SYDNEY LORENTZ
STAFF WRITER
Franciscan University of Steubenville’s men’s and women’s track and field teams kicked off their outdoor season at the Carnegie Mellon Invitational on Saturday, March 23.
On the women’s side, the team saw continued improvement across the board. Freshman Brigid Kelly started the day off strong in the women’s discus, placing eighth with a throw of 27.88 meters. Kelly also earned two other top-10 finishes, placing sixth in the shot-put with a throw of 8.62 meters and seventh in the 100-meter hurdles.
Freshman Ashlin LaFond had an impressive sixth-place finish in the 800-meter run, crossing the line with a time of 2:32. Freshman Elizabeth Atkins placed seventh in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 5:17. Freshman Alison Bryant also had a great performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, placing third with a time of 12:22.
On the men’s side, junior Max Martin and senior Mike Orsatti placed eighth and ninth in the 100-meter dash with times of 12.73 and 12.76, respectively. Sophomore Easton Syvertson placed eighth in the 400-meter dash with time of 56.54, with sophomore Michael Manion close behind in 10th place with a time of 57.99.
In the 1,500-meter run, sophomore Liam Galligan crossed the line in third place with a time of 4:04, and junior Mark Borek and senior Nick Long came close behind in fifth and sixth place, respectively, with times of 4:05 and 4:10.
Sophomore Austen Duggan placed ninth in the 800-meter run, finishing in a time of 2:02.
Head coach Vince Oliver enjoyed seeing his team in its first outdoor meet, and he looks forward to the growth he hopes to engender in the running Barons. “My staff and I got a chance to see where these young women and men are at in their training and readiness,” he said. “It’s always a process, and I was happy with their efforts but not nearly satisfied. We will continue to work hard to represent Franciscan University and improve in everything we do.”
Overall, Oliver spoke joyfully about the atmosphere of the day as a whole: “The sun was shining, our family was together and we glorified God in everything we did today, and that is the most important thing we could have done.”
The Barons will compete again on March 30 at the Bethany College Invitational.