The Shippensburg University outdoor-track-and-field teams battled through the rain to become champions on the final day of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships.
The men’s team won its eighth consecutive PSAC title after scoring a total of 208.5 points. At the end of the meet, sophomore Dru Adighibe was announced as both the Most Valuable Track Athlete and the Overall Meet MVP while sophomore Bryan Pearson was announced as the Most Valuable Field Athlete.
Adighibe was both the 100-meter champion and the 200-meter champion. Freshman Chris Craig and senior RJ Smith placed in the 100-meter as well with Craig placing seventh and Smith placing eighth.
Sophomore Ricky Meriwether snagged sixth place in the 400-meter, and freshman Dominic Stroh and senior Chris Mullin placed second and sixth in the 1500-meter, respectively.
Sophomore Alex Balla was the sole place winner in the 5,000-meter race with a fifth-place finish.
Freshman Ori Rinaman and junior Terry Jackson competed in the 110-meter hurdles final. Rinaman placed third and Jackson placed fifth.
The men’s team was able to place very well in two relays. Senior Devon Fisher, Adighibe, Craig and Smith made up the 4x100 relay; the crew placed second. Meriwether, Rinaman, junior Tim Usher and Adighibe made up the 4x400 relay. Probably one of the most exciting events of the day, SU did not disappoint in the competitive race. Meriwether got a great lead for the relay team which was then carried by Rinaman. Usher had some tough competition in the third leg, but he ran a phenomenal race and gave Adighibe a small head start in the final lap. The race was neck and neck until Adighibe kicked with 200-meters left in the race to have a strong first-place finish.
SU had three place winners in the high jump. Junior Jalen Ramsey placed second, sophomore Tra-C Davis placed third and redshirt freshman Aaron Webb tied for fifth-place.
On the throwing field, sophomore Bryan Pearson placed first in the discus. He was followed by senior Ryan Hart who placed second, sophomore Alec Rideout who placed third and junior Caleb Bartlett who placed sixth.
Junior Derek Nothstein was the javelin champion and freshman Jake Rohn made it to the podium with an eighth-place finish.
The women’s team won its seventh consecutive PSAC title with a total of 177 points. Sophomore Tamara Ovejera was named the Most Valuable Field Athlete.
On the track, sophomore Jill Bertino placed fourth and freshman Allison King placed sixth in the 100-meter.
Sophomore Lindsay Sheehan represented SU in the 200-meter with a seventh-place finish.
Sophomore Kiana Tucker and senior Megan Lundy made it to the podium for the 400-meter. Tucker placed second and Lundy placed third.
Junior Casey Norton secured second place in the 1,500-meter while junior Abby Shafer followed behind with a sixth-place finish.
Norton placed in the 5,000-meter as well with a third-place finish. Freshman Jackie Kinkead made her PSAC championship debut in the 5K and finished fifth.
Hurdlers for SU included sophomore Danielle Sciremammano and freshman Tatiana Purnell. Sciremammano placed third in the 110-meter hurdles while Purnell placed seventh in the 400-meter hurdles.
SU placed in a total of three relays. Junior Sarah Hunt, Sciremammano, Bertino and Sheehan made up the 4x100 relay which placed fourth. Bertino, Sheehan, Tucker and Lundy placed fifth in the 4x400. Junior Abbey Farrell, freshman Abbie Todd, junior Carolyn Meier and Tucker had a sixth place finish in the 4x800.
Sophomore Kali Hepner represented SU in the pole vault, placing fifth. Hunt was deemed triple jump champion with freshman Abby Wagner following with a fifth-place finish.
Ovejera claimed a victory in the discus, followed by fellow teammates junior Paige Shirk (second-place), senior Brianna Davis (third-place), senior Sam Nelson (fourth-place) and sophomore Erin Doherty (eighth-place).
Freshman Morgan DeFloria snagged a second-place finish in the javelin event while sophomore Crystal Hartman placed fifth.
Overall, the 2016 PSAC Championships was a successful meet for the Raiders of SU. The season is not quite finished yet with many SU track and field athletes heading to nationals at the end of May.
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