STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - The Daemen University women's track and field team finished fifth out of 11 teams at the 2024 East Coast Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships held tonight at Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex.

Daemen recorded 53 team points. Felician University claimed the team title with 147.5 points. The University of the District of Columbia (105), Roberts Wesleyan University (81), Holy Family University (58) and Daemen rounded out the top five.

A first place finish by freshman Kristen Oliver (Massena, N.Y.) in the weight throw highlighted the evening for the Wildcats. Sophomore Becca Schultz (Grand Island, N.Y.) capped an outstanding indoor season, as she broke her own school record and placed fifth in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 9.27 seconds.

Daemen also got second-place showings by graduate student Hannah Thomas (Cheektowaga, N.Y.) in the 800 meters and graduate student Courtney Merrill (Speedway, Ind.) in the mile. Senior Camryn Bailey (Geneva, N.Y.) placed third the 5,000 meters and fourth in the 3,000 meters. Senior Emma Grzebinski (West Seneca, N.Y.) and graduate student Tima Abdellatif (Grand Island, N.Y.) both placed fourth in the 1,000 meters and weight throw respectively.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Oliver posted her first career first-place finish, as she finished first out of 23 throwers with a school-record toss of 15.55 meters, eclipsing the previous standard of 15.31 meters she set two weeks ago at the Brockport Multi Invitational. Oliver has improved her mark in the weight throw in each of Daemen's six meets this season, and tonight's toss of 15.55 meters is tops in the East region this year. She also took part in the shot put and placed first among Daemen throwers and seventh out of 24 overall with a toss of 10.20 meters. Oliver becomes the second Daemen athlete to win the weight throw at the ECC indoor championships in the past three years. Skye Dorcely won the event in 2022.
• Schultz took part in four individual events. She qualified for the finals in the 60-meter hurdles after placing sixth out of 15 entrants in the qualifying round with a school-record time of 9.34 seconds, eclipsing the mark of 9.35 seconds she posted at the Brockport Multi two weeks ago. The record would be short lived, as she would go on to place fifth in the finals and set a new program record with a time of 9.27 seconds. She then qualified for the finals in the 60-meter dash after placing eighth out of 28 entrants in the preliminary round with a personal best time of 8.09 seconds. She would place eighth in the finals with a time of 8.11 seconds. Schultz also placed first out of five Daemen entrants and 12^th overall in the long jump (4.71 meters) and 11^th out of 14 entrants in the triple jump (9.88 meters).
• Thomas competed in the 800 meters and the 3,000 meters. She placed second out of 18 runners in the 800 with a personal-best time of 2:21.13, coming in less than a second behind Catherine Catipay of Felician (2:20.28). She then placed 11^th in the 3,000 meters with a time of 11:31.80. Thomas has competed in nine races this season and has posted four first-place finishes and four second-place efforts.
• Merrill competed in the mile and the 3,000 meters. She placed second out of nine runners in the mile with a time of 5:29.48, just two seconds behind Kylee Odell (5:27.51) of Roberts Wesleyan. Merrill would go on to place seventh in the 3,000 with a time of 11:12.57.
• Bailey competed in the 5,000 meters and the 3,000 meters and posted a top four finish in both races. She placed third out of 10 runners in the 5,000 meters with a time of 18:55.90 and would finish fourth out of 15 in the 3,000 with a time of 10:54.34.
• Grzebinski competed in the 1,000 meters and placed fourth out of 12 runners with a personal best time of 3:11.81.
• Abdellatif placed fourth in the weight throw with a personal best toss of 13.98 meters.
• Junior Emma Cain (Lockport, N.Y.) ran the 5,000 meters and placed fifth with a time of 19:47.30, while sophomore Alexis Nguyen (Grand Island, N.Y.) ran the 800 meters and placed 12^th with an indoor personal best time of 2:38.96.
• Sophomore Alexis Rodriguez (Williamson, N.Y.) took part in the 60-meter hurdles and the 200-meter dash and posted a personal best time in both events. She narrowly failed to qualify for the finals in the 60-meter hurdles after posting a personal best time of 10.05 seconds in the preliminary round. She also posted a personal best time (27.60 seconds) and placed 15^th out of 29 sprinters in the 200 meters.
• Freshman Abbie Herman (Hamburg, N.Y.) competed in three events and posted a personal best time in both the 60-meter hurdles (9.02 seconds) and the 200-meter dash (30.56 seconds). Freshman D'Naesha Quicksey (Buffalo, N.Y.) posted a personal best time in the 60-meter dash (8.83 seconds).
• Sophomore Patsy Oberholzer (Greece, N.Y.) and sophomore Hayley Pizur (Grand Island, N.Y.) both competed in the 3,000 meters. Oberholzer placed ninth (11:22.54) and Pizur finished 11^th with a personal best time (12:29.68).
• Junior Alyssa Amirato (Depew, N.Y.) took part in the long jump and the triple jump. She and was the top Daemen finisher in the triple jump and placed seventh out of 14 overall with a leap of 10.37 meters. She placed 13^th in the long jump (4.69 meters).
• Sophomore Angelina Natale (Rochester, N.Y.) placed 23^rd in the long jump (3.99 meters), while freshman Morgan Hall (Rochester, N.Y.) finished 24^th in the long jump (3.87 meters) and 14^th in the triple jump (8.74 meters).
• Freshman Ileanna Hopkins (Syracuse, N.Y.) was Daemen's lone competitor in the high jump and placed 12^thout of 17 with a leap of 1.45 meters.
• Daemen had five competitors in both the shot put and the weight throw.
• Freshman Julia Petry (Batavia, N.Y.) was second among Daemen throwers in the shot put (9.80 meters). She was third among Daemen throwers and posted a top-ten effort in the weight throw with a personal best toss of 12.09 meters. Elizabeth Bentley (Belmont, N.Y.) was third among Daemen throwers (9.16 meters) in the shot put.
• Daemen's 4x400 relay team of Rodriguez, sophomore Grace Gominiak (Darien Center, N.Y.), senior Neissa Raymond (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore Christa Oates (Tonawanda, N.Y.) placed sixth out of 11 teams with a time of 4:18.34.
• Daemen distance medley relay team of Grzebinski, Gominiak, Oates and Oberholzer placed forth out of seven teams with a time of 13:15.27.

ALL-CONFERENCE
Oliver, Thomas, Merrill, Grzebinski, Bailey and Abdellatif all earned all-conference honors. The top two finishers in each event earn first-team all-conference, while third and fourth place finishers are named second team. Oliver earns All-ECC honors for the first time. Thomas earned first team honors in the 800 after picking up second team honors in the event the past two years. Merrill picks up her third indoor All-ECC honor. She earned second team honors in both the mile and the 3,000 meters two years ago. Grezbinski collects all-conference honors for the first time in her career. Bailey picks up second team honors in 3,000 meters for the second-straight year and earns her eighth overall (track and cross country) all-conference recognition. She is a three-time recipient in indoor track, a four-time honoree in outdoor track and a one-time honoree in cross country. Abdellatif picks up her first indoor all-conference honor. She collected first-team All-ECC in the hammer throw at last year's ECC Outdoor Track & Field Championships after winning the event with a school-record throw of 41.18 meters.
 
UP NEXT
Daemen's 2024 outdoor track & field schedule will be released soon.
 
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