Men’s and Women’s Track and Field competed at the Darius Dixon Memorial Invitational at Liberty University over the weekend, coming away with four podium finishes and a school record.
Alexandra Lea ’28 started the meet off strong for the Bison, taking gold in the 400 meters, clocking 56.63 seconds, good for seventh overall in the Orange and Blue record books. Later, in the 5000 meters, the duo of Kailey Granger ’27 and Lauren Trapani ’25 placed sixth and seventh, running 17:27.72 and 17:30.36 respectively, both top 10 marks in the Patriot League this season.
Christine Ajao ’25 and Madison Fowler ’28 continued their dominance this season, placing seventh and eighth in the weight throw with heaves of 58-03 and 58-00.25 respectively. These marks were personal records for both athletes, placing Ajao at third and Fowler at fourth all-time in the Bison annals. Noelani Sadler ’28 reached the semi-finals in the 60-meter hurdles, running 8.78 seconds, tying her for third all-time. Sadler would run 8.91 in the semi-finals, missing the finals.
Justley Sharp ’27 started Saturday off strong for the Bison, setting a new school record in the shot put with a mark of 51-10.25 feet, winning the event by over two and a half feet over second place. Lea continued her strong weekend, running 24.91 seconds in the 200 meters for sixth overall at the meet and in the Orange and Blue record books. The team of Regan McGrath ’27, Anna Posh ’25, Sarah Policano ’25 and Kerry O’Day ’28 placed first overall in the distance medley relay, running 11:58.08 to claim a two-second victory over Patriot League rivals Navy in second.
For the men, duo Brandon Foust ’25 and Garrett Backus ’27 both qualified for the semi-finals, placing 12th and 21st running 6.93 and 7.02 seconds respectively, missing the finals. Ethan Knight ’28 placed himself at ninth in the Bison record books for the 60-meter hurdles, clocking 8.37 seconds in the preliminary round. Ethan Pratt-Perez ’28 placed third overall in the 3000 meters, finishing in 8:25.34.
On Saturday, the team of Colby Belczyk ’25, Zachary Jelinek ’26, Foust and Pratt-Perez finished third overall in the Distance Medley Relay, clocking 10:12.02, less than three seconds from the top spot. Gabriel Pecaitis ’28 tied for second in the Open Pole Vault with a clearance of 15-03 feet. Teammates Michael Chernova ’27 and Lucas Williams ’27 were right behind him with marks of 15-03 and 14-09 feet respectively for fifth and sixth place. Wade Shomper ’26 placed fourth overall in the shot put with a toss of 55-05.25 feet.
The Bison also took a group of runners to Youngstown State to run the 5000 meters on Friday. The team of Kaitlyn Segreti ’25, Shaelan McNally ’28 and Lauren Joyce ’26 went 2-3-5, running 17:36.38, 17:47.52 and 18:25.07 respectively. The Orange and Blue men completed a sweep of the top five with Henry Didden ’26, Ben Santos ’25, Harry Marson ’25, Grayson Crockett ’25 and Mason Siebenhaar ’25, running 14:29.75, 14:30.99, 14:31.55, 14:31.68 and 14:31.97 respectively. They now occupy spots 10 through 14 in the Patriot League this season for the event.
The Bison’s season is winding down as they take on the Bucknell Tune Up, their last home meet of the year, on Friday, Feb. 21. This is the last meet before the Orange and Blue take on the Patriot League Championships at Navy in Annapolis, Md March 1 and 2.
