“The championships are always a whirl of emotions,” head coach R.P. White said. “We had some very good performances, and other things we wish would have panned out in our favor. I’m very proud of the large crew of athletes we had in attendance.”
Wamsley had a standout performance, according to White. Wamsley earned All-American honors after she finished seventh in the 5000 meter run on Friday with a time of 16:29.77.
Juniors Meg Scheske and Gwynne Riley competed in the mile run. Scheske took sixth place in the mile run on Friday with a finishing time of 4:58, while Riley finished 13th with a time of 4:50.48.
Sophomore Averi Parker threw 13.25 meters in the shot put, earning her 14th place in the event. Sophomore weight thrower Katie Sayles took 12th with a throw of 18.04 meters in the women’s weight throw.
In the distance medley relay, the Chargers took ninth with a time of 11:36. Scheske and Riley, along with sophomores Shura Ermakov and Reese Dragovich competed in the event.
The 4×400 relay runners took 14th place with a time of 3:49. The team consisted of sophomore Shura Ermakov, sophomore Reese Dragovich, freshman Francesca Frederici, and senior Dakota Stamm.
Ermakov said although the team’s final ranking was not ideal, she was still proud of its efforts.
“I think overall the team performed well, even if the way we finished wasn’t what we wanted,” Ermakov said. “In the two relays I competed in, the DMR improved its predicted standing by one place. One thing I wish I had done better was be more aggressive at trying to pass on the last 200m of the DMR.”
Ermakov said she felt a lot of excitement leading up to the DMR race, but handled it well.
“My favorite moment was warming up with my teammate Reese before the DMR, because we were both really excited to compete,” Ermakov said. “I think I did really well at managing my nerves and excitement at this nationals meet as compared to previous years.”
The track and field team will jump right back into action this upcoming weekend, competing at the Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open at Cedarville University on March 25. The following weekend, the team will compete in the VertKlasse Meeting at High Point University March 31.
