• Senior Christine Rickert set a new meet record and became just the second Big South women’s javelin thrower to win three-straight league titles
• Sophomore Makenzi Holmes-DiGiovine became the first HPU men’s or women’s discus thrower to win a Big South crown with her mark of 49.38m (162-0)
• The Panthers are in second place through four events with 36 total points
LYNCHBURG, Va. – High Point University star throwers Christine Rickert and Makenzi Holmes-DiGiovine claimed individual Big South titles to lead the women’s track & field team on day one of the Big South Outdoor Track & Field Championship Tuesday on the campus of Liberty University.
The two victories helped propel the Panthers to a second-place standing through four events at the annual league meet. Liberty leads the meet (48), followed by High Point (36) and Coastal Carolina (28).
Rickert put the finishing touches on a superb conference career with her third-consecutive Big South javelin title. She is one of just two women’s javelin athletes in league history to win the individual crown in three-consecutive seasons.
Rickert earned the victory with a meet-record throw of 50.18m (164-7), which broke her own previous meet record of 49.53m (162-6) set last season inside Vert Stadium. The Lancaster, Pa., native won the event by more than 20 feet and is now ready to compete at her fourth-straight NCAA Preliminary in Jacksonville in two weeks.
In addition to Rickert’s excellent day, sophomore Mackenzie Vermette placed sixth in the javelin to earn three points for the Panthers with a top mark of 34.36m (112-9). After finishing ninth in her first Big South meet in 2015, the sixth-place showing was an excellent improvement for Vermette in her second league event.
Holmes-DiGiovine became the first discus champion (women’s or men’s) in High Point University history after putting together a strong field series on Tuesday. The victory in Lynchburg by Holmes-DiGiovine broke a streak of four straight women’s discus champions from Liberty University (2012-15).
The Phoenix, Ariz., product posted her winning throw of 49.38m (162-0) on her second attempt of the day, then put together a trio of solid throws in the final, including a 47.51m (155-10) throw on her sixth and final attempt.
Holmes-DiGiovine is not done in 2016, as she is in excellent position for an NCAA preliminary berth in Jacksonville over Memorial Day weekend. She is currently 25th in the NCAA East Region with her school record mark of 51.08m (167-7) set last week at the Liberty Twilight Qualifier.
On the jumps circuit, junior Amanda Gregory continued her outstanding progression this season with a huge PR and a spot on the podium in the long jump. The Wilmington, N.C., product posted a career best mark of 5.61m (18-5) on her opening jump to advance from her flight and enter the final in fourth place.
The PR was short lived, however, as Gregory exploded for a mark of 5.77m (18-11.25) on her second jump of the final to nab a podium spot for the first time in her career. Gregory scored for HPU with a seventh-place finish in 2015 but far superseded that Tuesday to provide her excellent momentum heading into her 2016-2017 senior campaign.
In addition to Gregory, fellow junior Alyn Carr also competed in the long jump for the Panthers and finished 16th with a mark of 5.16m (16-11.25).
Speaking of collegiate-best performances, senior Lindsey Siska put together a stellar showing in the 10000m for HPU, knocking more than a minute off her previous PR while placing third in the event. Her time of 38:00.76 picked us six points for the Purple & White. Fellow senior Julia Zautcke placed eighth in a time of 38:53.76 to grab an additional point for HPU.
All three HPU student-athletes in the 1500m preliminaries advanced to Thursday’s final, led by top-5 finishes from juniors Natalia Ocasio and Cozette Collin. Ocasio placed third (4:45.77) while Collin finished fourth (4:45.80). Freshman Janelle Rothacker also qualified with a time of 4:52.03.
The Panthers also qualified all three of their student-athletes in the 400m hurdles preliminaries. Sophomore Ashlynn Schiro ran a season-best 1:04.89 to finish sixth and freshman Jasmyn Gillespie placed seventh while setting a new collegiate best time (1:06.34). Fellow freshman Emmy Geis qualified as the eighth-place finisher with a time of 1:06.80.
Through four events in the heptathlon, junior Erika Bridges sits in seventh place with 2675 points while sophomore CeAnna Soper is 11th with 2349 points. Senior Sara Katherine Kirkpatrick is 13th (2172). Bridges set an outdoor PR (1.61m) while finishing third in the long jump portion and also cut nearly a full second off her 100m hurdles personal best (15.18 seconds).
“This was an exceptional first day for our women’s program,” head coach Mike Esposito said. “Chrissy and Makenzi took care of business during their wins and Amanda being on the podium is pretty special. Lindsey Siska also really stepped up as a senior in the 10k. Qualifying three 400m hurdlers was great to see, and Mackenzie Vermette’s three points in the javelin could be crucial in the team stanidngs come Thursday. I love the energy and how confidently everyone competed today. We have some great momentum heading into Wednesday’s action.”
The Panthers continue competition in the Big South Championship Wednesday beginning at 12:30 p.m. with the long jump portion of the heptathlon. Track events begin at 2 p.m. with 100m hurdles qualifying.