Women's Track and Field | 4/23/2022 9:20:00 PM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. - Nine All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference (AARTFC) qualifying performances and nearly 30 personal records were earned by the St. John Fisher College women's track and field team at Saturday's Cardinal Classic at the Polisseni Track and Field Complex.

Samantha Shea became the third Cardinal to earn an AARTFC berth with a qualifying time in the 100-meter dash (12.59 seconds). Shea not only won the finals race by shaving six-hundredths of a second off of her preliminary time, but the junior was one of five Fisher sprinters to set a PR in the event.

In the 200-meter dash, Veronica Duell (27.73), Brenda Le (28.20), Allison Lennebacker (28.40), and Ashley Holt (29.33) all recorded new personal records. Gracie Wright (26.36) was the top Cardinal in the race in second place, while Duell, Emma Wright, and Breanna Lambert finished among the top 10 in fourth, sixth, and 10th, respectively.

Le, a first-year sprinter, and senior Megan McAllister both ran personal bests in the 400-meter with times of 1:03.15 and 1:04.16. McAllister was also the runner-up in the 400-meter hurdles with a PR of 1:08.87.

The 100-meter hurdles saw freshman Ciarra Franz lock down her second AARTFC effort of the spring season. In the prelims, Franz was clocked at 14.88 seconds. Classmate Milan Simmons set a new PR in the finals and placed third at 16.13 seconds. 

Sophomore Laura Witt turned in a noteworthy 5,000-meter performance. Witt finished second with a new PR and AARTFC-worthy time of 18:39.02. Sophomore Lauren Almy (20:16.40) and freshman Audrey Carragher (21:00.92) also had PRs at 5,000 meters.

Fisher junior Riley Corey earned her second conference qualifier of the season at 10,000-meters. Her time of 39:12.24 was nearly a second quicker than her showing at the Geneseo Early Season Invitational. Corey was the runner-up in the 10,000-meter race, trailing only Michelle Rohl, a former Olympian who set an American record for the fastest 10K for women 55 to 60 years old (37:40.99).

The 4x100 relay squad with Franz, Shea, Gracie Wright, and Michaela Kurbs posted a decisive win over second-place Nazareth College. The Cardinal quartet, which solidified a conference postseason berth with a program record at 48.68 seconds, bested the Golden Flyer team by nearly three seconds.

The 4x800 relay team of Alivia Collins, Angelea Collins, Vanessa Ramos, and Taylor Highers won their event by an even more impressive margin. The Cardinals finished the race in 10:43.71, a victory of over 43 seconds over Oswego State.

Senior pole vaulter Alondra Arroyo equaled her best height of the 2022 campaign. She placed third with a mark of 3.20 meters. Two spots behind Arroyo in fifth, Emily Frech achieved a PR height of 2.60 meters. 

Another program record fell in the field portion of the meet. Duell and Kurbs finished one-two in the long jump, with the former setting a new record at 5.81 meters and the latter clearing 5.71 meters. Both athletes met the AARTFC standard in the long jump for the second time this spring.

In the discus, second-year thrower Makenna King took home first place with a distance of 38.62 meters.

To view the complete results from the 2022 Cardinal Classic, please click here.

A trio of Cardinals - Franz, Shea, and Gracie Wright - will return to the track on Sunday, April 24, at SUNY Geneseo's Quad Meet. The rest of the St. John Fisher women's track and field program will compete at the Rochester Spring Classic next weekend.