashlee Hooks took the top spot in the high jump, marking a distance of 1.52m, and Prior won the long jump (5.53m)
For Trinity, it was a successful meet as well, claiming six top finishes. The 5000 meter run saw the Tiger women snag the top four spots, led by Haley McFadden's winning time of 18:46.99. Elizabeth Peters took Trinity's only win in the sprints, finishing with the top time of 26.06 seconds in the 200 meter dash. Nkolika Nweke was third in the 400 meter dash with a time of 59.45 seconds, which places her in the top 10 all-time at Trinity. The Tigers also had a strong day in the hurdles. Andy Garza led a trio of Trinity runners at the top of the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 1:05.85.
Maia Muramoto won the women's javelin with throw of 27.67 meters, while Stella Affognon was fourth in the shot put and seventh in the discus for the Tiger women. Her mark of 10.89 meters in the shot put moves her to seventh in Trinity history, and she also moved into the top 10 with her throw of 32.58 meters in the discus.
