ELON, N.C. – As the 2016 outdoor track and field regular season winds down, the Elon women’s track and field team hosts the first of two meets on its home track this season with the Phoenix Invitational on Saturday, April 23, at the Jerry and Jeanne Robertson Track and Field Complex. The meet kicks off with field events at 10 a.m.
Follow the Phoenix
Keep up with the action of the Phoenix on Saturday at the meet with live results accessible through the program’s schedule page at elonphoenix.com. Updates will also be provided on Twitter at the handle @elonscores and @EU_XCTF.
Outdoor Prelims
• The Phoenix will have over 300 athletes compete at its home facility on Saturday with 55 teams being represented.
• This is the second consecutive year that Elon has hosted a home meet after not hosting one the previous eight years prior to last season.
• Elon will recognize its track and field senior class as well as three members of the Phoenix men’s cross country team.
• Elon is scheduled to have 32 of its athletes compete this on Saturday in their respective events and relay races.
• This is the first of two meets that will be held on the Jerry and Jeanne Robertson Track Complex with Elon also hosting the Colonial Athletic Association Outdoor Championship meet on May 6-7.
• Going into the weekend, Elon holds the top marks or times in five events on the CAA’s Outdoor Performance list; Sydney Griffin (100-meter hurdles – 13.63), Jen Esposito (400-meter hurdles – 58.01), Tereza Novotna (3,000-meter steeplechase – 10:28.05), the 4×400-meter relay team (3:45.43) and Bryanna Hames (discus – 164’ 11”).
• Esposito holds the 15th best time in the 400-meter hurdles on the NCAA East Outdoor Qualifying list. Novotna is also in the top-25 on the list in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Two others, Griffin in the 100-meter hurdles and Hames in the discus, are also in the top-40 of their respective events as the top-48 times/marks qualify for the NCAA East Preliminaries in Jacksonville, Fla., on May 26-28.
Last Time Out
Elon took home the team title at the Campbell Invitational last weekend as the Phoenix scored 127 points at the meet and edged out other notable programs such as Wake Forest (83) and host Campbell (76). The Phoenix had seven overall event titles at the meet including wins in the 400-meter hurdles, the 1,500-meter run, the 3,000-meter run, the shot put, the discus throw, the 400-meter dash and the 4×400-meter relay.
Elyse Bierut set a new school-record in the 3,000-meter run with her time of 9:54.75 to win the race. Shelby Cuddeback was second in the event with her time of 10:02.28 – a new personal-best and second-fastest time in school history behind Bierut’s performance.
Sophomore Bryanna Hames won two titles at the meet as the Charlotte, N.C., native captured the shot put and the discus title. Hames had a toss of 157′ 2″ (47.91m) in the discus and won the shot put with a 42’ 11” (13.08m) mark.
The Phoenix swept the podium in the 1,500-meter run as Brigid Brennan clocked a 4:38.77 to take medalist honors. Coralea Geraniotis (4:40.51) and Corey Weiss (4:42.24) were second and third, respectively, in the race. Brennan’s performance was also a meet record.
The Phoenix’s 4×400-meter relay team of Desiree Ross, Lauren Brzozowski, Lydia Laws and Esposito ran a 3:45.43 to win the race – the third-fastest outdoor time in school history. Esposito also took individualist honors in the 400-meter hurdles with her time of 58.16 while Ross won the 400-meter dash with a 56.23.
Ellie Bennett set her personal-best in the pole vault after clearing the bar at 11′ 0.25″ (3.36m) and was fourth overall. That performance moves her to third all-time on the program’s all-time outdoor list.
On Deck
Elon will hosts the 2016 CAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 6-7 as the Phoenix will have a chance to defend its league title on its home track.