Strong Competition For Track & Field At Virginia

Friday, April 19

Charlottesville, Va.

Central Michigan University

Virginia Challenge

4/18/2019 5:34:00 PM | MTF, Track & Field

Chippewas begin peaking process with an eye toward MAC Championships

By: Nick Vuylsteke, CMUChippewas.com

MOUNT PLEASANT, MICH. -- The Central Michigan track & field team travels to Charlottesville, Va. to compete in the Virginia Challenge on Friday and Saturday.

The Chippewas will send 35 athletes to compete in the meet.

WHERE THEY STAND
The CMU women's track & field team comes into the week ranked No. 8 in the Great Lakes Region, moving up from No. 11 last week. The men's team is No. 14 in the region.

CMU's Nadia Williams is ranked second in the region with her program-record breaking jump of 20 feet, 5 inches at the Tennessee Relays last weekend. Teammate Janelle Perry also ranks second in the region in 100-meter hurdles at 13.34 seconds. Perry also ranks sixth in the long jump.

CMU's Siobhan Szerencsits ranks third in the region in the pole vault with her program-record tying vault of 13 feet, 3 ¾ inches at last weekend's Tennessee Relays. The Chippewas' Megan McElroy also ranks third in the region in the javelin with a throw of 153 feet.

Samantha Cuneo ranks fifth in the 400-meter run, Marissa Dunn ranks seventh in the hammer throw, Megan O'Neil ranks seventh in the 10,000-meter run, and Erin Howard ranks eighth in the discus.

On the men's side for CMU, Logan Targgart ranks second in the region in the hammer throw at 212-1; Jackson Blanchard ranks fourth in the 400 hurdles at 52.33 seconds; Jack Dodge ranks fifth in the 400 at 47.84 seconds; the 4x400 team ranks fifth at 3:12; Kevin Weiler ranks sixth in the shot put; and Shane Moffo ranks seventh in the 110 meter hurdles.

THE MEET
The Virginia Challenge is very important for the Chippewas, director of track & field Jenny Swieton said.

The Chippewas are past their major training blocks and are beginning the peaking process with the Mid-American Conference Championships three weeks ahead, she said.

"This is the time of year where things start firing on all cylinders," said Swieton, who earned the Coach of the Year Award on Monday at the Chippewa Athletic Awards. "There is going to be some really high-level competition at this meet.

"Just to get into this meet, you have to be a really high-level athlete. I think that just shows what a good opportunity it is for the student-athletes who do go, and to get those marks to get into the first rounds of the NCAA Outdoor Championships, or a program record."

"I think it's a great opportunity to compete at a high level for all of our event groups. It's hard to find that in a meet sometimes; it's nice to find that in one meet against Virginia."

NEXT
The Chippewas will travel to two meets next weekend. One group of Chippewas is scheduled to compete in the Gina Relays, hosted by Hillsdale College. A second group will travel to Columbus, Ohio for the Ohio State Jesse Owens Classic.