Led by a strong showing in the sprints and the throws, the Hillsdale College women's track and field team got 2024 off to a strong start at their first meet after the Christmas Break in Findlay, Ohio on Friday night.
The Chargers battled host Findlay and fellow G-MAC foe Ashland in the start of the road to the G-MAC Indoor Championship meet at the end of February.
Hillsdale had a great night in the sprints, with four first place finishes. Sophomore Lucy Minning won both the 60 meter dash (7.95) and the 200m dash (26.53) in a strong first performance of 2024, with teammate Anna Lamoreaux taking second in the 60m dash (8.27) and fourth in the 200m dash (27.02), and Tara Townsend also placing third in the 200m dash (26.91) for the Chargers.
Hillsdale also swept the podium in the 400m dash, with freshman Zoe Burke winning her first collegiate 400m race in 1:00.27, with teammates Josee Behling (second, 1:01.27) and Francesca Federici (1:01.36) close behind. The trio also teamed-up on the Chargers' winning 4x400m relay, taking the title in 4:02.81 along with Shura Ermakov.
Ermakov also won the 60m hurdles for the Chargers in a personal best time of 9.01, with teammate Louisa Klaserner placing second in 9.05.
Hillsdale also had a solid day in the field, including two provisional marks in the weight throw. Katie Sayles placed third with a throw of 18.04 meters to better her NCAA Provisional mark and move up to seventh in the nation at the NCAA DII level in the event, while teammate Katie Weldy placed fourth with a throw of 17.67 meters to move her provisional mark up to 14th in the nation early in the 2023-24 indoor campaign.
Senior Emily Gerdin also earned a pair of runner-up finishes for the Chargers, taking second in the long jump (5.27 meters) and in the triple jump (10.93 meters), while junior Reagan Dahlquist also placed second for the Chargers in the high jump, clearing 1.62 for Hillsdale.
Katie Clifford placed third in the pole vault for Hillsdale with a clearance of 3.56 meters, and Erika Mogelvang placed fourth in the high jump behind Dahlquist with a clearance of 1.52 meters.
Hillsdale will return to the track next weekend, racing at home for the first time in 2024 in the Hillsdale Winter Opener on Friday, Jan. 19. It's the first of three home meets in the indoor season for the Chargers.