WHEELING, W.Va.—The Franciscan University Barons hit the road this weekend for their first outdoor meet of the season at the Bill Van Horne Invitational. Head coach Vince Oliver reported that, despite the challenge of the cold weather, the team persevered and did very well.
The Lady Barons came in 16th at the meet with a score of 10 points in total. "Most everyone met or exceeded the mark for themselves today and the women's team had an exceptionally good performance," stated the head coach.
Senior Kailey Gotta had a great show of athleticism on the day, placing second in the women's 3000 meter run and earning 8 points with a time of 10:49.14, only about half a second behind the first place runner. Gotta also ran an impressive 5:13:22 in the women's 1500 meter run. When asked her about her great success of the day, she simply smiled and stated, "I just love to run! I am so happy the season is off to a good start."
Senior Tessa Livermont competed through the hurdles and the water pit feature of the women's 3000 meter steeple chase, scoring two points for the women's team. Senior Julie Randall also performed well for the Lady Barons, coming in second place with a distance of 31.23 meters in the second flight for women's discus.
The Barons did not score at the meet due to a few setbacks. In the men's 5000 meter run, Bill Jones came in 14th with a time of 15:51:91. "Bill Jones was sick today and we have a few men still recovering from injuries right now," reports Coach Oliver. Competing well overall on the day included freshmen Joey Schlueter in the 3000 meter run and sophomore Jack Kaiser in the 5000 meter race. In men's field events, Tim Michaud did the team proud in the javelin throw with a distance of 42.82 meters.
"Every race, Kevin LeRoy writes on his arm, 'Christ be our light'," said mid-distance runner Kate Paulmann. "This team is so unique in that we strive to glorify God through our running."
Through the perseverance and personal dedication of these student athletes, the coaching staff anticipates great success in the upcoming weeks from both the men's and women's teams. Franciscan heads to the Washington and Jefferson Invite this Saturday, April 2.
