2017 WVU Track & Field Guide

MADELIN

GARDNER DANIQUE

BRYAN

MAGGIE

DRAZBA

SHAMOYA

McNEIL

2017 WEST VIRGINIA

TRACK & FIELD

b

T R ACK & FIEL D

Contents

TABLE OF

Spotlight ����������������������������������������������������������������� 2

2015-16 Review

A Winning Tradition ������������������������������������������������� 3

A Look Back at 2015-16 ��������������������������������������� 52

In the Community ��������������������������������������������������� 4

2015-16 Schedule ����������������������������������������������� 54

Strength and Conditioning ��������������������������������������� 6

Record Book

Athletic Training ����������������������������������������������������� 7 Facilities ����������������������������������������������������������������� 8 Big 12 Conference ������������������������������������������������� 9 Student- Athlete Development ����������������������������� 10

All Time Records ��������������������������������������������������� 56 Indoor Top Five Performers ����������������������������������� 58 Outdoor Top Five Performers ��������������������������������� 60 Campus Records ������������������������������������������������� 62

The 2016-17 West Virginia University Track and Field Guide has been published by the WVU Department of Intercollegiate Athletics.

Campus Life ��������������������������������������������������������� 12

Managing Editor: Joe Swan

Mountaineer Excellence ��������������������������������������� 16

Editor/Writer: Samantha Strejeck

Coaching Staff

Big East Champions �������������������������������������������� 64

Sean Cleary ��������������������������������������������������������� 20

NCAA Champions ������������������������������������������������� 66

Contributors: Lisa Ammons, John Antonik, Ashley Bailey, Alyssa Cantisani, Grant Dovey, Charlie Healy, Alex King, Drew Mack, Bryan Messerly, Mike Montoro, Chris Pharis, Amy Prunty, Amy Salvatore, Cale Simon, Samantha Strejeck, Nicolle Thiry, Cheryl Wire

Shelly-Ann Gallimore ������������������������������������������� 23

WVU All-Americans ����������������������������������������������� 67

Erin O’Reilly ��������������������������������������������������������� 24

All-Time Coaches and Captains ���������������������������� 72

Support Staff ������������������������������������������������������� 24

West Virginia University

Photography: Lori A. Allen, All-Pro Photography by Dale Sparks, Jason Colquhoun, M.G. Ellis, Dan Friend, Erin Irwin, Tyson Murray, Brian Persinger, Niesha Shafer, Cheryl Treworgy, USA Shooting, Morgan Wallizer, Norman Wills, West Virginia Collection, WVU Athletic Archives, WVU Photographic Services

Mountaineer Profile

President E. Gordon Gee ��������������������������������������� 74

2016-17 Roster ��������������������������������������������������� 26

Director of Athletic Shane Lyons ��������������������������� 75

Profiles ����������������������������������������������������������������� 27

Media Information ������������������������������������������������� 76

2016-17 Preview

Senior Staff/Head Coaches ����������������������������������� 77

2016-17 Season Preview ������������������������������������� 46

Athletic Facilities ��������������������������������������������������� 78

Page Layout/Design: Bob Slater Provations Group, Kristin Coldsnow

© 2017 West Virginia University Department of Intercollegiate Athletics West Virginia University is an Equal Opportunity/ Affirmative Action Institution. The indicia depicted are registered trademarks of West Virginia University.

Atlantic 10 Champions ����������������������������������������� 63 ECAC Champions ������������������������������������������������ 63

2016-17 Indoor & Outdoor Schedule ��������������������� 50

West Virginia University is on probation until February 17, 2017, for violations involving impermissible telephone and text communications that occurred in a number of our athletics programs. Level II violations occurred in the following sports programs: women’s gymnastics, football, women’s basketball and women’s soccer. On a smaller scale, 10 other sport programs, including baseball, men’s basketball, women’s diving, women’s rowing, men’s soccer, men’s swimming, women’s tennis, women’s track and field, women’s volleyball, and men’s wrestling and programs, also engaged in impermissible text and telephone-related activity.

The penalties prescribed in this case, which included recruiting communication restrictions, off-campus recruiting restrictions and the loss of a scholarship in the sport of football, were served in the 2013-14 and 2014-15 academic years. Additional information can be found at the following link: http://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/West%20Virginia%20Public%20Inf%20Decision.pdf

WVUTrackField WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField @WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField WVUTrackField

1

1

Spotlight

IN THE

Choosing to become a Mountaineer student-athlete is special.

Without a professional sports team in the state, folks across the state and throughout the region love West Virginia University athletics.

Mountaineers have the unique opportunity to represent themselves, their teammates and their university to news media, alumni, friends, family and the general public.

Your interaction with these groups is also part of your educational process.

If you take advantage of these opportunities, it can have a positive effect, not only on your career as a studentathlete at West Virginia, but also on your life after you have donned the Old Gold and Blue.

2

T R ACK & FIEL D

Tradition

A WINNING

Few programs across the country can equate the level of success the Mountaineers have enjoyed over recent years.

Widely regarded as one of the most respected programs in the nation, the notoriety does not come without merit.

Since taking over in 2007, coach Sean Cleary has allowed an already proud program to increase its output of honors as the number of AllAmerican, regional and conference awards have climbed the past six years.

Under Cleary, 19 student-athletes have garnered All-America honors, while 35 athletes overall have achieved the honors in the history of WVU track and field.

The number of national honors in recent years are a reflection of the talent level of the program, which has achieved a top-20 finish in both indoor and outdoor track and field from 2008-15.

Over the past four seasons, WVU athletes have achieved 28 individual conference titles and 18 athletes have qualified to participate at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, including a school-best seven in 2011.

Off the track, the Mountaineers excel academically, as 14 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, including one from this past season (2015-15), have been claimed since 2007.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

3

Community

IN THE

Winning and working hard are important to the West Virginia University track and field team, but becoming successful and positive role models in the community is just as significant.

Each year, the Mountaineers work to give back to Morgantown and surrounding communities.

The WVU track and field team has donated its time to helping the Jerry Lewis Telethon that is aimed toward helping kids with muscular dystrophy and related diseases. The Mountaineers do their part to help the cause by volunteering their time and answering telephones, which are constantly ringing with donors.

4

T R ACK & FIEL D

The team also regularly donates its time and knowledge by hosting and teaching local youth track clubs the fundamentals of the sport. Along with strengthening the youngsters’ skills, they also teach the participants the importance of good sportsmanship, courage, determination and hard work.

Coach Cleary’s student-athletes can also be found reading to children at local elementary schools in the “Read Aloud” program. During their visits, the student-athletes read to students in several classrooms and encourage them to apply themselves to their studies.

Mountaineer coaches and players take part in Relay for Life of Monongalia County, the American Cancer Society’s signature activity, which offers everyone in the community an opportunity to participate in the fight against cancer.

The WVU track and field teams’ commitment in the community makes being a Mountaineer even more special.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

5

Conditioning

STRENGTH AND

West Virginia’s strength and conditioning staff ensures all student athletes are on year-long programs designed to continue improving the fitness capabilities needed in their sports To keep athletes in peak physical condition, West Virginia offers a variety of training areas and an array of strength programs designed to increase performance.

All student-athletes will also have their own program individually calculated and updated throughout the year.

Equipped with excellent amenities and staffed by some of the finest strength coaches in the nation, athletes who come to West Virginia know that they are in good hands when it comes to their athletic capacity.

For track and field runners, the entire year is carefully planned and tailored to the track and field season to prepare for optimal performance during the season and peaking at championship meets.

6

T R ACK & FIEL D

Training

ATHLETIC

The West Virginia athletic training program looks to get its student-athletes back on the field in a timely manner, while providing quality health care for its student-athletes and coaches.

The scope of the athletic training services encompass various domains including injury recognition, treatment, rehabilitation, prevention, education, and counseling that will enable the athlete to maintain an optimal quality of life beyond the span of athletic competition.

Multiple athletic training rooms are available for student-athletes furnished with the latest in technology and equipment.

The athletic training staff works in conjunction with the team physicians and athletic administration to assure the student-athletes receive quality care throughout their careers at West Virginia University.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

7

Facilities

In the fall of 2015, nine public entities, including West Virginia University, committed to collaborate in building a state-ofthe-art aquatic and track complex at Mylan Park.

Recognizing the need for larger-level track and field amenities, the community and WVU are working together to make this possible. The $25-30 million facility, will be a community facility for all ages. It also will serve as the home to WVU’s swimming and diving, cross country and track and field teams.

The 4,000-meter track complex will include nine lanes with seating for 1,000 fans and spectators. In addition, there will be a jogging loop and sand volleyball courts, as well as a walking trail.

Plans for an opening in the near future, officials hope to host to host future NCAA and Big 12 Championships at the new complex.

Over the years the Mountaineers have competed indoors at the WVU Shell Building, beside the Coliseum, which features a track as well as adequate room for field events. Just outside the doors of the WVU Shell Building is the outdoor track facility. When weather permits, West Virginia is lucky enough to have top-notch facilities located side-by-side.

Athletic training and strength and conditioning facilities are also located in the Shell Building, giving the Mountaineers the perfect place for training and competition purposes.

Each season the Mountaineers hold events such as the Marty Pushkin Track Classic, the WVU Invitational and the Gold-Blue Open, all featuring teams from across the state and the east coast.

8

T R ACK & FIEL D

Conference

BIG 12

The Big 12 Conference is comprised of 10 institutions and many of them share traditional rivalries throughout their histories.

Member universities include – Baylor, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas, Texas Tech and West Virginia.

The Big 12 is a strong conference that, like WVU, values quality academic and athletic programs, and has a great tradition of success.

Since 2000, the Big 12 has had five individual champions in cross country.

The conference office is headquartered in Irving, Texas.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

9

Development

STUDENT-ATHLETE

West Virginia University offers a variety of services and programs to help student-athletes maximize their academic potential. Department staff members work with coaches, on campus student service providers and faculty to help student-athletes meet the unique demands of the classroom, the supporting arena and the personal-social challenges they face as developing adults While many of the headlines center of the Mountaineers’ accomplishments on the playing field, West Virginia athletes have also made some noteworthy strides in the classroom. Some of those strides include of 11 consecutive years where the department has had at least one first team Academic All-American.

To help its student-athletes achieve academic success, one of the nation’s finest facilities resides in the WVU Coliseum - The Athletic Academic Performance Center. The 8,000-square foot facility provides individual and group study areas, a plethora of computer stations and the latest in fingerprint technology used when signing in.

10

T R ACK & FIEL D

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

11

CAMPUS LIFE Character Public, land-grant institution, founded in 1867.

Research Classification R1: Doctoral Universities–Highest Research Activity, as described by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education.

WVU System Operating Budget More than $1 billion.

Accreditations By the Higher Learning Commission and dozens of specialized academic accrediting agencies.

Governance The WVU Board of Governors is the governing body of WVU. The Higher Education Policy Commission in West Virginia is responsible for developing, establishing and overseeing the implementation of a public policy agenda for the state’s fouryear colleges and universities.

Location Morgantown, W.Va., population 31,073, was rated “No. 1 Small City in America” by BizJournals.com for its exceptional quality of life. Business Insider named Morgantown the ninth best college town in America. Within easy traveling distance of Washington, D.C., to the east, Pittsburgh, Pa., to the north, and Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, to the northwest. Other recent rankings: Kiplinger.com included Morgantown in their 10 great places to live list; one of “Best Sports Cities” by Sporting News; 5th “Best Small Metro” by Forbes; 12th overall “Hottest Small City” by Inc.; one of “50 Smartest Places to Live” by Kiplinger’s; and the second-ranking “Best College Town for Jobs” by Forbes.

12

T R ACK & FIEL D

Student Profile Fall 2015 enrollment, on WVU campuses statewide, was 31,514; 28,776 in Morgantown.

That included: 14,021 West Virginia residents, 14,755 nonresidents 22,498 undergraduates 4,711 graduate and 1,567 professional students

Academic Excellence WVU ranks nationally for prestigious scholarships: 24 Rhodes Scholars, 22 Truman Scholars, 42 Goldwater Scholars, two British Marshall Scholars, 5 Morris K. Udall Scholars, 5 USA Today All-USA College Academic First Team Members (and 11 academic team honorees), 15 Boren Scholars, 36 Gilman Scholars, 46 Fulbright Scholars, 3 Department of Homeland Security Scholars, 25 Critical Language Scholars, 3 National Institute of Standards and Technology Fellowships and 4 National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships.

Degrees Granted In 2014-15, WVU awarded 7,201 degrees statewide; 1,832 graduate and 428 professional.

Faculty and Staff Profile Excellent faculty—19 of whom have been named Carnegie Foundation Professors of the Year—guide and mentor students. instructional faculty: 3,244 graduate assistants: 1,650 total main campus employees: 8,239

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

13

Academics Fourteen colleges and schools offering 353 majors in agriculture, natural resources and design; arts and sciences; business and economics; creative arts; dentistry; education and human services; engineering and mineral resources; law; media; medicine; nursing; pharmacy; physical activity and sport sciences; and public health. wvu.edu/Academics/

Student Living Experience The First-Year Experience helps students navigate their first year at WVU. Elements include First Year Academy, which connects new students to the campus, their academic departments and other students; the Campus Read, which involves first-year students in a common reading experience to promote dialog and critical thinking; and Adventure West Virginia, an outdoor freshman orientation program. All WVU students benefit from a vibrant array of student life programs, including a Festival of Ideas lecture series, bringing the world’s top minds to campus to share their experiences and knowledge; WVUp All Night, a weekend package of safe, fun and healthy activities; an award-winning Student Recreation Center; and the Mountaineer Parents Club, helping families stay connected with their students’ education and life at WVU. Living and Learning Communities are student communities in certain residence halls formed around a theme or specific field of study. Students can live with others who share their academic and social interests. studentlife.wvu.edu

Freshman Class Profile 2015 average ACT of 24, SAT (combined math and critical reading) 1052, and high school GPA of 3.45.

Transportation University buses operate free on a year-round basis as does the Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) system—a computer-directed system that glides along 8.7 miles of guideway between Downtown, Evansdale and Health Sciences Center campuses. In addition, Morgantown’s Mountain Line bus service offers free rides to students and employees.

WVU ID is required for all services. transportation.wvu.edu

Safety WVU offers 24-hour campus security protection. Students can download LiveSafe, a free app that is an on-the-go way to connect with authorities. The University also sends urgent news through WVU Alert text messages. emergency.wvu.edu/alert

Student Organizations Students can choose from 467 student organizations, and participate in an active intramural program and many club sports. studentactivities.wvu.edu

Study Abroad Last year, 922 WVU students traveled to another country through University-led study abroad programs and international exchanges. Best College Reviews ranked WVU as having a top-50 study abroad program. internationalprograms.wvu.edu

Academic Innovation Hundreds of distance education classes are available. elearn.wvu.edu

Service and Learning The Center for Service and Learning develops and organizes service learning and volunteer opportunities for students and faculty. WVU earned the Carnegie Foundation’s Community Engagement Classification—joining only 6% of all universities. It is the only institution in West Virginia the foundation recognizes for its community engagement. service.wvu.edu

Scholarships and Aid Each year, WVU (Morgantown campus) awards over $433 million in financial aid, including $87 million in grants and scholarships. West Virginia residents may be eligible for the PROMISE scholarship in addition to WVU awards. A new campaign is under way to raise $50 million for student scholarships.

Honors College The WVU Honors College encourages a style of learning and living that is tailored to the highly motivated, excelling student’s special requirements. Innovative, challenging courses, designed to stimulate creativity and to provoke in-depth discussion, are offered in small class settings. honors.wvu.edu

Internships WVU offers hundreds of ways to gain valuable on-the-job experience and networking contacts. careerservices.wvu.edu

14

T R ACK & FIEL D

Parents Club The Mountaineer Parents Club, with more than 20,000 members in clubs across the state and nation, fosters success by connecting parents and family members with the student experience. The organization sponsors events on and off-campus, has a newsletter, a toll-free helpline (1-800-WVU-0096), parent electronic news and a Parent Perks program. Membership is free. parentsclub.wvu.edu

Athletics A member of the NCAA and the Big 12 Conference, WVU competes at the Division I level in 18 sports. Teams make regular postseason bowl appearances in football, including winning the 2016 Cactus Bowl, and NCAA tournament appearances in men’s and women’s basketball, including a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2015; women’s soccer won its second consecutive Big 12 tournament championship in 2014 and made its 16th straight NCAA appearance in in 2015; women’s basketball advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament in 2016. The WVU rifle team won its 18th national title in 2016, and in 2014 became the first WVU athletic team to visit the White House on NCAA Champions Day. wvusports.com

Facilities The WVU System spans the state, including 518 buildings on 15,880 acres. The Morgantown campus has 245 buildings (11 on the National Register of Historic Places) on 1,892 acres. WVU operates 10 experimental farms and four forests throughout the state, in addition to WVU Jackson’s Mill State 4-H Camp. jacksonsmill.ext.wvu.edu/

Libraries The WVU Libraries encompass eight libraries statewide and the WVU Press. Facilities in Morgantown include the Downtown Library Complex, Evansdale Library, Health Sciences Library, Law Library, and the West Virginia and Regional History Center. Onsite collections include more than 2.4 million books and 48,000 journal subscriptions, electronic access to 365 databases, over 500,000 e-books, and 47,300 online electronic journals. Library staff offer in-person and online assistance. libraries.wvu.edu

Admission and Application Timeline Admission is based on a combination of high school GPA and ACT or SAT scores.

Applications are processed beginning Sept. 15 for admission the following fall. March 1 is the deadline for WV residents to submit PROMISE Scholarship applications. WVU has a rolling admissions policy, and while there is no official application deadline, applicants who apply later in the year may be deferred to the spring semester. admissions.wvu.edu

Visitors Center Located on the Morgantown Waterfront, the WVU Visitors Center features unique, cutting-edge displays and traditional West Virginia hospitality. Guided tours are offered Monday through Saturday, except home football Saturdays. visit.wvu.edu

Alumni Chartered in 1873, the WVU Alumni Association is made up of more than 190,000 graduates worldwide in some 135 nations. alumni.wvu.edu

Private Support Through March 31, 2016, donors have moved the WVU Foundation more than 95% of the way toward the $1 billion goal for A State of Minds: The Campaign for West Virginia’s University. The campaign was extended through 2017 after donors shattered the original goal more than a year ahead of the deadline. Last fiscal year alone, donors contributed $125 million in new gifts, the second highest fiscal year of giving ever in the Foundation’s history. The Foundation’s total endowment is $565 million. www.wvuf.org

Extension Throughout the year in West Virginia’s 55 counties, WVU Extension Service faculty and volunteers work with more than 624,111 West Virginians. 4-H alone reaches one in five West Virginia youths. ext.wvu.edu

Divisional Campuses Potomac State College of WVU – Keyser, W.Va.; 800-262-7332; potomacstatecollege.edu West Virginia University Institute of Technology – Montgomery, W.Va.; wvutech.edu Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center – Charleston, W.Va.; hsc.wvu.edu/charleston Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center East – Martinsburg, W.Va.; hsc.wvu.edu/eastern WVU Beckley – Beckley, W.Va.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

15

MOUNTAINEER EXCELLENCE 508 STUDENT-ATHLETES WERE NAMED TO THE 2015-16 BIG 12 COMMISSIONER’S HONOR ROLL AND 519 TOTAL STUDENT-ATHLETES WERE NAMED TO THE GARRETT FORD ACADEMIC HONOR ROLL

16

T R ACK & FIEL D

Team Records Baseball: 36-22, 12-11 Big 12; 4th place Big 12 Cross Country: 3rd place at Big 12 Championship; NCAA MidAtlantic Regional; 1 NCAA Championship Qualifier Men’s Basketball: 26-9, 13-5 Big 12; 2nd place Big 12; NCAA First Round Women’s Basketball: 25-10, 12-6 Big 12; 3rd place Big 12; NCAA Second Round Football: 8-5, 4-5 Big 12; T-5th place Big 12; Cactus Bowl Champions Gymnastics: 11-8, 1-5 Big 12; 3rd place Big 12; 5th place NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional Rowing: 8th place at Big 12 Championship Rifle: 12-0, 8-0 GARC; GARC Regular-Season & Postseason Champions; NCAA Champions Men’s Soccer: 7-12-0, 2-3-0 MAC; 4th place MAC Women’s Soccer: 19-3-1, 6-0-1 Big 12; Big 12 Regular-Season Champions; NCAA Quarterfinals Men’s Swimming and Diving: 2nd place Big 12; 1 NCAA Qualifier: Andrew Marsh Women’s Swimming and Diving: 4th place Big 12 Women’s Tennis: 6-16, 0-9 Big 12; 10th place Big 12 Women’s Track and Field and Field: Indoor-9th Big 12; Outdoor9th Big 12; 8 NCAA Qualifiers Volleyball: 5-24, 0-16 Big 12; 10th place Big 12 Wrestling: 8-10, 0-4 Big 12; 6th place at Big 12 Championship; 4 NCAA Qualifiers

NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) Recognition Men’s Basketball

Rowing

Professional Draft Picks KJ Dillion, Football, Houston Texans (NFL), fifth round (159th overall) Chad Donato, Baseball, Houston Astros (MLB), 11th round (337th overall) Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, Atlanta Dream (WNBA), first round (11th overall) Karl Joseph, Football, Oakland Raiders (NFL), first round (14th overall) Nick Kwiatkoski, Football, Chicago Bears (NFL), fourth round (113th overall) Wendell Smallwood, Football, Philadelphia Eagles (NFL), fifth round (153rd overall) Blake Smith, Baseball, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (MLB), 29th round (876th overall) Daryl Worley, Football, Carolina Panthers (NFL), third round (77th overall)

Coaching Awards & Honors

Ginny Thrasher, Air Rifle, Smallbore

Nikki Izzo-Brown, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Coach of the Year Mike Carey, Women’s Basketball, WBCA Victory Club Award (300 wins) Jon Hammond, Rifle, GARC Coach of the Year Bob Huggins, Men’s Basketball, ESPN Infinti Coaches Charity Challenge Second Round Vic Riggs, Men’s Swimming & Diving, Big 12 Coach of the Meet Ja’Juan Seider, Football, Uplifting Athletes Rare Disease Champion Award Finalist Lisa Stoia, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA Central Region Assistant Coach of the Year

Team Conference Champions

CoSIDA Academic All-Americans

Rifle, GARC Regular-Season & Postseason Champions Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Regular-Season Champions

First Team Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer Kelly Williams, Cross Country/Track & Field Second Team Jack Elliott, Men’s Soccer Third Team Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer

NCAA Team Champions Rifle

Individual NCAA Champions

Individual Conference Champions Andrew Marsh, Men’s Swimming & Diving, 100 backstroke Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, GARC Smallbore

Individual International Team Honors Will Anti, Rifle, U.S. Junior National Team Michael Bamsey, Rifle, Great Britain National Team Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, Team Canada 2016 Summer Olympic Games, Team Canada CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship, CONCACAF Best XI Team, FIFPro Women’s World XI Team, 2015 Women’s World Cup Best Young Player, 2015 BMO Canadian Player of the Year Vanessa Flores, Women’s Soccer, Mexico U-20 National Team Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, U.S. Junior National Team, National Junior Olympic Shooting Championship 10m air rifle Silver Medal, National Junior Olympic Shooting Championship 50m 3 positions Bronze Medal, Meelis Kiisk, Rifle, Estonian National Team Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer, Team Canada 2016 Summer Olympic Games, Team Canada CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship, CONCACAF Best XI Team Garrett Spurgeon, Rifle, United States, U.S. National Team, Bianca St. Georges, Women’s Soccer, Canada U-20 National Team Ginny Trasher, Rifle, Team United States 2016 Summer Olympic Games

NCAA Team Qualifiers Cross Country Gymnastics Men’s Basketball

Rifle Women’s Basketball Women’s Soccer

NCAA Individual Qualifiers Dylan Cottrell, Wrestling Andrew Marsh, Men’s Swimming & Diving Zeke Moisey, Wrestling Millie Paladino, Cross Country Bubba Scheffel, Wrestling Jacob A. Smith, Wrestling

NCAA Individual Regional Qualifiers Amy Cashin, Outdoor Track & Field Jillian Forsey, Outdoor Track & Field Brianna Kerekes, Outdoor Track & Field Shamoya McNeil, Outdoor Track & Field Millie Paladino, Outdoor Track & Field Savanna Plombon, Outdoor Track & Field Hannah Stone, Outdoor Track & Field Megan Yuan, Outdoor Track & Field

NCAA Championship Awards Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, Top Performer

WVUTrackField

All-Americans First Team Michael Bamsey, Rifle, NRA Smallbore Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-America Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, NRA Air Rifle Meelis Kiisk, Rifle, CRCA, NRA Smallbore Nick Kwiatkoski, Football, ProFootballFocus All-America Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-America Jean-Pierre Lucas, Rifle, NRA Smallbore Garrett Spurgeon, Rifle, CRCA NRA Air Rifle, NRA Smallbore Patrick Sunderman, Rifle, NRA Air Rifle Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, CRCA, NRA Air Rifle Second Team Michael Bamsey, Rifle, CRCA Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, Senior CLASS Award Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, Senior CLASS Award Meelis Kiisk, Rifle, NRA Air Rifle Kirah Koshinski, Gymnastics, NACGC/W Regular Season (Vault) Jamie Merriam, Men’s Soccer, Senior CLASS Award Patrick Sunderman, Rifle, CRCA, NRA Smallbore Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, NRA Smallbore Third Team Karl Joseph, Football, CBS Sports Jean-Pierre Lucas, Rifle, CRCA Freshman Darius Hill, Baseball, Louisville Slugger, National Collegiate Baseball Writers Baseball America Ivan Vera, Baseball, Baseball All-America

Honorable Mention Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, CRCA, NRA Smallbore Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, Associated Press, Women’s Basketball Coaches Association Jean-Pierre Lucas, Rifle, NRA Air Rifle Karl Joseph, Football, SI.com All-American

All-Conference First Team Michaela Abam, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Michael Bamsey, Rifle, All-GARC Smallbore Maggie Bedillion, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Danique Bryan, Track & Field, Outdoor All-Big 12 long jump Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Nate Carr, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 400 IM Amy Cashin, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 mile run, Outdoor All-Big 12 3,000-meter steeplechase @WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

17

Chad Donato, Baseball, All-Big 12 Sara Finfrock, Track & Field, Outdoor All-Big 12 pole vault Jillian Forsey, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 5,000-meter run, Outdoor All-Big 12 5,000-meter run Aidan Fumagalli, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 200 breaststroke Jaimee Gillmore, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 freestyle Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, All-Big 12 (unanimous selection) Meelis Kiisk, Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score, All-GARC Smallbore Nick Kwiatkoski, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12; ESPN.com All-Big 12, Phil Steele All-Big 12 Kirah Koshinski, Gymnastics, All-Big 12 Vault Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Andrew Marsh, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 freestyle Shamoya McNeil, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 triple jump Outdoor All-Big 12 triple jump Alex Obendorf, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 Platform Tyler Orlosky, Football, ESPN.com All-Big 12 Nick O’Toole, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12; ESPN.com All-Big 12, Phil Steele All-Big 12, Associated Press All-Big 12 Millie Paladino, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 3,000-meter run, Outdoor All-Big 12 1,500-meter run Faith Penny, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 high jump, Outdoor All-Big 12 high jump Michael Proietto, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 1-meter and platform Emma Skelley, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 1,650 freestyle Max Spencer, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 breaststroke, All-Big 12 200 breaststroke Garrett Spurgeon, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score, All-GARC Smallbore Patrick Sunderman, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle Hannah Stone, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 high jump, Outdoor All-Big 12 high jump Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Rebecca Wendt, Track & Field, Indoor All-Big 12 1,000-meter run Daryl Worley, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12; Phil Steele All-Big 12, ESPN.com All-Big 12 Second Team Will Anti, Rifle, All-GARC Smallbore Michael Bamsey, Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score Ryan Cain, Men’s Soccer, All-MAC Nate Carr, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 200 IM, All-Big 12 200 backstroke Jackson Cramer, Baseball, All-Big 12 KJ Dillon, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Merwane ElMerini - Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 50 freestyle, All-Big 12 100 backstroke Aidan Fumagalli, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 breaststroke Taylor Gill, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 400 IM Jaimee Gillmore, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 50 freestyle, All-Big 12 100 butterfly Ross Glegg, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 500 freestyle Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score Emma Harris, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 200 breaststroke Jay Hickey, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 backstroke, All-Big 12 200 backstroke Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Darius Hill, Baseball, All-Big 12 Jake Iotte, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 breaststroke, All-Big 12 200 breaststroke Meelis Kiisk, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle James Koval, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 1,650 freestyle Nick Kwiatkoski, Football, Associated Press All-Big 12 Andrew Marsh, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 100 butterfly Logan McHenry, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 3-meter, All-Big 12 platform Chris McMahon, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 500 freestyle Lanay Montgomery, Women’s Basketball, All-Big 12 Noble Nwachukwu, Associated Press All-Big 12 Alex Obendorf, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 1 meter Jaysean Paige, Men’s Basketball, Associated Press All-Big 12, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Jean-Pierre Lucas, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score, All-GARC Smallbore Joey Piatczyc, Men’s Soccer, All-MAC Carla Portillo, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Michael Prioetto, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 3-meter Tyler Orlosky, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Kyle Rose, Football, Associated Press All-Big 12 Bianca St. Georges, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Lindsay Schmidt, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 3-meter Emma Skelley, Women’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 500 freestyle Wendell Smallwood, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12, Phil Steele All-Big 12, Associated Press All-Big 12

18

T R ACK & FIEL D

Austin Smith, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 platform Hannah Steadman, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Patrick Sunderman, Rifle, All-GARC Smallbore; All-GARC Combined Score Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, All-GARC Smallbore Chase Williams, Men’s Swimming & Diving, All-Big 12 200 butterfly Devin Williams, Men’s Basketball, Associated Press All-Big 12, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Daryl Worley, Football, Associated Press All-Big 12 Third Team KJ Dillon, Football, Phil Steele All-Big 12 Tyler Orlosky, Football, Phil Steele All-Big 12

Honorable Mention Will Anti, Rifle, All-GARC Combined Score Michael Bamsey, Rifle, All-GARC Air Rifle Jared Barber, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Kyle Davis, Baseball, All-Big 12 Jimmy Galusky, Baseball, All-Big 12 Shelton Gibson, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, All-GARC Smallbore Michael Grove, Baseball, All-Big 12 Karl Joseph, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Josh Lambert, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Noble Nwachkwu, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12 Arielle Roberson, Women’s Basketball, All-Big 12 Blake Smith, Baseball, All-Big 12 Ivan Vera, Baseball, All-Big 12 Elijah Wellman, Football, Coaches’ All-Big 12

Specialty, All-Newcomer/Freshman Teams Jevon Carter, Men’s Basketball, Coaches’ Big 12 All-Defensive Sh’Nia Gordon, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Freshman Darius Hill, Baseball, All-Big 12 Freshman Tynice Martin, Women’s Basketball, All-Big 12 Freshman Lanay Montgomery, Women’s Basketball, Big 12 All-Defensive Bianca St. Georges, Women’s Soccer, All-Big 12 Freshman Ivan Vera, Baseball, All-Big 12 Freshman

Conference All-Tournament Teams Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Kyle Davis, Baseball, Big 12 Conner Dotson, Baseball, Big 12 Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 KC Huth, Baseball, Big 12 Kirah Koshinski, Gymnastics, Big 12 Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Ross Vance, Baseball, Big 12 Devin Williams, Men’s Basketball, Big 12

Conference Major Awards Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year Kirah Koshinski, Gymnastics, Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Nathan Howells, Men’s Swimming & Diving, Big 12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year Tynice Martin, Women’s Basketball, Big 12 Freshman of the Year Jaysean Paige, Men’s Basketball, Big 12 Sixth Man Award Garrett Spurgeon, Rifle, GARC Senior of the Year, GARC Shooter of the Year Bianca St. Georges, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Year Ginny Thrasher, Rifle, GARC Rookie of the Year

National Awards and Recognition Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Finalist, 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup Best Young Player Award, BMO Canadian Female Player of the Year, Soccer Net News Women’s College Boot Award, Collegiate Women’s Sports Awards Honda Sport Award nominee, CONCACAF Female Player of the Year Award nominee, CONCACAF Female Best XI Defender Award nominee, TopDrawerSoccer.com Best XI First Team Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, Senior CLASS Award finalist Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, Senior CLASS Award finalist Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer, Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Semifinalis, CONCACAF Female Best XI Midfielder Award nominee, TopDrawerSoccer.com Best XI Second Team Jaysean Paige, Men’s Basketball, Reese’s NABC Division I All-Stars Tynice Martin, Women’s Basketball, USBWA National Freshman of the Year finalist Jamie Merriam, Men’s Soccer, Senior CLASS Award finalist Devin Williams, Men’s Basketball, Allstate NABC Good Works Team nominee

Regional Awards Alan Cooke, Golf, 97th West Virginia Amateur Champion Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-Central Region First Team Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-Central Region Second Team

Darius Hill, Baseball, ABCA/Rawlings East All-Region First Team Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball, WBCA All-Region 3 Team Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-Central Region First Team Jaysean Paige, Men’s Basketball, USBWA All-District II Team Jon Ransone, Golf, U.S. Open Sectional Qualifier Hannah Stedman, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-Central Region Third Team Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer, NSCAA All-Central Region First Team Devin Williams, Men’s Basketball, USBWA All-District II Team

Academic All-Conference First Team Darren Arndt, Football Aria Asselta, Rowing Hailey Barrett, Women’s Tennis Maggie Bedillion, Women’s Soccer Robyn Bernard, Gymnastics Madeline Bolin, Women’s Swimming & Diving Brandon Boone, Baseball Mackenzie Braden, Women’s Swimming & Diving Megan Brophy, Rowing Alisha Brownfield, Rowing Jevon Carter, Men’s Basketball Amy Cashin, Cross Country, Track & Field Lyn Yuen Choo, Women’s Tennis Allie Coates, Rowing Shaun Corso, Baseball Amelie Currat, Women’s Swimming & Diving Emily Deming, Rowing John DePalma, Football Alyssa Diehl, Cross Country Maggie Drazba, Cross Country Leah Emaus, Women’s Soccer Morgan Emter, Women’s Swimming & Diving Rachel Faulds, Cross Country Kelsey Frantz, Women’s Swimming & Diving Aidan Fumagalli, Men’s Swimming & Diving Gianna Gotterba, Volleyball Jordan Gillette, Gymnastics Jamiee Gillmore, Women’s Swimming & Diving Ross Glegg, Men’s Swimming & Diving Ray Guerrini, Baseball Brynn Harshbarger, Cross Country Susannah Hartlove, Rowing Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer Elizabeth Hooper, Rowing Nathan Howells, Men’s Swimming & Diving Melissa Idell, Gymnastics, Jake Iotte, Men’s Swimming & Diving Elizabeth Kantak, Rowing Brianna Kerekes, Cross Country, Track & Field James Koval, Men’s Swimming & Diving Corinne Kule, Cross Country Jaida Lawrence, Gymnastics Carolina Lewis, Women’s Tennis Andrew Marsh, Men’s Swimming & Diving Celia Martinez De La Torree, Women’s Swimming & Diving Shamoya McNeil, Track & Field Joe Miller, Men’s Swimming & Diving Daxter Miles, Men’s Basketball Morgan Montgomery, Volleyball Louisa Morgan, Rowing Kaja Mrgole, Women’s Tennis Katie Murto, Women’s Swimming & Diving Tyler Orlosky, Football Millie Paladino, Cross Country Savanna Plombon, Cross Country, Track & Field Abbigail Rees, Rowing Lindsay Schmidt, Women’s Swimming & Diving Sydney Scott, Cross Country, Track & Field Habiba Shaker, Women’s Tennis Khairi Shariff, Football Hannah Shereve, Volleyball Jackson Sigman, Baseball Emma Skelley, Women’s Swimming & Diving Maxwell Spencer, Men’s Swimming & Diving Jacqueline Spiropoulos, Rowing Hannah Stone, Track & Field Paige Szabat, Cross Country Ross Vance, Baseball Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer Bria Welker, Track & Field Rebecca Wendt, Track & Field Kelly Williams, Cross Country, Track & Field Chris Williams, Golf Loren Williams, Women’s Swimming & Diving Second Team Nathan Adrian, Men’s Basketball Amanda Bowman, Gymnastics Kadeisha Buchanan, Women’s Soccer WVUTrackField

Alan Cooke, Golf Jackson Cramer, Baseball Frank Csonka, Men’s Swimming & Diving Kyle Davis, Baseball Sara Finfrock, Track & Field, Philomena Fiorenzi, Women’s Swimming & Diving Madelin Gardner, Track & Field Alexa Goldberg, Gymnastics Austin Green, Men’s Swimming & Diving Bria Holmes, Women’s Basketball Skyler Howard, Football Ashley Lawrence, Women’s Soccer Grant Lingafelter, Football Emma Luigard, Women’s Swimming & Diving Yvon Martinez, Women’s Tennis Zeke Moisey, Wrestling Zaakira Muhammad, Gymnastics Chris Nelson, Wrestling Nick O’Toole, Football Andrew Riebel, Men’s Swimming & Diving Bubba Scheffel, Wrestling Mason Short, Golf Devin Williams, Men’s Basketball

All-Big 12 Rookie Team Cole Austin, Baseball Jacob Brewer, Baseball Tanner Campbell, Baseball Michael Grove, Baseball Endy Morales, Baseball Alexis Brewer, Women’s Basketball Katrina Pardee, Women’s Basketball Yassemeen Sa’Dullah, Women’s Basketball Lauren Saiki, Women’s Basketball Olivia Seggie, Women’s Basketball Anna French, Cross Country Olivia Hill, Cross Country Tristan Nicholls, Golf Carly Galpin, Gymnastics Kirah Koshinski, Gymnastics Jaquie Tun, Gymnastics Tiara Wright, Gymnastics Madison Hrynda, Rowing Carly Ledbetter, Rowing Hannah Abraham, Women’s Soccer Laurel Carpenter, Women’s Soccer Patricia Fernandez, Women’s Soccer Vanessa Flores, Women’s Soccer Sh’Nia Gordon, Women’s Soccer Easther Mayi Kith, Women’s Soccer Amanda Saymon, Women’s Soccer Bianca St. Georges, Women’s Soccer Georgia Baldus, Women’s Swimming & Diving Marah Bieger, Women’s Swimming & Diving Emmott Blitch, Men’s Swimming & Diving Julia Calcut, Women’s Swimming & Diving Emilie Chambers, Women’s Swimming & Diving Drew Damich, Men’s Swimming & Diving Fernando Duenas, Men’s Swimming & Diving Lexi Glassmire, Women’s Swimming & Diving Sam Hall, Women’s Swimming & Diving Emma Harris, Women’s Swimming & Diving Adam Poe, Men’s Swimming & Diving Jake Preaskorn, Men’s Swimming & Diving Mary Smith, Women’s Swimming & Diving Jake Williams, Men’s Swimming & Diving Madelyn Woods, Women’s Swimming & Diving Paula Goetz, Tennis Abigail Roisello, Tennis Kirsten White, Tennis Danique Bryan, Track & Field Jordan Hess, Track & Field Chaqieta Robinson, Track & Field Connor Flynn, Wrestling

All-Big 12 Academic At-Large Team First Team Jad Arslan, Men’s Soccer Michael Bamsey, Rifle Ivo Cabral, Men’s Soccer Mike Desiderio, Men’s Soccer Jack Elliott, Men’s Soccer Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle Meelis Kiisk, Rifle Zak Leedom, Men’s Soccer Patrick Sunderman, Rifle Second Team Felix Angerer, Men’s Soccer Jamie Merriam, Men’s Soccer Jean-Pierre Lucas, Rifle Garrett Spurgeon, Rifle @WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

19

Academic Momentum Award by the Scholar Baller Taylor Gill, Women’s Swimming & Diving, First Team

Academic All-MAC

Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, Third Team Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer, Second Team

Cactus Bowl MVPs

Carly Black, Women’s Soccer Amy Cashin, Track & Field/Cross Country Jack Elliott, Men’s Soccer Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, At-Large Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer Nathan Howells, Men’s Swimming, At-Large Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer Kelly Williams, Track & Field/Cross Country

Meelis Kiisk Jean-Pierre Lucas Garrett Spurgeon

Skyler Howard, Football, Offensive MVP

Curtis Jones Jr. Award Terrell Chestnut

Ed Pastilong Award Jared Barber

Academic Awards

College Rifle Coaches Association (CRCA) Scholastic All-America Team Patrick Sunderman Ginny Thrasher

College Rowing Coaches Association (CRCA) National Scholar-Athletes Madison James Louisa Morgan Jacqueline Spiropoulos

College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Scholar All-America Team Award West Virginia Women’s Swimming & Diving Team

College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) Scholar All-America Team Emmott Blitch, Honorable Mention Julia Calcut, Honorable Mention Amelie Currat, Honorable Mention Aidan Fumagalli, Honorable Mention Jaimee Gillmore, Honorable Mention Andrew Marsh, First Team Lindsay Schmidt, Honorable Mention Madelyn Woods, Honorable Mention

Mid-American Conference Distinguished Scholar Athletes Jack Elliott

20

NSCAA Scholar All-America NSCAA Scholar All-East Region

CoSIDA Academic All-District II

Alisha Brownfield Emily Deming Elizabeth Hooper

Women’s Soccer Kailey Utley, Women’s Soccer, Third Team

Haydon Bennett, Men’s Soccer Ivo Cabral, Men’s Soccer Mike Desiderio, Men’s Soccer Jack Elliott, Men’s Soccer Zak Leedom, Men’s Soccer Louis Thomas, Men’s Soccer

Will Anti Michael Bamsey Elizabeth Gratz

NSCAA Team Academic Award

Carly Black, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award John DePalma, Football, National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society Allie Diehl, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Maggie Drazba, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Taylor Gill, Women’s Swimming & Diving, Academic Momentum Award First Team Elizabeth Gratz, Rifle, WVU GARC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Peyton Hampson, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Amanda Hill, Women’s Soccer, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award, 2016 Order of Augusta, WVU Foundation Outstanding Scholar Big 12 Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship Brianna Kerekes, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Corinne Kule, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Katie Murto, Women’s Swimming & Diving, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award, Big 12 Dr. Prentice Gautt Postgraduate Scholarship Sydney Scott, Track & Field/Cross Country, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award Hannah Shreve, Volleyball, Big 12 Conference’s Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award, WVU Foundation Outstanding Senior Kelly Williams, Women’s Track & Field, Big 12 Scholar-Athlete of the Year

Big 12 Athlete of the Year Nominees Kadeisha Buchanan, Football Tyler Orlosky, Football

NACGC/W Scholastic All-Americans

Big 12 Sportsperson of the Year Nominees

Dayah Haley Jaida Lawrence

Avery Schneider, Men’s Golf Hannah Shreve, Volleyball

Mackenzie Myers Lia Salzano

Erica Smith Maci Sump

T R ACK & FIEL D

MOUNTAINEER

CoachingStaff Sean Cleary ��������������������������������������������������������� 20 Shelly-Ann Gallimore ������������������������������������������ 25 Erin O’Reilly �������������������������������������������������������� 27 Support Staff ����������������������������������������������������� 28

HEAD TRACK & FIELD AND CROSS COUNTRY COACH

SEAN C leary

11TH SEASON / 25TH WITH PROGRAM

22

T R ACK & FIEL D

Sean Cleary, one of the sport’s most talented coaches, enters his 11th season at the helm of the West Virginia University cross country and track and field teams, and he has been associated with both programs for more than 20 years.

With his expertise in mentoring, training, conditioning and recruiting distance runners, the Georgetown, Ontario, native, has built West Virginia’s cross country and track and field programs into national powerhouses, producing multiple All-America honors and numerous all-conference runners.

The 2015-16 season saw many accomplishments academically and athletically. In cross country, Cleary led the Mountaineers to a third-place finish at the Big 12 Championship, attained two All-Mid-Atlantic Region honorees, coached an individual qualifier to the NCAA Cross Country Championships, had one Academic AllAmerican First team runner, two Academic All-District Team honorees, 12 who earned USTFCCCA All-Academic and 12 who were named to the Academic All-Big 12 Cross Country First Team.

During the track and field season, eight Mountaineers qualified for the NCAA East Region Preliminary Rounds, eight earned All-Big 12 honors at the outdoor championship and seven indoor honorees and 11 earned Academic AllBig 12 Track and Field honors.

At the 2015 Big 12 Cross Country Championship, three sophomores posted top-22 finishes on the 6k course in Stillwater, Oklahoma - sophomores Maggie Drazba in 19th, Millie Paladino in 21st and Brynn Harshbarger in 22nd. West Virginia placed fifth at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals, highlighted by two all-region honors from Millie Paladino and Savana Plombon. Paladino was the lone Mountaineer to qualify for the 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships, the second straight championships for Paladino.

On the academic side, senior Kelly Williams was named to the 2016 Track and Field/Cross Country Academic AllAmerica First Team selected by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), for the second consecutive year while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. Williams also was named the 2016 Big 12 Women’s Track and Field Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Additionally, junior Amy Cashin and Williams were named to Academic All-District First Team.

With the guidance of Cleary, the 2014-15 season demonstrated true athleticism and dedication from young athletes.

Seven Mountaineers qualified for the 2015 NCAA East Region Preliminary Championships. After racing in the preliminary championships, Kaitlyn Gillespie advanced to the NCAA National Track and Field Championships after placing fifth in the 10,000-meter run. To cap her collegiate career Cleary guided her to a ninth-place finish with a personal best and the second-fastest time in program

history of 33:44.08 to receive All-America status.

At the 2015 Big 12 Outdoor Track and Field Championship, Gillespie became the Big 12 champion in the 10,000 meters and ran a career best of 34:10.60, the second fastest in program history. Cleary led four Mountaineer freshman to top-five finishes as they earned spots on the podium.

In the fall, he led the Mountaineer cross country team to a second-place finish at the 2014 Big 12 Championship for the second straight year. Jillian Forsey finished 12th, earning Big 12 All-Conference honors, along with Kaitlyn Gillespie and Maggie Drazba. The Mountaineers appeared in their ninth NCAA Cross Country Championship, sixth under Cleary.

Cleary oversaw a top-eight finish, two All-Americans and an Elite 89 Award winner, and the team earned its fifth NCAA top-10 finish since 2007. Kaitlyn Gillespie was honored as an All-American in her final race as a Mountaineer, finishing 26th, along with Jillian Forsey as she finished 14th overall. Kelly Williams earned the Elite 89 Award for having the highest cumulative grade point average out of all participants at the NCAA Championship.

In the 2013-14 track and field season, Cleary coached two All-Americans in Jordan Hamric and Kelly Williams.

Williams earned her accolade during the indoor season, while Hamric did so at the Outdoor Championships. As per usual, the Mountaineers excelled in the classroom under the direction of Cleary. A total of 20 student-athletes were named to the 2013 Academic All-Big 12 Track & Field First and Second Teams and four freshmen earned Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team.

Cleary was named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) President for Division I Cross Country, prior to the start of the 2013 cross country season. He is currently finishing up his last couple of weeks as president and will have been with the association for a total of two years.

Cleary guided the Mountaineers to their fifth NCAA appearance in seven seasons under his direction in 2013. West Virginia posted a second-place result at the Big 12 Cross Country Championship, while senior Sarah Martinelli went on to claim All-Big 12 and All-Mid-Atlantic Region honors.

West Virginia entered into a more highly competitive conference as it competed in the Big 12 for the first time in 2012. Cleary used the season to build onto his framework of confidence and winning at a higher level. Sarah-Anne Brault returned from training for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London for her final season as a Mountaineer by running in her fourth consecutive NCAA Cross Country Championship. On the way, Brault garnered all-conference honors for the second time in her career, all-region honors for the third time and finished her career by becoming the 13th runner in program history to individually qualify for the NCAA Championship.

The 2011-12 Mountaineer track and field squad sent Chelsea Carrier-Eades and Jessica O’Connell to the NCAA Championships where both earned All-America honors. In addition, 10 athletes qualified for the NCAA East Regional and 18 were sent to the Big East Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Maintaining a presence in the league scene, WVU placed fifth at the conference championships in which 10 athletes scored points to earn All-Big East

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

23

honors. An expert spokesman of athletics and academics, Cleary has also set up a training regimen that allowed four athletes to earn Academic All-America accolades.

In cross country in 2011, the Mountaineers finished No. 8 in the country at the NCAA Cross Country Championship – their fourth top-10 national finish in five years. The team finished in fourth place at the Big East Championship and followed it with a third-place mark at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional. Cleary then led his team to its eighth-place finish at nationals where Kate Harrison and Kaitlyn Gillespie became All-Americans, with Harrison finishing in eighth place, an all-time WVU best individual finish for the event.

In 2010-111, the Mountaineers earned their fourth consecutive top-20 finish in indoor and outdoor track, a year in which 13 All-American performances were turned in by eight athletes, including four from the eight-time AllAmerican Carrier-Eades. At the conference level, eight WVU athletes were crowned Big East champions and Cleary and his staff were given the Big East Coaching Staff of the Year award. Cleary also was one of eight finalists for the USTFCCCA National Coach of the Year award.

In 2010, Cleary sent Gillespie and Brault to the NCAA Championship, where Gillespie became Cleary’s sixth AllAmerican with a 34th-place finish in 20:46 and Brault arrived in 71st place overall. During indoor track season, three athletes were named All-Americans and all seven athletes who qualified for the outdoor NCAA Championship achieved All-America status. For the achievements, Cleary was named the NCAA’s Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year for track and field.

The 2009-10 season was equally successful as the team achieved sixth place at the NCAA Cross Country Championship, its third straight top-10 finish, and Clara Grandt, Keri Bland and Marie-Louise Asselin earned AllAmerica status. Asselin and Bland achieved the honor for the third time in their WVU careers, while Grandt earned her first. Ranked in the top 10 all year, the team received its highest-ever ranking as a program at No. 3 midway through the season. Between indoor and outdoor track that year, 11 All-America honors were distributed, while Bland, Grandt and Asselin became the first Mountaineers to achieve the status in three sports in the same year. Overall, 17 AllAmerican honors were given to WVU athletes between cross country, indoor and outdoor track during the year.

Carrier-Eades was also named the Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year after earning two Big East titles and breaking the school record in the pentathlon at the SykesSabock Challenge on Feb. 5. Cleary helped WVU greats Marie-Louise Asselin, Keri Bland and Clara Grandt earn All-America honors in three sports in the same season (cross country, indoor track and outdoor track).

In 2010, Cleary sent Gillespie and Brault to the NCAA Championship, where Gillespie became Cleary’s sixth AllAmerican with a 34th-place finish in 20:46 and Brault arrived in 71st place overall. During indoor track season, three athletes were named All-Americans and all seven athletes who qualified for the outdoor NCAA Championship achieved All-America status. For the achievements, Cleary was named the NCAA’s Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year for track and field.

At the completion of the 2009-10 cross country and track seasons, WVU was recognized as the fifth-best team on the Terry Crawford Program of the Year Award list

24

T R ACK & FIEL D

announced by the United States Track and Field and Cross County Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). The award is given annually to the most outstanding NCAA Division I women’s cross country and track and field programs and honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year based on the institution’s finish at the NCAA Division I Championship over three seasons.

The 2008-09 track and field team was a testament to his success as it finished the year with four athletes qualifying for national meets and three qualifying for the NCAA Championships. Grandt led the team as she earned her first All-America honor for finishing fourth in the 10,000-meter finals. She was also named Mid-Atlantic Region Track Athlete of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for her efforts throughout the season.

In Cleary’s first season as head coach, Cleary saw Asselin and Bland claim Big East indoor titles in the 3,000-meter and 1,000-meter, respectively, while the distance medley relay (DMR) team set a Big East meet record while winning the indoor crown. The DMR went on to place fourth at nationals and Asselin placed seventh in the 3,000-meter to earn All-America honors. He also helped Grandt break a 28-year record in the 10,000-meter at the ECAC Outdoor Championships and saw CarrierEades win her first league title in the 100-meter hurdles during her freshman outdoor season. Bland finished the 2008 outdoor season by earning All-America honors in the 1,500-meter to become the first female in WVU history to earn All-America honors in three sports in the same year (cross country, indoor track and outdoor track).

Cleary led his 2008 nationally ranked cross country squad to a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championship, the highest finish in school history, and guided Asselin and Bland to their second consecutive All-America honors.

At the conference level, Asselin became the first individual champion in school history at the Big East Championship, where the team finished second. Asselin, Grandt and Bland were named to the All-Big East team.

For his accomplishments in leading the Mountaineers, Cleary was named the 2008 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Coach of the Year for the third time in his career and for the second-consecutive season by the USTFCCCA. In addition to his teams’ accomplishments in 2008 and 2009, perhaps the most significant achievement was in the classroom as the cross country and track teams received recognition by the NCAA for their latest multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores. Both teams posted multi-year APR scores in the top 10 percent of all squads in their respective sports.

In 2008, the team had its best-ever finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championship, arriving in fourth after being ranked No. 5 most of the year. WVU won its second NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region championship and Cleary was named Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year. Asselin became the first in school history to win an individual Big East title and the team finished in second.

Cleary’s first season in charge of cross country was a record-setting one as well, as the Georgetown, Ontario, native guided the 2007 cross country team to its first Big East Championship in school history. Cleary had a thenschool record three All-Big East performers in 2007 and brought WVU back into the top 25 of the national polls for the first time since 2004.

In Cleary’s first season as head coach in 2007, he was named Big East Coach of the Year. The team also became Big East champions for the first time in school history and a then-school record. Three runners were named All-Big East as the team entered the top 25 for the first time in three years.

For the fourth year in a row, the Mountaineers were named an All-Academic Team by the USTFCCCA. The group was ranked 17th in the nation in terms of overall grade point average (GPA) and had the second-highest GPA in the Big East with a 3.61 average.

Before taking over as head coach, Cleary served as the distance coach in 2005 and 2006 and was a full-time assistant from 2001-04, serving as the primary coach and trainer for the cross country team during that span. Prior to the 2001 season, Cleary served as a graduate assistant coach for eight seasons at WVU. In 2006, Cleary brought a young team along nicely before season’s end. That squad claimed a sixth-place finish at the 2006 Big East Championship, improving from 12th the year before. Then, perhaps one of the biggest surprises of the 2006 Mid-Atlantic Regional Championship was the finish of Cleary’s group. Despite having more than 60 percent of the roster comprised of freshmen, WVU registered a fourth-place finish at regionals after spending all season ranked between 10th and 12th in the regional polls. Four of WVU’s top five finishers were freshmen.

In the 2005 outdoor track season, Cleary coached five NCAA regional qualifiers. In 2005, Jennifer Kemp won the NCAA Regional Championships in the 800-meter, while Jennifer Davis was the 3,000-meter ECAC champion.

Megan Metcalfe won the national championship in the 5,000-meter, becoming the third women’s track athlete in school history to win an individual national championship.

Cleary previously had been the distance coach in 2005 and 2006 and was a full-time assistant from 2001-04, serving as the primary coach and trainer for the cross country team during that span. Prior to the 2001 season,

Cleary served as a graduate assistant coach for eight seasons at WVU. His primary duties included recruiting and coaching the middle distance and long-distance runners From 1998 to 2004, WVU’s distance medley relay team qualified for nationals for seven consecutive years, the second-longest streak in the nation, under Cleary’s watch.

Cleary has coached 17 athletes who have competed at the World Track and Field, World Cross Country, World University Games and Pan American Championship.

Cleary worked closely with former head coach Martin Pushkin in building the women’s cross country team into a national contender. Cleary was responsible for the recruitment and mentoring of NCAA mile champion Kate Vermeulen as well as All-Americans Rebecca Stallwood, Merissa Sexsmith and Megan Metcalfe.

Under his guidance, Cleary’s coaching has produced several men’s All-America runners, including four-time AllAmerican Bob Donker, NCAA cross country All-Americans Wynston Alberts, Mike Dudley and Steve Bohan, two-time NCAA qualifiers Jeff Metcaff and Bohan, NCAA qualifier Ian Collings and 5,000-meter All-American Mark Vilardo.

Cleary, who holds a USATF Level I Certification, is the primary recruiter for the cross country squad, attracting the best in-state, out-of-state and international athletes.

He also is responsible for scheduling all meets and serves as the director for home meets.

He was a member of the Mountaineer team in 1991 and 1992, helping the 1991 squad capture the Atlantic 10 cross country title and earning all-conference honors his last season.

Cleary attended Central Oregon Community College, where he helped lead the team to the National Junior College Athletic Association title. He received a bachelor’s degree in physical education from WVU in 1992. He resides in Morgantown with his wife, Heather. They have one son, Patrick Nolan Cleary, who was born on April 30, 2014.

SEAN CLEARY Coaching Experience West Virginia University, 1993-Present ■■ 10th season as Head Coach ■■ 24th season overall with the program ■■ Coached/mentored 25 of the 37 All-Americans at WVU ■■ A cumulative team GPA of 3.45 during the 2015 season ■■ Two former graduate qualifiers for 2016 Olympic Trials (Clara (Grandt) Santucci, Aubrey Moskal) ■■ One All-American in 2015 (Kaitlyn Gillespie) ■■ Three All-Americans in 2014 (Stormy Nesbit, Allison Lasnicki, Sarah Martinelli) ■■ Two All-Americans in 2014 (Stormy Nesbit, Allison Lasnicki)

■■ Two

All-Americans in 2013 (Jordan Hamric, Kelly Williams) ■■ Two All-Americans in 2012 (Chelsea Carrier-Eades, Jessica O’Connell) ■■ Five ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-Americans ■■ Seven Capital One Academic all-district honorees over past two seasons ■■ 2009-10 BIG EAST ScholarAthlete Sport Excellence Award – Marie-Louise Asselin ■■ 10 NCAA Regional qualifiers in 2012 ■■ Two-time Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year (2010-11) – Chelsea Carrier ■■ 2008-09 Mid-Atlantic Track Athlete of the Year - Clara Grandt

■■ 2008-09

BIG EAST Indoor Most Outstanding Track Performer - Keri Bland ■■ 2008 1,000 NCAA APR score ■■ 24 BIG EAST champions ■■ Five ECAC champions ■■ Numerous NCAA National qualifiers Running experience West Virginia University, 1991-92 ■■ Helped 1991 team to Atlantic 10 title ■■ Earned all-conference honors in 1992 Education West Virginia University, 1992 ■■ Bachelor’s degree (physical education) Family ■■ Wife, Heather and son, Patrick

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

25

RECENT MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS UNDER CLEARY CROSS COUNTRY ■■ Two

NCAA Championship qualifiers – Jillian Forsey and Maggie Drazba ■■ 2016 Big 12 Women’s Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year – Jillian Forsey ■■ Three USTFCCCA All-Academic honorees – Jillian Forsey, Maggie Drazba and Amy Cashin ■■ Three all-region honors in 2016- Jillian Forsey, Maggie Drazba and Amy Cashin ■■ Two Mountaineer graduates competed at the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics – Sarah-Anne Brault (Triathlon) and Jessica O’Connell (5,000m) ■■ One individual qualifier for the 2015 NCAA XC Championships – Millie Paladino ■■ One Academic All-America First Team (CoSIDA) – Kelly Williams ■■ Two Academic All-District First Team (CoSIDA) Amy Cashin and Kelly Williams ■■ Two all-region honors in 2015 – Millie Paladino and Savanna Plombon ■■ Clara Santucci raced at the 2016 Olympic Trials in L.A. ■■ Eight NCAA appearances in the last nine seasons ■■ Five NCAA top-10 finishes since 2007 ■■ 2014 Two All-Americans - Jillian Forsey and Kaitlyn Gillespie ■■ Placed eighth at the 2014 NCAA Championship ■■ 2014 Elite 89 Award Winner Kelly Williams ■■ 2014 Jillian Forsey qualified for the World Cross Country team ■■ 2014 Big 12 Championship and MidAtlantic Regional second-place finish ■■ Three all-region and one allconference runner in 2013 ■■ 2011 NCAA Championship eighth-place finish ■■ 2011 Two All-Americans - Kate Harrison & Kaitlyn Gillespie ■■ Five all-region and three allconference runners in 2011 ■■ 2011 Elite 89 Award winner Ahna Lewis ■■ 2010 Kaitlyn Gillespie named All-American ■■ 2009 NCAA Championship sixth-place finish ■■ 2007-09 Three straight top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championship ■■ 2009 Highest weekly national ranking – No. 3 on Oct. 6, 2009 ■■ 2009 Three All-Americans – Asselin, Bland, Grandt ■■ 2009 Two Academic All-Americans – Asselin, Christopher

26

T R ACK & FIEL D

■■ 2009 ■■ 2009 ■■ 2009

Five All-Mid-Atlantic Region runners 1,000 NCAA APR Score Three All-Big East runners – Asselin, Bland, Grandt ■■ 2008 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Champion ■■ 2008 Big East Championship runner-up ■■ 2008 Big East Champion- Asselin ■■ 2007 Big East Champions ■■ 2007, 2008 Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year ■■ 2007 Big East Coaching Staff of the Year

KAITLYN GILLESPIE

■■ 2015 Big 12 Champion in the 10k ■■ Three-time All-American (2010-11, 2014) ■■ USTFCCCA All-Academic honors ■■ 2014 Academic-All American ■■ 2014 Big 12 Women’s Cross Country

Scholar-Athlete of the Year

■■ 26th place at NCAA Championship ■■ 2014 Big 12 All-Conference honors

for finishing in the top 15

■■ 27th place at 2011 NCAA Championship ■■ 2011 USTFCCCA All-Academic Team ■■ 34th place at 2010 NCAA Championship ■■ Two-time All-Big East (2010-11) ■■ Two-time All-Mid-Atlantic

Region (2010-11)

KATE HARRISON

■■ 2011 All-American ■■ Eighth place at 2011

NCAA Championship, best individual finish at nationals in school history, beating Megan Metcalfe’s 2002 record of ninth place ■■ Four-time NCAA Championship participant ■■ 2011 All-Big East Team ■■ Three-time All-Mid-Atlantic region (2008, 09, 11) ■■ Named to 2011 USTFCCCA All-Academic team

MARIE-LOUISE ASSELIN ■■ 10-time

All-American in three sports (Cross County, Indoor and Outdoor Track) ■■ 2010- second place finish at the Indoor and Outdoor NCAA Championship ■■ 2009 Cross Country All-American ■■ 2009 All-Big East Team ■■ 2009 All-Mid-Atlantic Team ■■ 2009 USTFCCCA All-Academic Team ■■ 2008 Cross Country All-American ■■ 2008 Big East individual cross country champion ■■ 2008 All-Big East Team ■■ 2008 All-Mid-Atlantic Region Team

■■ 2008

ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team ■■ 2007 Seventh place in the 3,000-meter race at NCAA Track and Field Championship ■■ 2007 3,000-meter Big East indoor track and field champion ■■ 2007 ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-American Third Team

KERI BLAND ■■ 2011

All-American (indoor, outdoor 1,500 meters) ■■ 2011 Academic All-American Third Team ■■ 2007-08 and 2009-11 AllAmerican in all three sports ■■ 2009 Cross Country All-American ■■ 2009 All-Big East team ■■ 2009 All-Mid-Atlantic Team ■■ 2009 USTFCCCA All-Academic Team ■■ 2009 Big East Indoor Championship Most Outstanding Performer ■■ Set school and Big East Championship meet records in mile event at 2009 indoor championship ■■ First WVU female to become All-American in three sports in same year (2008) ■■ 2008 Olympic trial qualifier in the 1500m ■■ 2008 Cross Country All-American ■■ 2008 All-Big East Team ■■ 2008 All-Mid-Atlantic Region Team ■■ 2008 ESPN The Magazine/CoSIDA Academic All-District Second Team ■■ 2008 1,000-meter Big East indoor track and field champion ■■ 2008 10th in the 1,500-meter race at the NCAA Outdoor Championship

CLARA GRANDT

■■ 2014-15 Pittsburgh Marathon winner ■■ 2009 Cross Country All-American ■■ 2009 All-Big East Team ■■ 2009 All-Mid-Atlantic Team ■■ 2009 USTFCCCA all-Academic Team ■■ Big East Cross Country Runner

of the Week (9/24/09) NCAA Mid-Atlantic Region Track Athlete of the Year ■■ 10,000-meter ECAC outdoor meet record ■■ NCAA outdoor qualifier in 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter ■■ 2008 Team USA Cross Country team member ■■ NCAC Champion ■■ 2008 All-Big East Team ■■ 2008 All-Mid-Atlantic Region Team ■■ 2009

ASSISTANT COACH

SHELLY-ANNGallimore

NINTH SEASON / 11TH YEAR OVERALL

Shelly-Ann Gallimore enters her ninth season as an assistant coach with West Virginia University’s track and field coaching staff after working with the Mountaineers for

two seasons as a graduate assistant.

Her duties include designing and administering training plans for the horizontal and vertical jump groups, as well as assisting with meet management for all home track meets.

Under her tutelage, she has coached a USA Juniors trial, several NCAA Regional qualifiers in the high jump and NCAA Championship qualifiers in the triple jump.

During the 2016 season, eight Mountaineers qualified to compete at the NCAA East Preliminary Round, two of which were Gallimore’s jumpers, Shamoya McNeil and

Hannah Stone. McNeil competed in the triple jump, placing 30th overall and Stone placed 27th in the high jump. That same year, McNeil set a career best and the second best mark in the triple jump in WVU indoor history at the Big 12 Indoor Championship, marking 12.82 meters and set the third best mark in outdoor history, marking 12.76 meters. Gallimore played an integral role in assisting eight Mountaineers earn all-big 12 honors at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship and seven at the indoor championship.

In 2015, Gallimore coached Shamoya McNeil to a qualifying triple jump mark of 12.81 meters, and a season best at the NCAA Preliminary rounds. McNeil was ranked at No. 24 in the event going into the championship.

In 2014, Gallimore coached Stormy Nesbit to First Team All-America status and an eighth place showing in the triple jump at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, Oregon. She also helped Marseille McBeam and Hannah Stone to top-five finishes in the High Jump at the Big 12 Championship.

She helped Nesbit break the school record in the triple jump as she earned a 13.07-meter jump at the 2012

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

27

ECAC Championships. Three long jumpers (Chelsea Carrier-Eades, Nesbit, Meghan Mock) placed second through fourth at the Big East Outdoor Championships, and high jumper Sydney Cummings earned a career-best height of 1.77 meters at the NCAA East Regional, the fourth-best height in WVU history.

In 2011, she was instrumental in helping high jumper Katelyn Williams and long jumper Meghan Mock earn their first ever All-America honors through close supervision and strength and conditioning modifications.

In 2010, Gallimore aided multi-event student-athlete Chelsea Carrier-Eades with her jumps as she earned her firstever All-America status in the pentathlon and Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year honors during the indoor season.

During the outdoor season, Gallimore saw junior Katelyn Williams to the NCAA Outdoor Championships, as the first high-jumper to represent WVU at the national championships since 1990.

28

T R ACK & FIEL D

In 2009, she aided Williams to the 2009 Canadian Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Toronto, where she cleared 1.71-meters, while Natasha Redman jumped a personal-best 1.75-meters at the Duke/Asics Invitational to qualify for the NCAA Regionals.

Gallimore, a native of Kingston, Jamaica, was successful as a student-athlete winning a 2001 NCAA Championship in the triple jump. The All-American also was a two-time SEC champion in the triple jump for Auburn. After her 2004 graduation, Gallimore spent time as a volunteer coach at her alma mater.

Gallimore also has years of international experience under her belt. She placed seventh in the triple jump at the 2000 World Juniors as part of the Jamaican National Team.

Gallimore earned her bachelors’ degree in marketing from Auburn and her master’s degree in physical education from West Virginia in 2008.

ASSISTANT COACH

ERINO ’Reilly

FOURTH SEASON / FOURTH YEAR

Erin O’Reilly is in her fourth season as an assistant coach with West Virginia University after joining the staff in August 2013.

Her familiarity with WVU has been beneficial to the program along with the student-athletes as the program continues to excel. O’Reilly was a part of four individual NCAA appearances with the Mountaineers, along with the team’s eighth-place finish at the 2014 NCAA Cross Country Championship. She works primarily with the long-distance sprinters and middle-distance runners for the track and field and cross country teams.

O’Reilly was a huge contributor to WVU’s success during the 2016 cross country and track and field season both athletically and academically. In cross country, West Virginia qualified two runners to compete at the NCAA

Championships, earned a silver medal at the NCAA MidAtlantic Regionals, thanks to redshirt Jillian Forsey, while adding three all-region honors and placed third at the Big 12 Cross Country Championship, led by Forsey who posted a runner-up finish to earn All-Big 12 honors.

The 2016 track and field season had eight Mountaineers qualify to compete at the NCAA East Region Preliminary Rounds, eight earn All-Big 12 honors at the outdoor championship and seven indoor honorees, and 11 Mountaineers earn Academic All-Big 12 honors. Senior Kelly Williams was named to the 2016 Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-America First Team selected by College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), for the second consecutive year while maintaining a 4.0 GPA. Additionally, junior Amy Cashin and Williams were named to Academic All-District First Team.

West Virginia, including three individual student-athletes were recognized by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) for their academic success during the 2016 season. Redshirt juniors Amy Cashin, Maggie Drazba and Jillian Forsey were named to the USTFCCCA Women’s All-Academic

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

29

Individuals Team. Additionally, the WVU squad was named an All-Academic Team for maintaining a cumulative 3.49 GPA. Forsey earned Big 12 Women’s Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year, the third award for the Mountaineer cross country team. Additionally, nine Mountaineers were named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team, while Cashin was highlighted for her 4.0 GPA. During the 2015 cross country season, O’Reilly helped the Mountaineers to a third-place finish at the Big 12 Championship, guided two to earn All-Mid-Atlantic Region honors, assisted an individual qualifier to the NCAA Cross Country Championships, and helped two earn Academic All-District Team and twelve who were named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team.

The NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional meet was highlighted by sophomore Millie Paladino and senior Savanna Plombon’s earning All-Mid-Atlantic Region honors for posting a top-25 finish. Paladino led the Mountaineers while crossing the finish line in 11th place with a time of 21:16.20, and Plombon crossed the finish line in 23rd overall (21:25.20).

Paladino also was the lone Mountaineer who qualified to compete at the 2015 NCAA Cross Country Championships in Louisville, Kentucky, the second-straight championships for Paladino. She placed 77th overall with a career-best time of 20:41.60 on the 6k course at E.P “Tom” Sawyer State Park.

In the 2014-15 track and field season, she helped guide seven Mountaineers to qualify for the NCAA East Region Preliminary Championships, as each ranked in the top 48 in their respective events.

At the 2015 Big 12 Outdoor Championship, O’Reilly helped coach four Mountaineer freshmen to top-five finishes as they earned spots on the podium. She helped guide

Kaitlyn Gillespie to All-America honors after finishing ninth in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA Championship.

In 2014, she helped three Mountaineers to All-Mid-Atlantic Region distinctions, three All-Big 12 recognitions and two All-America honors in the 2014 season.

In her first season, O’Reilly oversaw three individual qualifiers to the NCAA Championships and five qualifiers to the NCAA East Regional.

O’Reilly was a member of the Mountaineer team in the early 1990s and graduated from WVU in 1993 with a degree in physical education. She was an integral part in the coaching of former Mountaineer Ailene Smith to All-America status in 200001. Smith is a two time All-American as a member of the distance medley relay team and in the 4x800 relay.

As a runner, she garnered many accolades while also serving as a team captain for cross country and track.

O’Reilly finished third at the Atlantic 10 Championships as a junior and was named to the A-10 All-Conference Team. She was the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) champion and a NCAA provisional qualifier in the 1,000 meters her senior year. She held seven school records in cross country and track by the end of her career.

The Canton, Ohio, native served as a member of coach Cleary’s staff from 1994-2002. During that time, the Mountaineers registered 22 All-American honors and 13 MidAtlantic Region distinctions in cross country and track combined.

In 2003, O’Reilly joined the Boston College coaching staff as an assistant and held the position for 10 seasons. While on staff, she helped guide the Golden Eagles to multiple ECAC titles and numerous appearances at the NCAA Championships.

O’Reilly earned her master’s degree in athletic coaching education from WVU in 2004.

SupportStaff

CaseyZIMMERMAN

Graduate Assistant Athletic Trainer

30

SamanthaSTREJECK

ChrisDUNAWAY

ConorMcNAMARA

Dr. MattLIVELY

AmyHILE

Graduate Assistant Athletic Communications

Sprints Strength Coach

Assistant Equipment Manager

Medical Doctor

Athletic Trainer

SandyCOLE-DEMENT

BubbaSCHMIDT

CindySMITH

NettieFRESHOUR

SeanHOPKINS

Assistant Director, Student-Athlete Development

Equipment Manager

Administrative Assistant

Sports Nutritionist

Graduate Assistant

T R ACK & FIEL D

MOUNTAINEER

Profiles Roster ������������������������������������������������������������������ 30 Profiles ���������������������������������������������������������������� 31 Seniors ���������������������������������������������������� 31 Juniors ���������������������������������������������������� 37 Sophomores �������������������������������������������� 44 Freshmen ������������������������������������������������ 49

2017 ROSTER Name

Height

Class

Hometown/Last School

Antigone Archer

5-4

Fr.

Southlake, Texas/Southlake Carroll HS

Alexis Baublitz

5-6

Fr.

York, Pa./Central York HS

Amanda Barnes

5-6

Fr.

Beaufort, S.C./Beaufort HS

Danique Bryan

5-6

Fr.

Clarendon, Jamaica/Edwin Allen HS

Amy Cashin

5-5

Jr.

Werribee, Australia/Werribee Secondary

Abby Colbert

5-5

Fr.

Shepherdstown, W.Va./Jefferson HS

Gina Cueno

5-7

Fr.

Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield Area Senior HS

Allie Diehl

5-4

Jr.

Chardon, Ohio/Chardon HS

Maggie Drazba

5-1

Jr.

St Marys, W.Va./St Mary’s HS

Sarah Finfrock

5-4

Jr.

Kennett Square, Pa./Kennett HS

Jillian Forsey

5-4

Jr. Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador/ Stephenville HS

32

Anna French

5-4

r-Fr.

Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata High

Madelin Gardner

5-5

Jr.

Williamstown, W.Va./Williamstown HS

Greer Gumbrecht

5-10

Fr.

Easton, Pa./Easton HS

Peyton Hampson

5-8

Sr.

Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg Central HS

Brynn Harshbarger

5-2

Jr.

Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown HS

Olivia Hill

5-5

r-Fr.

Scott Depot, W.Va./Teays Valley Christian

Megan Jean-Baptiste

5-4

Jr.

Fairfax, Va. /Oakton HS

Candace Jones

5-5

r-Fr.

Bristow, Va./Patriot HS

Brianna Kerekes

5-5

Sr.

Morgantown, W.Va./Trinity Christian

Rebekah Lafata

5-7

Jr.

Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown HS

Allison Lasnicki

5-6

Sr.

Canastota, N.Y./UConn

Marseille McBeam

5-8

Sr.

St. Ann, Jamaica/Central Michigan

Shamoya McNeil

5-5

Jr.

Portland, Jamaica/Titchfield

Peyton Panger

5-4

r-Fr.

Charleston, W.Va./Capital HS

Faith Penny

6-0

So.

East Islip, N.Y./East Islip

Andrea Pettit

5-4

r-Fr.

Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown HS

Chaqieta Robinson

5-5

So.

Baltimore, Md./Dulaney HS

Megan Silva

5-3

Fr.

Carlisle, Pa./Trinity HS`

Krista-Gay Taylor

5-11

r-Fr.

St. Andrew, Jamaica/Covent of Mercy Academy

Bria Welker

5-6

Jr.

Ridgeley, W.Va./Frankfort HS

Rebecca Wendt

5-10

Jr.

Whitby, Ontario/Henry Street HS

Kyrielle Williams

5-9

Fr.

North Royalton, Ohio/Saint Joseph Academy

Sarah Wills

5-7

Fr.

Morgantown, W.Va./University HS

Megan Yuan

5-8

Sr.

Thunder Bay, Ontario/Ignatius HS

T R ACK & FIEL D

Seniors AMY

SR. | 5-4

DISTANCE WERRIBEE, AUSTRALIA

2016

Outdoor Season (r-Sr.) ■■ CoSIDA Academic All-District First Team ■■ Academic All-Big 12 First Team while maintaining a 4.0 GPA ■■ Qualified for the NCAA East Prelims where she recorded a personal-best time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase of 10:11.08, the fourth best in WVU history ■■ Earned All-Big 12 honors for winning the silver medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (10:23.68) at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Won the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:21.36 at the Billy Hayes Invite ■■ Member of the third-place distance medley relay team (11:50.96) at the Penn Relays Indoor Season (Jr.) ■■ Placed second in the mile with a time of 4:48.21 to earn All-Big 12 honors at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Second-place finish in the mile with a season-best time of 4:39.85 at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Finished in second place in the mile with a time of 4:47.67 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Took third place in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:12.28 at the Nittany Lion Challenge

Cashin

2015

Outdoor Season (r-Fr.) ■■ Placed third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and was the first freshman finisher to cross the finish line in 10:44.30 at the Big 12 Outdoor Track & Field Championship ■■ Finished 34th overall with a time of 4:26.02 in the 1,500 meters at the Virginia Challenge Indoor Season (So.) ■■ Placed third in 800 meters with a time of 2:12.72 and fifth in 1,000 meters (2:47.49) at the SPIRE Invite

2014 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season Redshirted Indoor Season ■■ Crossed the line in 10th overall (2:54.80) at the Big 12 Indoor Championship in the 1,000 meters ■■ Recorded a personal-best time of 2:13.35 in the 800 meters at the Akron Invite, finishing fifth overall ■■ Placed second in the 800 meters (2:15.49) at the YSU Invite ■■ Member of 4x800 meter relay team that took first place in 9:10.68 at the PSU National ■■ Member of the distance medley relay team that finished second in 11:45.00 at the PSU National

WVUTrackField

■■ Claimed

first in the 1,000 meters at the WVU Invite with a time of 2:56.15

High School ■■ Captain at Werribee Secondary College for coach Peter Burke ■■ Member of Team Australia for the World Junior Cross Country Championships, where she placed 50th with a 6k time of 20:48 ■■ 2013 Victoria State U-20 champion in the 1,500 meter run ■■ Silver medalist at the 6k U-20 Australia Cross Country Championships ■■ Part of Team Victoria for cross country and track & field from 2007-13 ■■ 2012 U-20 Cross Country Champion in Victoria ■■ Bronze Medalist at the 2010 4k U-18 Australia Cross Country Championships ■■ Silver medalist at the 2009 4k U-16 Australia Cross Country Championships ■■ Champion in the U-16 3,000-meter run at the 2009 Australia Track and Field Championships Personal ■■ Daughter of Peter and Brenda Cashin ■■ Has one brother and one sister ■■ Birthday is July 28 ■■ Majoring in sports psychology ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

33

PEYTON SR. | 5-8

MID-DISTANCE WAYNESBURG, PA.

2016 (Jr.)

■■ Redshirted

2015 (So.) ■■ Did

not compete

2014 (Fr.)

Indoor Season ■■ Placed 10th overall in the 400 meters with a time of 59:30 at the Akron Invite High School ■■ Ran for coaches Duane Bowers and Jeff Coss at Waynesburg Central

34

T R ACK & FIEL D

■■ Placed

Hampson

third in 800 meters at the 2012 PIAA Track and Field State Championships with a personal-best time of 2:11.52 ■■ Ranked fifth on the Regional All-Times list for 800 meters ■■ Finished first in 800 meters at the 2012 Regional Championships and recorded the fastest AA time in regional history ■■ Placed fifth in 800 meters at the 2011 PIAA Track and Field State Championships ■■ Holds the school records in the 400-meter and 800-meter runs, as well as the 4x400 relay

Personal ■■ Daughter of Ron and Debby Hampson ■■ Has one brother and one sister ■■ Birthday is January 4 ■■ Majoring in nursing ■■ Valedictorian of graduating class with a 4.0 GPA ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

BRIANNA SR. | 5-7

SPRINTS MORGANTOWN, W.VA.

2016 (r-Jr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 First Team ■■ Qualified for the NCAA East Prelims where she placed 45th in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:38.37 ■■ Placed third in the 1,500 meters with a season-best time of 4:24.17 at the Billy Hayes Invite ■■ Member of the third-place distance medley relay team (11:50.96) at the Penn Relays ■■ Finished in 18th-place in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:34.84 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Raced in the 4x400 meter relays as the Mountaineers took fourth with a time of 4:10.18 at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Placed 39th in the 800-meter run with a season-best time of 2:11.48 at the Virginia Challenge Indoor Season ■■ Placed second in the 600-meter run with the second-fastest time in WVU history (1:33.69) at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Took fifth in the 800 meters with a time of 2:14.86 at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished 17th in the 3,000-meter run with a college-best time of 9:47.95 at the Big 12 Championship

2015

Outdoor Season (r-So.) ■■ Notched a career-best time in 800 meters with a time of 2:10.25 at the Jesse Owens Classic

Kerekes

■■ Competed in the 1,500 meters, placing

14th (4:28.77) at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Member of the 4x800 first-place team, finishing in 9:02.81 at the UNF Spring Break ■■ Placed first as a member of the distance medley relay team (11:40.54) at the Penn Relays, earning the fourth-best time in program history ■■ Placed 54th in 1,500-meters with a time of 4:30.87 at the Virginia Challenge Indoor Season (Jr.) ■■ Finished fifth in the 1,000-meter run with a time of 2:49.00 for a college-best time at the Big 12 Indoor Championship

2014

Outdoor Season (r-Fr.) ■■ Placed 12th overall (2:14.70) in the 800 meters at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Placed sixth overall in the 800 meters with a personal-best time of 2:16.50 at the Columbia Last Chance Meet ■■ Personal-best time of 4:42.54 in the 1,500 meters at George Mason Invite Indoor Season (So.) ■■ Recorded a third-place finish in the 500 meters in 1:21.51 at the WVU Invite ■■ Member of the 4x800-meter relay team that placed first (9:10.68) at the PSU National ■■ Member of the distance medley relay team that finished second in 12:14.52 at the PSU Relays

WVUTrackField

2013 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Redshirted Indoor Season ■■ Only competed during indoor season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team ■■ Member of the 4x400 meter relay team that finished fifth overall at the Doug Raymond Invite with a time of 4:00.95 ■■ Personal-best time of 1:02.65 in the 400 meters at the Doug Raymond Invite High School ■■ Ran for coaches Lori and Tyler DeVault at Trinity Christian ■■ Named All-State First Team, after placing second in the 200-meter and 400-meter runs and fourth in the 100-meter dash ■■ At the OVAC finals, she placed sixth in the 400 meter and fifth in the 200 meter and 100 meter ■■ Holds school records in the 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter runs and the 4x400 relay ■■ Also played basketball, volleyball and softball Personal ■■ Daughter of Brian and Susan Kerekes ■■ Birthday is April 26 ■■ Has one brother ■■ Majoring occupational therapy ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

35

ALLISON SR. | 5-7

CANASTOTA, N.Y.

2015-16

■■ Medical

2014-15

■■ Medical

Redshirt Redshirt

At West Virginia in 2013-14

Outdoor season (r-Jr.) ■■ Placed second at the Penn Relays in the 10,000 meters (34:11.20) ■■ Took second place at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters in 35:24.25 and took fourth place in the conference in the 5,000 meters in 17:23.26 ■■ Qualified for the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters ■■ Posted a personal-best time as a Mountaineer in the 10,000 meters of 33:46.22, placing 17th overall, at the NCAA Outdoor Championships ■■ Missed out on Third Team All-America

36

T R ACK & FIEL D

Lasnicki

status in the 10,000 meters by just five places ■■ Finished 11th overall at the NCAA East Prelims in the 10,000 meters in 34:11.71

At UConn in 2012-13 (Jr.)

Outdoor Season (r-So.) ■■ Earned Second Team All-America status in the 10,000 meters during the outdoor season ■■ Qualified for the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters.

■■ Placed ninth in the 10,000 meters at the 2013 NCAA Outdoor Championships with a time of 34:11.99 ■■ Ran a personal-best mark in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA East Prelims with a time of 33:36.11 ■■ Finished second at the 2013 Big East Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters in 34:11.82 ■■ Placed third at the 2013 Big East

Outdoor Championships in the 5,000 meters in 16:33.96 Indoor Season (Jr.) ■■ Placed second in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 15:59.00 at the Colombia Qualifier ■■ Finished second in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:13.17 at the Big East Indoor Championships

At UConn in 2011-12 (so.)

Outdoor Season (r-Fr.) Competed in the 5,000 meters at the NCAA East Preliminary Round, posting a prelim time of 16:43.37 Posted a fourth-place finish in the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:33.43 at the IC4A/ECAC Championships ■■ Placed 12th in the 10,000 meters with a time of 36:25.97 at the Big EAST Championships

MARSEILLE R-SR. | 5-9 HIGH JUMP ST. ANN, JAMAICA

2016 (Sr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Redshirted Indoor Season ■■ Won the high jump with a mark of 1.70 meters at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Recorded an indoor-best mark of 1.73 meters where she tied for seventh place at the PSU National Invitational ■■ Placed 14th in the high jump with a mark of 1.66 meters at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Tied for third place in the high jump with a mark of 1.69 meters at the Akron Invitational ■■ Finished in sixth place in the high jump with a leap of 1.70 meters at the Nittany Lion Challenge

2015 (Jr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Tied for ninth in the high jump with a season-best mark of 1.71 meters at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Finished first in the high jump with a mark of 1.67-meter mark at the Ohio Cherry Blossom ■■ Placed 30th in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:01.52 at the UNF Spring Break Invitational ■■ Placed third in the high jump with a mark of 1.70 meters at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Placed third in the high jump with a 1.68-meter jump at the Virginia Challenge

McBeam

Indoor Season ■■ Placed 16th in the high jump (1.66 meters) at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Took third place, marking 1.65 meters in the high jump at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Placed 29th in the high jump with a mark of 1.60 meters at the Penn Relays ■■ Finished in first place in the high jump (1.70 meters) at the YSU College Invite ■■ Fifth place in the high jump with a mark of 1.70 meters at the Akron Invite

2014 (So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Qualified for the 2014 Outdoor NCAA East Preliminary Round ■■ Placed fourth in the high jump at the 2014 Big 12 Outdoor Championship with a career-best mark of 1.76 meters ■■ Won the high jump at the George Mason Invite with a mark of 1.70 meters ■■ Finished first in the high jump with a mark of 1.65 meters at the Cherry Blossom Invite Indoor Season ■■ Claimed first in the high jump with a personal-best indoor mark of 1.72 meters at the SPIRE Invite ■■ Recorded top-five finishes in the high jump at the Akron Invite, PSU National, Raleigh Relay

WVUTrackField

At Central Michigan in 2013 ■■ Finished

fourth in high jump (5-06) at the Bull Invitational ■■ Posted a first-place finish in the high jump at the GVSU Tune-Up Open ■■ Finished in fourth place at the Mid-American Conference Indoor Championships with a jump of 5’7.75

High School ■■ Attended Vere Technical High ■■ Finished third in high jump at the 2011 ISSA/Grace Kennedy Class 1 Girls Championships with a mark of 5’7 ■■ First place in discus at the 2008 ISSA/Grace Kennedy Class 3 Girls Championships ■■ Finished 12th in the high jump at the 2011 Penn Relays Personal ■■ Daughter of Leviu and Lonie McBeam ■■ Birthday is April 2 ■■ One of four children ■■ Has two sisters and one brother ■■ Majoring in nursing ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

37

MEGAN R-SR. | 5-9

DISTANCE THUNDER BAY, ONTARIO

2016 (r-Jr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Qualified for the NCAA East Prelims in the 3,000-meter steeplechase where she finished in 37th place with a time of 10:38.27 ■■ Ran a career-best time of 10:27.69 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Finished in 12th in the 1,500 meters with a career-best time of 4:29.71 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took third in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:40.31 at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Placed 11th in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4:42.77 at the Billy Hayes Invite Indoor Season ■■ Did not compete

2015 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed first in the mile during the indoor WVU Gold-Blue meet, finishing with a season-best time of 5:12.54 ■■ Ran the mile with a time of 5:01.45 at the SPIRE Invite, placing 26th overall

Indoor Season ■■ Finished 18th in the 3,000 meter race with a time of 9:49.19 at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Raced in the 4x800 meter relay, placing first as a team (9:10.68) at the PSU National

2014 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed fifth overall in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 11:08.97 at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Member of 4x800-meter relay team that placed first in 9:10.68 at the PSU National Indoor Season ■■ Placed 18th in the 3,000 meters with a career-best 9:49.19 at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Posted a personal-best time of 10:30.16 in 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:40.71 at the Princeton Elite ■■ Finished 12th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Larry Ellis Invite

2013 (Fr.)

Did not compete

38

T R ACK & FIEL D

Yuan High School ■■ Ran at St. Ignatius High ■■ Placed 10th at the 2011 Junior Division Canadian Cross Country Championships ■■ Sixth at the 2011 OFSAA Senior Division Cross Country Championships ■■ 2011 Canadian Youth Division 3,000-meter Champion ■■ Finished second at the 2009 Junior Division OFSAA Cross Country Championships ■■ 2009 Canadian Division 3,000-meter champion ■■ Placed third at the 2009 Canadian Midget Division 1,500-meter run Finished third at the 2011 AO Youth Cross Country Championships in the 1,500-meter run Personal Daughter of Mike and Sue Yuan Birthday is February 9 Has two brothers Majoring in art history and business Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

Juniors ALLIE DIEHL

5-4, JUNIOR DISTANCE CHARDON, OHIO

2016 (Jr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed 21st in the unseeded 5,000-meter run with a career-best time of 18:06.96 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took 11th place in the 5,00-meter run with a time of 18:30.39 at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Placed 42nd in the 1,500-meter run, crossing the finish line in a season-best time of 5:08.27 at the Wake Forest Open ■■ Finished in 19th place in the 3,000 meters with a time of 10:49.34 at the Wake Forest Open ■■ Placed 47th in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 5:09.85 at the Mason Spring Invite Indoor Season ■■ Placed fourth in the 5,000 meters with an indoor career-best time of 18:23.65 at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished in 16th place in the 3,000 meters, crossing the finish line in a career-best time of 10:36.70 at the Nittany Lion Challenge

Indoor Season ■■ Posted a personal-best mark of 10:53.71 in the 3,000 meters at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished 11th in the 3,000 meters in 11:03.94 at the PSU Relays High School ■■ Ran for coach Mike Combs at Chardon High ■■ Named valedictorian of her senior class ■■ Four-year varsity letterwinner in cross country and track ■■ First-team All-PAC Conference ■■ Four-time regional qualifier ■■ Recipient of the Chardon High School Scholar-Athlete Award ■■ OHSAA Scholar-Athlete Award Personal ■■ Daughter of Robert and Rachel Diehl ■■ Birthday is September 29 ■■ Has two brothers and a sister ■■ Majoring in industrial engineering ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Dr. Gerald Lage Academic Achievement Award

MAGGIE DRAZBA

5-1, R-JUNIOR DISTANCE ST. MARYS, W.VA.

2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season Did not compete due to injury

2015 (So.)

Indoor Season ■■ Placed 10th in the 3,000-meter run with a career-best time of 9:36.30 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Won the 3,000 meters (9:38.41) at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Member of the winning distance medley relay team (11:59.02) at the Akron Invitational

Indoor Season ■■ Posted a seventh-place finish in the 3,000 meters with a personal-best time of 10:41.76 at the Thundering Herd Invite

2015 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed fifth overall in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 18:30.84 at the Ohio Cherry Blossom Invitational ■■ Ran a personal-best time of 5:28.09 in the mile at the Penn State Relays

2014 (Fr.) Outdoor Season ■■ Placed ninth in the mile at the WVU Invite with a personal-best time of 5:35.66 ■■ Recorded a personal-best time of 18:48.96 in the 5,000 meters at the Cherry Blossom Invite ■■ Placed 12th (5:13.35) in the 1,500 meters at the Cal U Early Bird Meet ■■ Posted a 12th-place finish in the 3,000 meters at the Larry Ellis Invite

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed 24th in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 17:51.45 and placed 10th (35:50.40) in 1,000 meters at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Finished 30th in the 1,500-meter run in a career-best time of 4:38.51 at the Jesse Owens Classic Indoor Season ■■ Placed 12th in 3,000 meters in 9:38.59 at the SPIRE Invitational ■■ Finished ninth with a time of 16:28.99 in 5,000 meters at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Crossed the line in third place in 4:55.69 in the mile at the Akron invite Was a member of the 4x800 meter relay team, placing first (9:29.29) at the WVU Invite

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

39

2014 (Fr.) ■■ Did

not compete

High School ■■ Four-year letterwinner at St. Marys High ■■ 2011 and 2012 Gatorade West Virginia Girls Cross Country Athlete of the Year ■■ 2013 Gatorade West Virginia Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year ■■ 2009, 2011 and 2012 West Virginia AA-A State Cross Country Champion ■■ Placed third at the Footlocker Southwest Regional with a time of 17:10 to qualify for the 2012 Foot Locker Cross Country Championships, where she placed 22nd overall ■■ Second place at the 2012 USATF Cross Country Junior Championships ■■ Led Team USA to the championship at the 2012 NACAC, where she placed fourth individually ■■ Holds the West Virginia State Meet record for cross country with a time of 17:17 ■■ Took top honors at the 2012 Great American Cross Country Festival ■■ Part of the St. Marys squad that won the 2009 AA-A West Virginia Cross Country Championship ■■ Undefeated in Little Kanawha Cross Country Conference Championship competition all four years ■■ West Virginia outdoor track and field record holder in the mile (4:53), 1,600-meter run (4:51), 3,000-meter run (9:37), 3,200-meter run (10:27) and two mile run (10:37) ■■ West Virginia indoor track and field record holder in the 3,200 (10:41), two-mile run (10:29) and the 5,000-meter run (17:40) ■■ Finished second at the 2013 Penn Relays in the 3,000-meter run ■■ Four-time West Virginia track and field state champion in class A in the 800-meter run (2010-13) and the 1,600-meter run (2010-13) ■■ Three-time West Virginia track and field state champion in class A in the 3,200-meter run (2011-13) ■■ Part of the 4x800-meter relay team that captured the 2010 state title ■■ Holds the West Virginia Class A state meet record in the 800-meter run (2:18), 3,200-meter run (10:31) and the 4x800meter relay (9:48) Personal ■■ Daughter of Charles and Kathleen Drazba ■■ Has two brothers ■■ Birthday is May 18 ■■ Majoring in human nutrition and foods ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

SARA FINFROCK

5-4, JUNIOR POLE VAULT KENNETT SQUARE, PA.

2016 (So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Second Team ■■ Placed eighth in the pole vault to earn All-Big 12 honors,

40

T R ACK & FIEL D

marking a career best and sharing the third best-mark in WVU history at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Tied for fourth place in the pole vault, vaulting 3.75 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Tied for third in the pole vault at 3.60 meters at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took fifth in the pole vault with a mark of 3.68 meters at the Jim Thorpe Invite ■■ Placed fifth in the pole vault, marking 3.55 meters, at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Finished in seventh place in the pole vault with a mark of 3.47 meters at the Wake Forest Open Indoor Season ■■ Placed fourth in the pole vault, marking a season best of 3.60 meters at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Tied for sixth place, pole vaulting a mark of 3.36 meters at the Akron Invite ■■ Placed seventh in the pole vault with a mark of 3.54 meters at the Nittany Lion Challenge ■■ Tied for ninth in the pole vault (3.55 meters) at the PSU National Invitational ■■ 2015 (Fr.) Outdoor Season ■■ Placed 26th in the pole vault with a 3.35-meter mark at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Finished fifth in the pole vault, marking 3.35 meters at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Tied for second in the pole vault, marking 3.35 meters at the Ohio Cherry Blossom Invitational ■■ Finished fifth in the pole vault, marking 3.50 meters at the UNF Spring Break Invitational ■■ Tied for 14th overall in the pole vault with a marking of 3.37 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Indoor Season ■■ Pole vaulted to a 10th-place finish (3.30 meters) at the Thundering Herd Invite ■■ Took a 15th-place finish in the pole vault, marking 3.07 meters at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished 24th in the pole vault with a mark of 3.20 meters at the YSU College Invite ■■ Placed 11th, vaulting 3.37 meters at the PSU Relays ■■ Took eighth place in the pole vault with a mark of 3.35 meters at the WVU Invite ■■ High School ■■ Pole vaulted at Kennett High under coaches John Ramagano and Carl Lowe ■■ Member of Deasil Pole Vault Club ■■ Career-best vault of 11’ at the 2014 PIAA District 1 AAA Outdoor Championship, placing fifth overall ■■ Finished sixth at the 2013 PIAA District 1 AAA Outdoor Championship ■■ Recorded a fourth-place finish as a sophomore at the 2012 PIAA District 1 AAA Outdoor Championship with a mark of 10-6 ■■ Placed first at the Downingtown West Spring Invitational, vaulting a mark of 10’ Personal ■■ Daughter of Mark and Claire Finfrock ■■ Has two brothers and two sisters ■■ Birthday is December 7 ■■ Majoring in business ■■ Big 12 Commissioners Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

■■ Placed

JILLIAN FORSEY

5-4, R-JUNIOR DISTANCE STEPHENVILLE, NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR 2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season Qualified for the NCAA East Prelims in the 5,000 meters and placed 17th with a time of 16:27.89 Took sixth in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 16:42.18 at the Big 12 Championship to earn All-Big 12 honors ■■ Recorded a career-best time of 15:05.89 to place 14th in the 5,000 meters at the Stanford Invitational

fifth in the 3,000-meter run and seventh in the 1,500-meter run at the 2011 Canadian Youth National Championships ■■ Finished seventh in the 3,000-meter run at the 2011 Canadian Junior Championships ■■ Bronze medalist in the 1,200-meter run and fourth in the 2,000-meter run at the 2010 Canadian Youth National Championships ■■ Also a competitive cross country skier and was a member of the 2012 National Talent Squad that won a bronze medal in the 5k freestyle at the 2011 Canadian National Championships Personal ■■ Daughter of Bill Forsey and Rosemary Ryan ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is June 9 ■■ Majoring in exercise physiology ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

Indoor Season ■■ Placed seventh in the 5,000-meter run to earn All-Big 12 while crossing the finish line in 16:34.53 at the Big 12 Championship

MADELIN GARDNER

2015 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Named to the All-Big 12 Cross Country Team ■■ Named to the Capital One Academic All-District Team ■■ Took third overall in 5,000-meters with a time of 16:38.32 at the Big 12 Outdoor meet Indoor Season ■■ Placed seventh in the 5,000-meter run in 16:25.43 at the Big 12 Indoor Championship

2014 (Fr.) ■■ Did

not compete

Prep ■■ Ran at Stephenville High for coach Ray Will ■■ Newfoundland Provincial Champion in the 800-meter run, 1,500-meter run and 3,000-meter run for six straight years ■■ Member of Team Canada for the World Junior Cross Country Championships, where she placed 49th with a 6k time 20:40 ■■ Placed eighth at the 2013 4k NACAC Cross Country Championships ■■ Finished first at the 2012 Canadian Cross Country Championships with a 5k time of 17:21 ■■ Won the Athletics Ontario Cross Country Championship with a 5k time of 17:45 ■■ Finished second at the Maine Cross Country Festival of Champions ■■ Named Newfoundland and Labrador Female Athlete of the Year in 2012 ■■ Won the 800-meter run and 1,500-meter run at the 2012 Nike High School Grand Prix ■■ Ran for Team Canada and finished 13th at the NACAC Cross Country Championship ■■ Won the gold medal in the 3,000 meter at the 2012 Athletics Ontario Championships ■■ Finished 14th at the 2011 Canadian Cross Country Championships

5-5, R-SOPHOMORE POLE VAULT WILLIAMSTOWN, W.VA.

2016 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Second Team ■■ Placed 11th in the pole vault, at the Big 12 Championship, marking a career best and sharing the third-best mark in WVU history of 3.91 meters ■■ Won the pole vault title with a mark of 3.90 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Placed second in the pole vault (3.77 meters) at the Wake Forest Open ■■ Finished in third place with a pole vault mark of 3.81 meters at the Mason Spring Invite Indoor Season ■■ Won the pole vault title with an overall personal-best mark and the third-best height in WVU history of 3.96 meters at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished in second place with a pole vault mark of 3.90 meters at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Took third place in the pole vault (3.71 meters) at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Finished in sixth place in the pole vault, leaping 3.70 meters at the PSU National Invitational ■■ Placed ninth in the pole vault with a mark of 3.83 meters at the Big 12 Championship

2015 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Redshirted

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

41

Indoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team ■■ Ninth place in the pole vault with a 3.52-meter mark at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished in seventh place, vaulting 3.35 meters at the YSU College Invite ■■ Placed third in the pole vault, marking a 3.50-meter mark at the WVU Invite High School ■■ Competed for coach Zach Hall at Williamstown High ■■ State champion in the pole vault, 200 meters and 400 meters ■■ School record holder in the 300-meter hurdles and the 100-meter high hurdles ■■ High point winner at the state meet ■■ Four-time all-conference selection and three-time all-state honoree Personal ■■ Daughter of Jeff and Lisa Gardner ■■ Has one sister ■■ Birthday is September 24 ■■ Majoring in biomedical engineering ■■ Participated in competitive gymnastics for 15 years ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

BRYNN HARSHBARGER

Indoor Season in 10th in the 3,000-meter event with a career-best time of 9:37.76 at the Big 12 Indoor Championship

■■ Came

2014 (Fr.)

■■ Redshirted

High School ■■ Ran at Morgantown High for coach Mike Ryan ■■ Placed second in the 1,600-meter run and fifth in the 3,200-meter run at the 2013 West Virginia State Track & Field Championships ■■ Part of the winning 4x800-meter relay team at the 2013 West Virginia State Track & Field Championships ■■ Led the team to a third-place finish at the NXN Southeast Regional Cross Country Championship, while also individually placing 15th ■■ Runner-up at the 2012 West Virginia State Cross Country Championships, which helped her team to a first-place finish ■■ Placed 10th at the Great American Cross Country Festival with a personal-best 5k time of 18:02 ■■ Won the 3,200-meter run at the 2012 West Virginia State Track & Field Championships, followed by a third-place finish in the 1,600-meter run and second-place finish in the 4x800-meter relay ■■ Finished eighth individually at the 2012 West Virginia State Cross Country meet and led her team to a first-place finish ■■ Member of the 4x800-meter relay team that finished third at the 2011 West Virginia State Track & Field Championships Personal ■■ Daughter of Dave and Colleen Harshbarger ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is December 1 ■■ Majoring in biology ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

5-2, R-JUNIOR MID-DISTANCE MORGANTOWN, W.VA.

2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed 10th in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 36.24.59 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Finished 34th in the 10,000 meters with a career-best time of 35:28.09 at the Stanford Invitational Indoor Season ■■ Placed 20th in the 3,000-meter run with a season-best time of 9:49.61 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Finished first in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 9:54.80 at the High Point Team Challenge

2015 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Recorded a career-best time of 4:38.04 in the 1,500-meter run, finishing in ninth at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Finished ninth in the 10,000-meter run in a career-best time of 35:30.86 at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Placed 29th in the 1,5000 meter event in 4:38.04 at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Ran in the 5,000-meter event, finishing 18th with a personalbest time of 17:08.12 at the Stanford Invitational

42

T R ACK & FIEL D

MEGHAN JEAN-BAPTISTE 5-4, R-JUNIOR MULTI FAIRFAX, VA.

2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Placed 15th in the long jump with a career-best mark of 5.45 meters and placed 11th in the 800 meters (2:41.28) at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Finished fourth in the 100-meter hurdles (14.86) and placed 21st in the 200-meter dash with a career-best time of 25.02 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed seventh in the high jump with a mark of 1.60 meters at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Tied for 13th in the high jump with a career-best mark of 1.60 meters at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed 27th in the 100-meter hurdle with a career-best time of 14.61 at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Placed 44th in the long jump (4.98 meters) at the Penn Relays

Indoor Season ■■ Placed sixth in the 60-meter hurdles with a career-best time of 8.81 to earn All-Big 12 honors at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Second place in the 60-meter hurdles, recording a time of 8.88 at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Placed third in the long jump with a mark of 5.47 meters at the Akron Invite ■■ Placed sixth in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.91 and finished in eighth place in the 60 meters (8.88) at the Akron Invitational

2015 (r-Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Recorded a career-best time of 14.66 in the 100-meter hurdles, placing 14th at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship ■■ Placed seventh in the 200-meter dash in 26.92 and finished fourth in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.85 at the Ohio Cherry Blossom Invitational ■■ Ran a career-best time of 26.32 in the 200-meter dash, placing 46th at the UNF Spring Break Invitational ■■ Competed in the 100-meter dash, finishing with a career-best time of 12.70 at the UNF Spring Break Invitational Indoor Season ■■ Placed 35th in the 60-meter dash with a career-best time of 8:00 at the SPIRE Indoor Invitational

2014 (Fr.)

Did not compete High School ■■ Ran for Coach Alisa Byers at Oakton High ■■ Captain during her junior and senior season in indoor and outdoor track Personal ■■ Daughter of Phil Jean-Baptiste and Deb Hanneman ■■ Birthday is February 6 ■■ Has one sister ■■ Majoring in biology

■■ Finished

in 13th place, pole vaulting a mark of 3.24 meters at the Nittany Lion Challenge ■■ Placed 17th with a pole vault mark of 3.21 meters at the Akron Invitational

2015 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Finished in 25th place with a 3.20-meter mark in the pole vault at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Fourth place in the vault, marking 3.05 meters at the Ohio Cherry Blossom ■■ Placed 19th overall, pole vaulting 3.05 meters in the UNF Spring Break Invite Indoor Season ■■ Placed 10th in the pole vault, marking 3.30 meters at the Thundering Herd Invite ■■ Vaulted 3.22 meters, placing 13th overall at the PSU Relays ■■ Ninth place in the pole vault with a mark of 3.20 meters at the YSU College Invite High School ■■ Competed for coaches Steve Blinco and former Mountaineer pole vaulter Jeff Core at Morgantown High ■■ Placed first in the pole vault (10-6) at the 2014 WVSSAC AAA State Championships ■■ Finished fifth in the long jump at the 2014 WVSSAC AAA State with a leap of 16-3.50 ■■ Personal-best vault of 11-0 at the South Hills Classic as a junior ■■ Career-best long jump of 16-10 at the 2014 Ohio Valley Athletic Conference Championship Personal ■■ Daughter of Vincent and Helene Lafata ■■ Has two brothers and one sister ■■ Birthday is July 4 ■■ Majoring in communications ■■ Big 12 Commissioners Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

REBEKAH LAFATA

SHAMOYA McNEIL

5-7, JUNIOR POLE VAULT MORGANTOWN, W.VA.

2016 (So.)

Outdoor Season Placed third in the pole vault, soaring 3.32 meters, at the Wake Forest Open Finished in 11th in the pole vault with an outdoor careerbest mark of 3.40 meters at the Mason Spring Invite Indoor season ■■ Took fifth in the pole vault, marking an overall career-best mark of 3.45 meters at the Penn State Tune Up

5-5, JUNIOR JUMPS PORTLAND, JAMAICA

2016 (So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 First Team ■■ Qualified for the NCAA East Prelims in the triple jump, placing 30th overall with a mark of 12.55 meters ■■ Earned All-Big 12 for her sixth-place performance in the triple jump at the Big 12 Championship, marking 12.67 meters, the fourth-best mark in WVU outdoor history at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Jumped a career-best and WVU’s third-best outdoor mark of 12.76 meters at the Texas Relays

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

43

■■ Long

jumped a career-best mark of 5.80 meters, placing third at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 12.60 meters at the Penn Relays ■■ Finished in sixth place in the triple jump invite, leaping 12.52 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Took 13th in the long jump with a leap of 5.67 meters at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Placed 33rd in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.96 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed 50th in the 100-meter dash prelims with a career-best time of 12.80 at the Wake Forest Open

■■ Ran

a personal-best time of 1:05.89 in the 400-meter hurdles at the Youngster GoldSmith Classics, finishing 10th ■■ Jumped a personal-best mark of 16-7.25 in the long jump at the Jamaica College Invitational, placing eighth Personal ■■ Daughter of Leroy McNeil and Barbara Whyte ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is November 14 ■■ Majoring in occupational therapy ■■ Big 12 Commissioners Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

Indoor Season ■■ All-Big 12 honors in the triple jump for placing fifth with an overall career-best mark and the second best in WVU history of 12.82 meters at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Won the triple jump title with a mark of 12.39 meters at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Took second I the triple jump, leaping 12.56 meters, the fifth best in WVU history at the Akron Invite ■■ Placed second in the triple jump with the third-best mark in history of 12.72 meters at the PSU National Invitational ■■ Third-place finish in the triple jump, jumping 12.39 meters at the Nittany Lion Challenge

2015 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Recorded a career best, placing fourth in the triple jump at the Big 12 Championship with a mark of 12.81 meters, while finishing second in the event overall among all freshmen ■■ Sixth-place finish in the triple jump, marking 12.38 meters at the Penn Relays ■■ Took second in the triple jump (12.39 meters) at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Placed first, jumping 11.93 meters in the triple jump at the Ohio Cherry Blossom ■■ Finished first in the triple jump with a 12.51-meter mark at the Virginia Challenge, recording one of the top three-best jumps in program history ■■ Placed first in the triple jump, leaping 11.93 meters at the Ohio Cherry Blossom Invitational ■■ Competed in the 100-meter dash, finishing fourth in 13.25 meters at the Ohio Cherry Blossom Invitational ■■ Placed 35th in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:03.03 at the UNF Spring Break Invitational Indoor Season ■■ Finished in eighth place in the triple jump, leaping 12.06 meters at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Jumped to a ninth-place finish in the triple jump (11.93m) at the SPIRE Invite ■■ Placed fifth in the triple jump (12.08m) at the Akron Invite ■■ First place in the triple jump (11.77m) at the WVU Invite ■■ Took 17th place in the long jump, marking 4.99 meters at the PSU Relays ■■ Placed seventh in the preliminary session in the 60-meter event (8.36) at the Marty Pushkin Classic High School ■■ Attended Titchfield High and St. Jago High in Jamaica ■■ Personal-best mark of 40-5.5 in the triple jump at the 2013 ISSA Boys & Girls Championships, placing fourth ■■ Placed fifth at the JAAA Carifta Trials 2013 with a mark of 40-4.25 in the triple jump

44

T R ACK & FIEL D

BRIA WELKER

5-6, R-JUNIOR HURDLES/SPRINTS RIDGELEY, W.VA.

2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season Academic All-Big 12 First Team Finished 19th in the 400-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 57.24 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Took fifth in the 400-meter dash at the Bison Outdoor Classic with a career-best time of 56.61 ■■ Member of the third-place distance medley relay team (11:50.96) at the Penn Relays ■■ Helped the 4x400 meter relay team place fourth at the Mason Spring Invitational ■■ with a time of 4:10.18 ■■ Placed seventh in the 400 meters with a time of 59.52 at the Mason Spring Invitational ■■ Took 15th in the 400 dash with a time of 57.71 at the Jesse Owens Classic ■■ Placed 16th in the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.95 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took 16th in the 400-meter dash with a time of 57.89 at the Wake Forest Open ■■ Placed 20th in the 200 meters with a time of 26.66 at the Wake Forest Open ■■ Finished in 33rd place in the 400 meters (58.92) at the Stanford Invitational Indoor Season ■■ Won the 400-meter dash with a time of 58.87 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Took third in the 400 meters, crossing the finish line in an indoor career-best time of 58.34 at the Nittany Lion Challenge ■■ Placed 27th in the 200 meters with a season-best time of 26.34, and placed 11th in the 400 meters (58.50) at the Akron Invite ■■ Finished in 10th place in the 500-meter run with a career-best time of 1:17.29 at the PSU National Invitational

2015 (r-Fr.) ■■ Did

not compete

2014 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team ■■ Claimed first in the 400 meters at the WVU Gold-Blue meet and at the Cal U Early Bird meet ■■ Posted top-five finishes in the 400 meters at the Cherry Blossom Invitational, the Gator Invitational and the YSU Icebreaker meet Indoor Season ■■ Member of the 4x400-meter relay team that placed ninth with a time of 3:56.10 at the Big 12 Indoor Championship ■■ Won the 400 meters with a time of 57.20 at the Akron Invitational ■■ Member of the distance medley relay team that placed second (11:45.00) at the PSU National ■■ Member of the 4x400-meter relay team that placed first at the WVU Gold-Blue meet and at the Cal U Early Bird meet High School ■■ Ran for Coach Amanda Moreland at Frankfort High ■■ Four-year letterwinner at Frankfort High ■■ West Virginia state meet record in 200-meter dash (25.15) and 400-meter dash (57.13) ■■ Helped lead Frankfort to 2013 State Championship and runnerup in 2010 and 2012 ■■ Three-time state champion in 200-meter dash in 2010, 2012 and 2013 and two-time state champion in 100-meter dash in 2012 and 2013 ■■ Three-time state champion in 400-meter dash in 2010, 2012 and 2013 and two-time state champion in the long jump in 2010 and 2012 ■■ Recorded a state championship in the 300-meter hurdles in 2013 ■■ 2010 Gatorade WV Girls Track and Field Athlete of the Year ■■ Holds Frankfort High records for 100-meter, 200-meter and 400-meter dashes, as well as in the long jump and 300-meter hurdles ■■ Wendy’s High School Heisman winner for Mineral County ■■ Four-year letterwinner in soccer and holds school record for most goals in a season with 26 ■■ Two-year letterwinner in basketball Personal ■■ Daughter of Greg and Kimberly Welker ■■ Birthday is April 18 ■■ Sister Kendra is a rower at WVU ■■ Father played baseball at Frostburg State ■■ Majoring in exercise physiology ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

REBECCA WENDT

5-10, R-JUNIOR DISTANCE WHITBY, ONTARIO

2016 (r-So.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 First Team ■■ Placed 23rd in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:19.19 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Ran a season-best time of 2:15.16 in the 800 meters placing 24th at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed 25th in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:57.07 at the Mason Spring Invitational Member of the third-place distance medley relay team (11:50.96) at the Penn Relays ■■ Helped the 4x400 meter relay team place fourth with a time of 4:10.18 at the Mason Spring Invitational Indoor Season ■■ Won the 800-meter run with a career-best time of 2:13.17 at the Akron Invite ■■ Fourth-place finish in the 600-meter run at the Penn State Tune Up with a career-best time and the fifth-best time of 1:35.53 in WVU history ■■ Placed fourth in the 800 meters (2:17.17) at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Earned All-Big 12 honors for her seventh-place finish (2:53.71) in the 1,000 meters, thanks to her prelim and career-best time of 2:53.69 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Took sixth in the 1,000 meters with a time of 2:55.64 at the PSU National Invitational ■■ Placed 16th in the 1,000 meters (2:56.26) at the Nittany Lion Challenge

2015 (r-Fr.)

Indoor Season ■■ Placed 25th in the 600 meters with a time of 1:39.03 at the SPIRE Invitational, and placed 58th in the 800-meter event in 2:19.45 ■■ Finished 11th in the 800 meter-run in 2:19.75 at the Thundering Herd Invite ■■ Took sixth in the 800 meters with a time of 2:20.15 at the Akron Invite ■■ Placed 11th overall in the 800-meter run (2:25.64) at the YSU College Invite

2014 (Fr.) ■■ Did

not compete

High School ■■ Double 2013 OFSAA bronze medalist in the 800-meter run and 1,500-meter run ■■ Named the 2013 and 2012 Most Outstanding Varsity Track Athlete ■■ Silver medalist at the 2012 Junior Provincials in the 800-meter run and bronze medalist in the 1,500-meter run ■■ 2012 Youth National Champion in the 800-meter run and silver medalist in the 1,500-meter run

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

45

■■ Finished fifth at the 2011 OFSAA Cross Country Championships ■■ 2010 OFSAA Midget Champion in the 1,500 and 3,000-meter

runs, while earning bronze in the 800-meter run four regional records on her way to being named most outstanding track and cross country athlete

■■ Broke

Personal ■■ Daughter of Stephen and Alison Wendt ■■ Has one sister ■■ Birthday is December 15 ■■ Majoring in finance ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

DANIQUE BRYAN

5-6, SOPHOMORE HIGH JUMP/LONG JUMP CLARENDON, JAMAICA

■■ Second

in the long jump, marking 6.00 meters at the Penn Relays ■■ Posted a mark of 1.73 meters in the high jump, missing by just .02 meters outside the girls’ champs record at the 2011 Central Championships Personal ■■ Daughter of ■■ Birthday is October 5 ■■ Has one brother and one sister ■■ Majoring in nursing ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

Sophomores

2015-2016 (Fr.)

Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team ■■ Took eighth in the long jump (5.94 meters) to earn All-Big 12 honors and placed 14th in the triple jump with a mark of 11.75 meters at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Placed seventh in the long jump with a season-best mark of 6.01 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Ran in the 100-meter dash, placing 25th with a season-best time of 12.88, at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took fourth in the triple jump, leaping 12.22 meters at the Virginia Challenge ■■ Finished in sixth place in the long jump, leaping 5.78 meters at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Placed sixth in the long jump with a mark of 5.64 meters at the Penn Relays ■■ Ninth-place finish in the long jump (5.54 meters) at the Texas Relays ■■ Took 15th in the long jump, marking 4.95 meters at the Mason Spring Invite Indoor Season ■■ Placed 11th in the long jump, marking 5.60 meters at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Won the long jump with a mark of 5.38 meters at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ First-place finish in the long jump, recording a season-best mark of 6.00 meters, the fourth best in WVU indoor history at the Nittany Lion Challenge High School ■■ Attended Edwin Allen High ■■ Team captain in 2014-15 ■■ Personal-best high jump of 1.75 meters at the 2012 Montego Bay Milo Western Relays ■■ Competed in the long jump, marking a personal-best mark of 6.12 meters at the 2015 Kingston Utech Classic

46

T R ACK & FIEL D

ANNA FRENCH

5-4, R-FRESHMAN PLYMOUTH, MINN. DISTANCE

2016 (Fr.)

Redshirted High School ■■ Ran at Wayzata High for coaches Dave Emmans and Addy Hallen ■■ Earned the Athena Award as the school’s most outstanding female athlete (2014-15) ■■ Conference and section champion for cross country and track & field (2011-2013) ■■ Earned All-America distinctions from 2012-13 ■■ Three-time all-state honoree 2011-14 ■■ Nike Cross Champions in 2013 ■■ State Champions in 2012 and 2014 ■■ Captain of the 2014 cross country team ■■ Placed seventh at the Class 2A cross country meet ■■ Placed fifth in the 5k with a personal-best time of 17:38 ■■ Placed fifth at 2014 Heartland Regional and fourth in the 2012 Heartland Regional ■■ At the Nike Cross Nationals she placed 34th in 2014, eighth in 2013 and 19th in 2012 ■■ Received the top-10 award for having one of the top-10 GPAs in her class (4.0 unweighted) ■■ Also ran on the track and field team ■■ Participated in Nordic skiing

Personal ■■ Daughter of Christopher and Jean French ■■ Birthday is August 17 ■■ Majoring in biology ■■ Has one sister ■■ Her aunt, Cindy Seikkula Peterson, competed in speed skating in the 1976 Winter Olympics ■■ Big 12 Commissioners Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll

High School ■■ Ran at Teays Valley Christian School for coach Aubrey Morris ■■ Winner of Hurricane Cross Country Invitational in 2014 ■■ Was named Teays Valley Christian School 2015 Female Athlete of the Year ■■ Earned the Team High Point Award for track ■■ Participated in basketball and volleyball Personal ■■ Daughter of Craig and Jenny Hill ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is November 25 ■■ Majoring in exercise physiology ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

KRISTA-GAY TAYLOR

R-FRESHMAN, 5-11 HIGH JUMP ST. ANDREWS, JAMAICA.

CANDACE JONES

2016 (Fr.)

5-5, R-FRESHMAN MID-DISTANCE BRISTOW, VA.

Redshirted High School ■■ Attended Alpha Academy ■■ Was one of 56 athletes selected to compete at the Central America and Caribbean Junior Championships ■■ Won the Championships of Americas title with a high jump of 1.79 meters at the Penn Relays in 2014 ■■ Won the Under-20 Girls’ high jump at the National Juniors Championships ■■ Holds a personal-best high jump of 1.82 meters to qualify for the finals at the 2014 Eugene IAAF World Junior Championships ■■ Placed 11th in the high jump with a mark of 1.73 meters in the finals at the 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships Personal ■■ Daughter of Sandra Tomlinson ■■ Has three brothers ■■ Birthday is April 9 ■■ Majoring in child development and family studies ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

OLIVIA HILL

5-5, R-FRESHMAN DISTANCE SCOTT DEPOT, W.VA.

2016 (Fr.)

Redshirted

2016 (Fr.) Outdoor Season ■■ Redshirted Indoor Season ■■ Won the 800-meter run with a season-best time of 2:12.55 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Placed 37th overall in the 3,000-meter run with a time of 10:16.87 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Placed third in the mile, finishing with a time of 5:03.49 at the PSU National Invitational ■■ Finished in fourth place in the 800 meters (2:13.01) at the Akron Invite ■■ Placed sixth in the 800 meters, crossing the finish line in 2:12.80 at the Penn State Tune Up ■■ Took 12th place in the 600 meters with a time of 1:36.31 at the Nittany Lion Challenge High School ■■ Ran at Patriot High for coach Adam Daniels ■■ Seven-time all-state ■■ At the 2015 VHSL Group 6A Conference Championship, she ran a personal-best of 5:00.05 in the 1,600 meters ■■ Ran a personal-best of 2:11.08 in the 800-meter event at the 2014 VHSL Group 5A/6A State Outdoor Championship ■■ Ran in 1,000-meters (2.54.42) at the 2015 VHSL Group 6A State Indoor Track and Field ■■ Competed in the distance-medley relay at the 2015 indoor championship to earn All-American honors ■■ Ran the 5k in a career-best time of 18:48.30 Personal ■■ Daughter of Robert and Margaret Jones ■■ Has one sister ■■ Birthday is March 14 ■■ Majoring in criminology on

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

47

■■ Finished

PEYTON PANGER

5-4, R-FRESHMAN CHARLESTON, W.VA. DISTANCE

2016 (Fr.) Redshirted High School ■■ Ran at Capital High while maintaining a 4.0 GPA ■■ Four-time WV All-State cross country team ■■ Was named 2014 WV Gatorade Cross Country of the Year ■■ Four-time West Virginia Region 3 cross country champion ■■ Three-time West Virginia All-State track team (3x3200m, 3x1600m, 1x800m) ■■ Three-time Mountain State Athletic Conference cross country champion ■■ Mountain State Athletic Conference track champion multiple times ■■ Finished 16th at the North Carolina Great American Cross Country Festival Race of Champions ■■ 2014 first team all-state selection ■■ Took second at the Class AAA state meet with a 5k time of 18:51.7 ■■ Finished 52nd at the Foot Locker Couth Regional Championship (18:18) ■■ Recorded a personal best in the 5k with a time of 17:54 ■■ Ran the 1600-meter event in 5:00 for a personal-record ■■ Marked a career-best in the 800 meter with a time of 2:16 ■■ Finished with a personal-best in the 3200 meter with a time of 10:51 Personal ■■ Daughter of Michael and Joanie Panger ■■ Has one brother ■■ Third generation Mountaineer ■■ Birthday is January 22 ■■ Majoring in engineering ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

FAITH PENNY

6-0, SOPHOMORE EAST ISLIP, N.Y.

2016 (Fr.) Outdoor Season ■■ Tied for sixth in the high jump, leaping a season-best mark of 1.66 meters, to earn All-Big 12 honors at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Placed fourth in the high jump with a mark of 1.63 meters at the Wake Forest Open

48

T R ACK & FIEL D

fifth in the high jump, marking 1.65 meters at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Placed ninth with a high jump mark of 1.65 meters at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Tied for 18th in the high jump (1.63 meters) at the Penn Relays ■■ Competed in the high jump, tying for 10th place with a mark of 1.61 meters at the Virginia Challenge Indoor Season ■■ Placed seventh in the high jump with a season-best mark of 1.66 meters at the Big 12 Championship, earning All-Big 12 honors ■■ Seventh-place finish in the high jump (1.65 meters) at the Nittany Lion Challenge ■■ Took 23rd in the high jump, marking 1.63 meters at the PSU National Invitational High School ■■ Attended East Islip High Personal ■■ Daughter of Harry and Marian Penny ■■ Birthday is October 13 ■■ Has one brother and one sister ■■ Majoring in business and economics ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

CHAQIETA ROBINSON

5-5, SOPHOMORE BALTIMORE, MD. 400 HURDLES/SPRINTS

2016 (Fr.) Outdoor Season ■■ Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team ■■ Placed 12th in the 400-meter hurdles with a season-best time of 1:03.57 at the Big 12 Championship ■■ Fifth-place finish in the 400-meter hurdles (1:06.35) and placed 25th in the 400-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 58.85 at the Wake Forest Open ■■ In the 400-meter hurdles, she placed 14th with a time of 1:11.36 at the Mason Spring Invite ■■ Finished in 15th place in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:0458 and placed 23rd in the 200-meter dash with a seasonbest time of 26.03 at the Bison Outdoor Classic ■■ Took 16th in the 400-meter hurdles, crossing the finish line in 1:03.58 at the Jesse Owens Classic Indoor Season ■■ Placed sixth in the 400 meters with a time of 1:00.62 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Finished in eighth place in the 200-meter run with a time of 27.06 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Placed 13th in the 400 meters with a season-best time of 59.24 at the Akron Invite ■■ Took 13th in the 400 meters (1:01.88) at the NIttany Lion Challenge

High School ■■ Ran at Dulaney High for coach Chad Boyle ■■ Ran the 300-meter dash in 41.00 at the Indoor State Championships and ran in the 300-meter hurdles, finishing in 44.86 at the Outdoor State Championships, her junior year ■■ Competed at the Penn Relays for three years Personal ■■ Daughter of Antonio and Tycee Robinson ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is March 29 ■■ Majoring in fashion dress and merchandising ■■ Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll ■■ Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll

Freshmen

AMANDA BARNES

5-6, FR. POLE VAULT BEAUFORT, S.C.

High School ■■ Competed at Beaufort High for coach Herbert Glaze ■■ Member of the Rusty Shealy Pole Vault Club ■■ Qualified to compete at the New Balance Outdoor National Championship in the elite group three times and twice for the indoor national championships ■■ Two-time state champion in pole vault (2014-2015) ■■ Placed third in pole vault at the 2015 Junior Olympics, earning All-American status ■■ Holds a personal-best mark of 3.93 meters (12’9”) in pole vault Personal ■■ Daughter of Ben and Mandy Barnes ■■ Has one brother ■■ Birthday is July 28 ■■ Majoring in health professions

ANTIGONE ARCHER

5-4, FR. DISTANCE SOUTHLAKE, TEXAS

High School ■■ Ran at Southlake Carroll High for coach Justin Leonard ■■ Varsity letter winner in track and field and cross country (2013-16) ■■ Two-time Nike Cross National Champions and two-time state champions ■■ Placed fifth at the Texas 5A state cross country championship Personal ■■ Daughter of David and Amanda Archer ■■ Has one brother and two sisters ■■ Birthday is March 31 ■■ Majoring in mechanical engineering

ALEXIS BAUBLITZ 5-6, FR. POLE VAULT YORK, PA.

High School ■■ Competed at Central York High for coaches Chris Detwiler and Erin Walker ■■ Member of VaultWorx Pole Vault Club and Central York HS resistance training program ■■ Named Team captain ■■ 2016 National, Penn Relays and Millrose Games qualifier ■■ 2015 state championship indoor and outdoor qualifier ■■ 2015 AAA District bronze medalist ■■ Set high school pole vault record of 12’3 ■■ Earned five state titles throughout her gymnastics career Personal ■■ Daughter of Brent and Amy Baublitz ■■ Has one sister ■■ Birthday is January 20 ■■ Majoring in exercise physiology

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

49

ABBY COLBERT

5-5, FR. SHEPHERDSTOWN, W.VA.

High School ■■ Ran at Jefferson High for coach Katie Myers and Matt Speaker ■■ Two-year team captain ■■ Four-time all-state honoree in West Virginia ■■ Two-time state champion ■■ Personal-best times in the three mile - 17:51 and two mile – 10:56 ■■ Ran a personal-best time in the one mile (5:06), 800 meters (2:20) and 400 meters (1:00) Personal ■■ Daughter of Chris and Samantha Colbert ■■ Has one brother and a twin sister ■■ Birthday is August 25 ■■ Majoring in sport psychology

GINA CUNEO

5-7, FR. JUMPS GREENSBURG, PA.

High School ■■ Competed at Hempfield Area Senior High for coach Nick Keefer ■■ Four-year letterwinner in track and field ■■ Member of the USATF and AAU track and field team ■■ Went to nationals three times for USTATF team and one national meet for her AAU team ■■ Competed at the 2015 Indoor PIAA State Championship Personal ■■ Daughter of Mark and Karen Cuneo ■■ Has two sisters ■■ Her father Mark played football at WVU ■■ Birthday is February 23 ■■ Majoring in natural resources

50

T R ACK & FIEL D

GREER GUMBRECHT 5-10, FR. POLE VAULT EASTON, PA.

High School ■■ Competed at Easton High for coach ■■ Team captain in 2015-2016 ■■ 2016 state champion in the pole vault, marking 3.81 meters ■■ Two-time district champion in the pole vault ■■ Named to the 2016 all-district and all-state team ■■ Member of the Vertical Assault Pole Vaulting club team Personal ■■ Daughter of Jerry and Jodi Gumbrecht ■■ Has three brothers ■■ Birthday is July 19 ■■ Majoring in sports and exercise psychology

MEGAN SILVA

5-3, FR. POLE VAULT CARLISLE, PA. High School ■■ Ran at Trinity High for coach Michael Conard ■■ Competed at the New Balance National (NBN) Indoor Championship in 2015 and 2016 and at the NBN Outdoor Championship in 2016 ■■ Two-year district AA champion (2015, 2016) ■■ Earned a bronze medal at the 2016 outdoor state championships for pole vaulting 11’6 feet ■■ Placed sixth at the 2014 outdoor state championships and took fifth at the 2015 championships ■■ Took third in pole vault at the 2016 Indoor State Championships and placed eighth in 2015 ■■ Personal-best mark is 11’9 feet in the pole vault ■■ Named All-Sentinel First Team Personal ■■ Daughter of Kevin and Mary Silva ■■ Has two brothers and one sister ■■ Her mother Mary played volleyball and her father Kevin played baseball at Gettysburg College ■■ Her sister Katie plays tennis at Fordham and brother Matt runs track and field at Duquesne ■■ Birthday is October 13 ■■ Majoring in occupational therapy

KYRIELLE WILLIAMS

SARAH WILLS

5-9, FR. JUMPS NORTH ROYALTON, OHIO

High School ■■ Competed at Saint Joseph Academy for coach Fred Kieser ■■ Four-year letterwinner in track and field ■■ Placed third in the high jump at the state championships ■■ Set a personal-best mark of 1.70 meters (5’7”) in the high jump ■■ Personal-best mark of 18’1.25” in the long jump ■■ Also competed in AAU basketball Personal ■■ Daughter of Gregory and Kelly Williams ■■ Has two brothers and one sisters ■■ Birthday is January 11 ■■ Majoring in chemistry

5-7 FR. MORGANTOWN, W.VA.

High School ■■ Ran at University High for coach Ed Fronapfel and ran club for WV Flyers under coach Jonathan Wright ■■ West Virginia state champions in 2014 and 2015 ■■ 2014 OVAC 5A champion ■■ Two-time cross country all-state ■■ Four-time all-state honoree in the 4×800 relay ■■ Placed third in the 800 meters, running a personalbest time of 1:17 at the 2016 state championships ■■ Runner-up finish in the 3,200 meters at the 2016 state championships, finishing with a personal-best time of 10:57 ■■ 2016 state champion in the 1,600 meter with a personalbest time of 5:04 ■■ Member of the National Honor Society and math honorary Mu Alpha Theta Personal ■■ Daughter of Norman and Rebecca Wills ■■ Has one sister ■■ Birthday is December 11 ■■ Majoring in biomedical engineering ■■ Finished in second place in the mile with a time of 4:47.67 at the High Point Team Challenge ■■ Took third place in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:12.28 at the Nittany Lion Challenge

AmandaBARNES and MadelinGARDNER with coach San.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

51

JillianFORSEY

52

T R ACK & FIEL D

MOUNTAINEER

Preview

2016-17 Season Preview........................................ 70 2016-17 Track Schedule......................................... 74

53

T R ACK & FIEL D

Preview

2016-17 SEASON

2016-17 SCHEDULE

The Mountaineers enter their fifth season in the Big 12 Conference in 2016-17. Coach Sean Cleary and his staff have produced a combination of experience and youth, with a team full of NCAA qualifying potential. Cleary is in his 11th season at the helm of the Mountaineers, having established strong credibility as one of the top athletic and academic track and field programs in the region. West Virginia expects to improve on its finishes at the Big 12 Indoor and Outdoor Championship this season, while also continuing to make its presence at the NCAA Championships on an annual basis.

“We are pleased with the setup of the indoor schedule,” coach Cleary said. “We have the opportunity to compete at home twice along with a good mixture of competitions to allow for the most competitive environment for our kids to reach their goals.”

54

T R ACK & FIEL D

During indoor season, the Mountaineers will have two home meets in the WVU Shell Building, starting with the Marty Pushkin Classic on Saturday, Dec. 3, at 9:30 a.m. The Mountaineers canceled the event last year due to inclement weather. They previously hosted the event during the 2014-15 season and 2012-13 seasons.

The second home meet is the WVU Open on Jan. 14.

The 2016-17 outdoor season will consist of nine regular season meets, along with Big 12, NCAA Regional and NCAA Championship events.

“We feel we have done a very good job putting a schedule together that will take care of the needs of the entire program,” said coach Cleary.

“We will potentially see some warmer weather early in the season before competing closer to home.”

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

55

THE SIX SENIORS

Six seniors return for the 2016-17 track and field season, as they prepare to lead and motivate this team in their final campaign as Mountaineers. The seniors will use their expertise and knowledge to guide the nine freshmen who are scattered throughout various events.

Seniors Amy Cashin, Peyton Hampson, Brianna Kerekes, Allison Lasnicki and Megan Yuan add depth in the distance events, while senior Marseille McBeam leads in field events.

DISTANCE DEPTH

After the cross country team placed third at the 2016 Big 12 Championship, had a runner-up finish from All-Big 12 honoree Jillian Forsey and totaled three top-20 finishes, it’s safe to say that the distance runners are stacked. Three newcomers will join the distance group – Antigone Archer, Abby Colbert and Sarah Wills.

Four Mountaineer distance runners who qualified for the 2016 NCAA Preliminary Championships return in

56

T R ACK & FIEL D

Kerekes, Cashin, junior Maggie Drazba and Yuan. These athletes will be contributing factors to this season’s success. Juniors Brynn Harshbarger and Rebecca Wendt, redshirt freshmen Candace Jones, Anna French and Olivia Hill also will make an impact for the Mountaineers.

Cashin, Kerekes and Yuan return for their final season as Mountaineers and will help lead the distance group.

Cashin’s athleticism is key, but it’s not all about athletics for her, as she was named a to the 2016 Track and Field/ Cross Country Academic All-District First Team.

THE POLE VAULTERS

The return of juniors Sarah Finfrock, Madelin Gardner and

Rebekah Lafata provide the pole vaulters with lots of experience.

Freshmen Alexis Baublitz, Amanda Barnes, Greer Gumbrecht and Megan Silva join the squad with a ton of potential.

Finfrock, Gardner and Lafata are still growing and can’t wait to

guide the pole vaulters this season.

JUMPING HEIGHTS

MULTI EVENTS

and Faith Penny and redshirt freshman Krista-Gay Taylor will lead

sophomore Chaqieta Robinson return as leaders to take on the

McBeam, junior Shamoya McNeil, sophomores Danique Bryan

the jumping squad this season as incoming freshmen Gina

Cueno and Kyrielle Williams join the team. Four Jamaica natives make up this talented group of jumpers in McBeam, McNeil, Krista-Gay and Bryan.

McNeil competed at last year’s NCAA East Preliminary

Regionals where she placed 30th in the triple jump. She jumped a career-best and third best outdoor mark of 12.76 meters in the

Redshirt junior Bria Welker, junior Meghan Jean-Baptiste and

responsibilities of guiding this group.

Welker returns with her athleticism in the 4x400 relay and 200

and 400-meter dash. Jean-Baptiste continues to compete in the hurdle events as well as the 60, 100 and 200-meter dashes.

Robinson also continues to succeed in the 400-meter dash and 400-meter hurdles.

triple jump at the Texas Relays. During indoor season, McNeil

posted the second-best mark in WVU indoor history with a career best 12.82 meters at the Big 12 Championship to earn all-

conference. McNeil and Bryan were named to the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team.

Cuneo and Williams have possessed young talent throughout

their high school careers, and they are ready to compete at the collegiate level.

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

57

Facts

QUICK

UNIVERSITY INFORMATION

TRACK AND FIELD HISTORY

COACHING STAFF

FOLLOW THE MOUNTAINEERS

Location: Enrollment: Founded: President: Director of Athletics: Nickname: Colors: Conference:

Morgantown, W.Va. 31,514 1867 E. Gordon Gee Shane Lyons Mountaineers Old Gold (PMS 124) and Blue (PMS 295) Big 12

Head Coach:

Assistant Coach:

Assistant Coach:

Sean Cleary (11th season/25th overall) -West Virginia ‘92 Shelly Gallimore (9th season) -West Virginia-master’s degree ‘08 Erin O’Reilly (4th season) -West Virginia ‘93

MEDIA INFORMATION

Graduate Assistant/Track and Field: Email: Office: Cell: Fax:

Season of Track and Field First Year Individual National Champions All-Americans Individual Conference Champions: Individual ECAC Champions Home Indoor Facility Home Outdoor Facility:

Website: Twitter: Facebook: Instagram:

40th 1978 4 91 69 34 WVU Shell Building Mountaineer Track

www.WVUSports.com @WVUTrackField /WVUTrackField @WVUTrackField

Samantha Strejeck sstrejec@mail.wvu.edu (304) 293-9916 (443) 763-0648 (304) 293-4105

Schedule 2016 -17 TRACK

INDOOR

58

Date Event

Location

Dec. 3 Jan. 14 Jan. 27-28 Feb. 3-4 Feb. 10-11 Feb. 10-11 Feb. 18 Feb. 24-25 March 10-11

Morgantown, W.Va. Morgantown, W.Va. University Park, Pa. Akron, Ohio Seattle, Wash.

Huntington, W.Va. University Park, Pa. Ames, Iowa College Station, Texas

Marty Pushkin Classic WVU Open PSU National Open Akron Invitational Washington Invitational Marshall Invitational Penn State Tune-Up Big 12 Indoor Championship NCAA Indoor Championships

T R ACK & FIEL D

OUTDOOR

Date Event

Mar. 17-18 Mar. 24-25 Mar. 31-Apr. 1 Apr. 8 Apr. 14-15 Apr. 21-22 Apr. 21-22 Apr. 27-29 May 5-6 May 12-14 May 25-27 Jun. 7-10

Location

49er Classic Charlotte, N.C. Raleigh Relays Raleigh, N.C. Stanford Invitational Palo Alto, Calif.

Mason Spring Invitational Fairfax, Va. Bison Outdoor Classic Lewisburg, Pa. Virginia Challenge Charlottesville, Va. Jesse Owens Invite Columbus, Ohio Penn Relays Philadelphia, Pa. TBA TBA Big 12 Outdoor Championship Lawrence, Kan. NCAA East Preliminary Regionals Lexington Ky. NCAA Championships Eugene, Ore.

MOUNTAINEER

Review

2015-16 Season Review �������������������������������������� 52 2015-16 Track Schedule �������������������������������������� 54

2015-16 Season Review Academics Last season was a tremendous academic year for the Mountaineers.

For the second consecutive year, Kelly Williams was named a 2016 Academic All-America First Team honoree, as selected by College Information Directors of America (CoSIDA), while sporting a 4.0 grade point average.

Williams is the first WVU track and field and cross country student-athlete to receive back-to-back honors.

In addition, a pair of Mountaineers in Amy Cashin and Williams were named to the 2016 Track and Field/Cross Country Academic All-District Team.

“Amy has been tremendous all year academically with a 4.0 GPA and equally impressive on the track,” said coach Sean Cleary. “Their tenacity in the classroom and on the field have and will prepare them for very successful lives.

We are all very proud of all that they have and will continue to achieve.”

Additionally, Williams earned the Big 12 Women’s Track and Field ScholarAthlete of the Year award, the first for the Mountaineer track and field team.

“Kelly Williams had a storybook ending to her academic career,” said Cleary.

“First an Elite 89 Award winner, and now this tremendous honor. Coming into WVU as an unheralded student-athlete she graduates with an unblemished academic resume and All-America Honors in the mile. What a legacy.”

NCAA East Preliminary Qualifiers Eight Mountaineers qualified to compete at the 2016 NCAA East Preliminary Regionals in Jacksonville, Florida – Savanna Plombon, Hannah Stone, Brianna Kerekes, Cashin, Megan Yuan, Jillian Forsey, Shamoya McNeil and

60

T R ACK & FIEL D

Millie Paladino, after ranking in the top 48 for their respective events.

The 2016 season marked the secondconsecutive trip to the East Regionals for Cashin, Kerekes, McNeil and Paladino.

Cashin and Yuan represented West Virginia in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.

Cashin took a top-15 finish, placing 15th with a new personal-best time of 10:11.08. She improved 10.28 seconds from her previous best time. Yuan placed 37th with a time of 10:38.27.

In the 10,000 meters Plombon, Paladino and Kerekes represented the Mountaineers. Plombon placed 25th with a time of 35:30.6, followed by Paladino in 42nd with a time of 4:33.36 and Kerekes in 45th in 4:38.27.

Forsey raced in the 5,000-meter run, placing 17th place with a time of 16:27.89.

In field events, Stone competed in the high jump and tied for 27th with a mark of 1.71 meters. McNeil represented WVU in the triple jump, placing 30th with a mark of 12.55 meters.

Big 12 Championship At the 2016 Big 12 Outdoor Championship, WVU earned two silver medals and earned a total of eight AllBig 12 accolades for placing in the top eight of their respective events: Hannah Stone, Amy Cashin, Sara Finfrock, Jillian Forsey, Shamoya McNeil, Millie Paladino, Danique Bryan and Faith Penny.

Cashin appeared on the Big 12 podium, winning a silver medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:23.68.

WVU’s other silver medal came from Paladino in the 1,500-meter run finals, as she crossed the finish line in 4:22.01.

Stone placed fourth in the high jump, marking 1.71 meters to earn a spot on the podium. Penny tied for sixth place in the event with a mark of 1.66 meters.

In the triple jump, McNeil placed sixth with a leap of 12.67 meters to also earn a spot on the All-Big 12 Team.

West Virginia took another top-six finish in the 5,000-meter run as Forsey placed sixth with a time of 16:42.18.

In the long jump, Bryan placed eighth with an outdoor careerbest mark of 5.94 meters.

Finfrock finished eighth in the pole vault with a career-best 3.91 meters, sitting at No. 3 on WVU’s all-time outdoor performance list.

The Mountaineers were also successful at the indoor championship as Cashin won a silver medal and seven Mountaineers earned All-Big 12 honors - Hannah Stone, Amy Cashin Shamoya McNeil, Rebecca Wendt, Millie Paladino Jillian Forsey and Faith Penny.

Cashin took a silver medal back to Morgantown in the mile, as she placed second with a time of 4:48.21.

McNeil leaped a career-best mark of 12.82 meters in the triple jump to place fifth. He mark moved her to No. 2 on WVU’s all-time record list.

Two Mountaineers in the high jump placed in the top seven. Stone placed fourth in the final where she marked 1.71 meters. She matched her season high at the Akron Invite on Feb. 6. Penny also competed in the finals, placing seventh with a career-best mark of 1.66 meters.

In 3,000 meters final, Paladino led the way for West Virginia, placing sixth with a time of 9:28.08.

On the first day of the championship, Forsey placed seventh in the final of the 5,000 meters with a time of 16:34.53.

Wendt placed seventh in the 1,000 meter final with a time of 2:53.71.

HannahSTONE

KellyWILLIAMS

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

61

61

2015-16 TRACK SCHEDULE INDOOR DATE EVENT

LOCATION

Dec. 4

WVU Inter-Squad

Morgantown, W.Va.

Jan. 16

Nittany Lion Challenge

State College, Pa.

Jan. 29-30

Penn State National Invitational

State College, Pa.

Feb. 5-6

Akron Invitational

Akron, Ohio

Feb. 11

High Point Team Challenge

Winston-Salem, N.C.

Feb. 20

Penn State Tune-Up

State College, Pa.

Feb. 26-27

Big 12 Championship

Ames, Iowa

OUTDOOR

62

Date Opponent

Location

Mar. 18-19

Wake Forest

Winston-Salem, N.C.

Apr. 1

Texas Relays

Austin, Texas

April 1

Stanford Invitational

Stanford, Calif.

April 9

Mason Spring Invitational

Fairfax, Va.

April 16-17

Bison Outdoor Classic

Lewisburg, Pa.

April 22-23

Virginia Challenge

Charlottesville, Va.

April 22-23

Jesse Owens Classic

Columbus, Ohio

April 28-29

Penn Relays

Philadelphia, Pa.

May 6

Jim Thorpe Invite

State College, Pa.

May 6

Billy Hayes Invitational

Bloomington, Ind.

May 13-15

Big 12 Championship

Fort Worth, Texas

May 26-28

NCAA East Preliminary Round

Jacksonville, Fla.

T R ACK & FIEL D

MOUNTAINEER

RecordBook

All-Time Records ������������������������������������������������� 52 Top Five Performers ��������������������������������������������� 55 Campus Records ������������������������������������������������� 58 Conference Champions ���������������������������������������� 59 NCAA Champions ������������������������������������������������� 62 WVU All-Americans ���������������������������������������������� 63 All-Time Coaches and Captains ��������������������������� 68

63

T R ACK & FIEL D

Records

All-Time

INDOOR Event 55 meters 60 meters 55m Hurdles 60m Hurdles 200 meters 200m Hurdles 300 meters 400 meters 500 meters 600 meters 800 meters 1,000 meters Mile 3,000 meters 5,000 meters 4x200 Relay 4x400 Relay 4x800 Relay DMR Long Jump High Jump Triple Jump Pole Vault Shot Put Weight Throw Pentathlon

64

T R ACK & FIEL D

Holder Tammy Henderson Stacian Brown Pat Itanyi Chelsea Carrier Stacian Brown Jeanna Johnson Tammy Henderson April Rotilio Connie Ellerbe Keri Bland Kate Vermeulen Kate Vermeulen Keri Bland Megan Metcalfe Marie-Louise Asselin Marlene Dawkins, Pat Itanyi, Martina Miller, Jeanna Johnson Maxine Dawkins, Jeanna Johnson, Martina Miller, Tameca Williams Keri Bland, Kaylyn Christopher Marie-Louise Asselin, Jessica O’Connell Kaylyn Christopher, Karly Hamric, Marie-Louise Asselin Keri Bland Pat Itanyi Sharon Pfister Christine Brown Erin Nett Jodi Smith Heather Adams Chelsea Carrier

Record Year 6.82 1985 7.34 1999 7.67 1996 8.08 2011 23.67 1999 27.40 1997 39.45 1984 54.29 2009 1:12.84 1990 1:33.32 2010 2:06.42 1999 2:43.02 1999 4:34.78 2009 8:58.17 2005 15:50.53 2010 1:38.80 1996 3:42.84 1998 8:44.98 2010 11:05.12 2009 6.48m 1996 1.78m 1985 13.13m 2000 4.07m 2002 14.80m 1984 18.18m 2013 4,170 points 2011

OUTDOOR Event

Holder

Record

Year

100 meters

Stacian Brown

11.36

1999

200 meters

Maxine Dawkins

23.21

1998

400 meters

April Rotilio

52.71

2011

800 meters

Jennifer Kemp

2:05.09

2002

1,500 meters

Megan Metcalfe

4:12.00

2003

3,000 meters

Megan Metcalfe

9:04.02

2004

Steeplechase

Sarah Martinelli

10:05.27

2014

5,000 meters

Megan Metcalfe

15:47.64

2005

10,000 meters

Clara Grandt

33:16.96

2009

100 Hurdles

Chelsea Carrier

12.78

2012

400 Hurdles

Connie Ellerbe

55.87

1992

4x100 Relay

Keisha Miller, Tameca Williams, Zane Francis, Stacian Brown

44.28

1999

4x200 Relay

Amanda Valentine, Maxine Dawkins, Jeanna Johnson, Marlene Dawkins

1:34.55

1996

4x400 Relay

Maxine Dawkins, Jeanna Johnson, Martina Miller, Tameca Williams

3:36.58

1998

4x800 Relay

Karly Hamric, Keri Bland, Jessica O’Connell, Kaylyn Christopher

8:47.95

2010

SMR

Stacian Brown, Tameca Williams, Amanda Valentine, Rebecca Stallwood

3:54.62

2000

DMR

Keri Bland, Abbie Stechschulte, Raeleen Hunter, Marie-Louis Asselin

11:24.76

2007

Long Jump

Pat Itanyi

6.74m

1995

High Jump

Althea Moody

1.83m

1990

Javelin

Jodi Smith

47.98m

1984

Shot Put

Jodi Smith

14.22m

1984

Discus

Jodi Smith

50.26m

1984

Hammer Throw

Heather Adams

56.96m

2013

Pole Vault

Katlyn Shelar

4.10m

2013

Triple Jump

Christine Brown

13.20m

2001

Heptathlon FAT - fully automatic time

Chelsea Carrier

5,927 points

2011

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

65

Indoor

Top Five Performers

60 Meters

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Stacian Brown Jessica Czaikowski Ciara Chic Chelsea Carrier Sabrina Cox

600 Meters 7.34 7.49 7.54 7.56 7.58

1999 2007 2003 2011 2000

8.08 8.22 8.23 8.38 8.42

2011 1999 2005 2013 1996

23.63 23.78 23.80 24.12 24.17

1999 1998 1997 1984 2009

54.29 54.79 55.09 55.18 55.24

2009 1998 1992 1991 1989

1:12.84 1:12.93 1:14.35 1:14.42 1:14.56

1990 2005 1995 1986 2001

60 Hurdles 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Chelsea Carrier Stacian Brown Jessica Czaikowski ChenĂŠ Townsend Pat Itanyi

Stacian Brown Maxine Dawkins Marlene Dawkins Tammy Henderson April Rotilio

April Rotilio Tameca Williams Kristy Beans Connie Ellerbe Claudette Rodgers

Connie Ellerbe Pamela Richardson Tamara Stoner Holly Workman Aileen Smith

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Kate Vermeulen Keri Bland Aileen Smith Jennifer Kemp Merissa Sexsmith

2:06.42 2:06.72 2:08.81 2:09.55 2:09.98

1999 2009 2001 2005 2000

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Kate Vermeulen Kaylyn Christopher Millie Paladino Karly Hamric Megan Metcalfe

2:43.01 2:45.56 2:45.80 2:46.03 2:46.78

1999 2011 2016 2010 2004

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Keri Bland Megan Metcalfe Kelly Williams Karly Hamric Kate Vermeulen

4:34.78 4:35.89 4:36.77 4:38.55 4:39.05

2009 2004 2013 2010 1999

8:58.17 9:14.12 9:14.44 9:26.81 9:27.16

2005 2011 2008 2002 2011

Megan Metcalfe Jessica O’Connell Marie-Louise Asselin Rebecca Stallwood Kaylyn Christopher

Marie-Louise Asselin Clara Grandt Jillian Forsey Sarah-Anne Brault Tara Struyk

15:50.53 16:04.24 16:14.76 16:17.95 16:22.44

2010 2010 2016 2011 2004

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Pat Itanyi Christine Brown Chelsea Carrier Danique Bryan Abbie Stechschulte Stormy Nesbit

6.48m 6.21m 6.10m 6.00m 5.92m 5.92m

1996 2003 2010 2016 2007 2013

14.80m 13.12m 13.10m 12.83m 12.53m

1984 2014 2008 2007 2003

4.07m 3.98m 3.90m 3.87m 3.86m

2001 2014 2016 2009 2016

1.78m 1.78m 1.75m 1.75m 1.74m 1.74m

1985 2013 2010 2016 2004 1988

13.13m 12.82m 12.69m 12.20m 12.06m

2000 2016 2014 1989 2016

4,170 4,111 4,016 3,817

2011 1997 2007 1986

14.80m 13.12m 13.10m 12.83m 12.53m

1984 2014 2008 2007 2003

18.18m 16.73m 15.18m 15.05m 14.65m

2013 2012 2013 2004 2013

Shot Put 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Jodi Smith Karissa Knabenshue LaShawna Black Abbie Stechschulte Michelle McGinnis

Pole Vault 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Erin Nett Katlyn Shelar Madelin Gardner Alex Acker Tori Bertrand

High Jump

3,000 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Long Jump

Mile

500 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

2010 2015 2013 1985 2016

1,000 Meters

400 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

5,000 Meters 1:33.32 1:33.69 1:34.84 1:35.05 1:35.53

800 Meters

200 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Keri Bland Brianna Kerekes Alyssa Scherich Kelly Austin Rebecca Wendt

1.)

3.)

5.)

Sharon Pfister Sydney Cummings Katelyn Williams Hannah Stone Nancy Regalbuto Alethea Moody

Triple Jump 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Christine Brown Shamoya McNeil Stormy Nesbit Tessie Palmer Danique Bryan

Pentathlon 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

Chelsea Carrier Pat Itanyi Abbie Stechschulte Sharon Pfister

Shot Put 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Jodi Smith Karissa Knabenshue LaShawna Black Abbie Stechschulte Michelle McGinnis

Weight Throw

ChelseaCARRIER

66

T R ACK & FIEL D

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Heather Adams Terina Miller Karissa Knabenshue Michele McGinnis Alanna Pritts

SydneyCUMMINGS

JenniferDAVIS

4x800m Relay

Distance Medley Relay

DMR Splits 1200

1.) Keri Bland, Kaylyn Christopher, 8:44.98 Marie-Louise Asselin Jessica O’Connell 2010 2.) Merissa Sexsmith, Ailene Smith,, 8:50.10 Rebecca Stallwood, Jennifer Davis 2002 3.) Karly Hamric, Kaylyn Christopher, 8:51.55 Alison Spiker, Keri Bland 2009 4.) Jennifer Kemp, Rebecca Stallwood, 8:52.44 Jennifer Davis, Ailene Smith 2002 5.) Jennifer Kemp, Rebecca Stallwood, 8:52.59 Jennifer Davis, Merissa Sexsmith 2002

1.) Kaylyn Christopher, April Rotilio, 11:05.12 Karly Hamric, Keri Bland 2009 2.) Marie-Louise Asselin, April Rotilio, 11:07.64 Karly Hamric, Keri Bland 2008 3.) Keri Bland, April Rotilio, 11:09.28 Kaylyn Christopher, J essica O’Connell 2010 4.) Kaylyn Christopher, April Rotilio, 11:11.33 Karly Hamric, Keri Bland 2009 5.) Pam Richardson, Ailene Smith, 11:11.98 Jennifer Kemp, Megan Metcalfe 2003

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

DMR Splits 800 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

Jennifer Kemp Aileen Smith Merissa Sexsmith Karly Hamric

2:05.75 2:07.89 2:08.50 2:08.89

Megan Metcalfe Rebecca Stallwood Marie-Louise Asselin Keri Bland Kaylyn Christopher

3:21.85 3:23.20 3:23.90 3:25.84 3:25.90

2004 2002 2008 2010 2009

4:33.50 4:35.94 4:36.15 4:39.50 4:39.60

2003 2008 1999 2005 2008

DMR Splits 1600 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Megan Metcalfe Keri Bland Kate Vermeulen Jennifer Davis Marie-Louise Asselin

2005 2003 2002 2009

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

67

Outdoor

Top Five Performers

100 Meters

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Stacian Brown Kay Iheagwam Maxine Dawkins Tammy Henderson Trinese Summerlin

11.36 11.51 11.54 11.55 11.61

1999 1995 1998 1983 1994

12.78 13.20 13.27 13.29 13.44

2012 1995 2007 1999 2012

23.21 23.54 23.56 23.56 23.61

1998 1984 1995 1998 1999

52.71 52.92 53.70 54.10 54.35

2011 1999 1987 1988 1992

55.87 57.48 57.77 1:00.74

1992 2011 1999 2004

2:05.09 2:05.63 2:06.09 2:08.02 2:08.89

2003 2010 2007 2010 2002

100 Meter Hurdles 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Chelsea Carrier-Eades Pat Itanyi Jessica Czaikowski Stacian Brown Chené Townsend

200 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

5.)

Maxine Dawkins Tammy Henderson Kay Iheagwam Tameca Williams Stacian Brown

400 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

April Rotilio Tameca Williams Holly Workman Connie Ellerbe Kristy Beans

400 Meter Hurdles 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

Connie Ellerbe Chelsea Carrier Martina Miller Pam Richardson

800 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Jennifer Kemp Keri Bland Raeleen Hunter Karly Hamric Ailene Smith

Megan Metcalfe Karly Hamric Kelly Williams Keri Bland Jessica O’Connell

4:12.00 4:13.54 4:13.61 4:14.52 4:18.31

2003 2010 2013 2010 2010

9:04.02 9:23.45 9:26.09 9:29.86 9:30.06

2004 2001 2007 2014 2012

Megan Metcalfe Rebecca Stallwood Marie-Louise Asselin Jillian Forsey Jessica O’Connell

15:47.64 15:53.93 16:00.27 16:01.18 16:05.89

2005 2010 2015 2010 2016

68

Megan Metcalfe Marie-Louise Asselin Katie Gillespie Clara Grandt Jillian Forsey

T R ACK & FIEL D

Clara Grandt Kaite Gillespie Allison Lasnicki Kate Harrison Sarah-Anne Brault

33:16.96 33:44.08 33:46.22 33:48.64 33:51.14

2009 2015 2014 2011 2011

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Sarah Martinelli Jordan Hamric Amy Cashin Susan Davis Megan Yuan

1.)

2.)

2.)

4.)

5.)

Chelsea Carrier Pat Itanyi Abbie Stechschulte Sharon Pfister Melinda Case

1.)

2.)

3.)

5.)

Alethea Moody Katelyn Williams Sharon Pfister Sydney Cummings Marseille McBeam

1.83m 1.79m 1.78m 1.78m 1.76m

1990 2011 1986 2013 2016

4.10m 4.00m 3.91m 3.91m 3.91m

2013 2002 2016 2016 2016

6.74m 6.42m 6.29m 6.17m 6.13m

1995 2011 2002 2011 2007

Pole Vault

10:05.27 10:06.47 10:11.08 10:25.93 10:27.39

2014 2013 2016 2006 2016

5,927 5,647 5,60 5,141 4,523

2011 1997 2007 1986 1987

1.)

2.)

3.)

Katlyn Shelar Erin Nett Tori Bertrand Sara Finfrock Madelin Gardner

Long Jump

Heptathlon

5,000 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

3,000 Meter Steeplechase

3,000 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

High Jump

10,000 Meters

1,500 Meters 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

JennniferKEMP

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Pat Itanyi Chelsea Carrier Christine Brown Meghan Mock Abbie Stechshulte

AllisonTYREE

MeganMETCALFE

Triple Jump 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Christine Brown Stormy Nesbit Shamoya McNeil Tessie Palmer Danique Bryan

4x100 Relay 13.20m 13.19m 12.76m 12.45m 12.22m

2001 2014 2016 1991 2016

47.99m 43.09m 41.82m 40.00m

1984 2006 1997 1995

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

50.26m 47.32m 46.29m 42.89m 42.31m

1984 2013 2012 2012 2010

4x400 Relay

14.22m 13.16m 12.67m 12.37m 11.80m

1984 2013 2006 2007 2011

56.96m 55.25m 53.29m 42.51m 42.24m

2013 2012 2012 2006 2012

Javelin 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

Jodi Smith Lindsey Clark Kristen Snyder Pat Itanyi

Discus 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Jodi Smith Heather Adams Heather Adams Karissa Knabenshue Brittany Fink

Shot put 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Jodi Smith Karissa Knabenshue Michelle McGinnis Abbie Stechschultz Terina Miller

Hammer throw 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Heather Adams Terina Miller Heather Adams Michele McGinnis Alanna Pritts

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Martina Miller, Tameca Williams, Zane Francis, Stacian Brown Haneefah Norman, Tameca Williams, Zane Francis, Stacian Brown Maxine Dawkins, Marlene Dawkins, Pat Itanyi, Martina Miller Jeanna Johnson, Tameca Williams, Martina Miller, Maxine Dawkins Maxine Dawkins, Pat Itanyi, Amanda Valentine, Marlene Dawkins

44.28 44.65 44.88 45.27 45.43

1999 1999 1997 1998 1996

1:34.55 1:35.41 1:36.37 1:36.40 1:36.94

1999 1998 2006 1996 1995

3:36.58 3:41.62 3:41.68 3:41.74 3:42.38

1998 1992 2011 1995 1996

8:47.95 8:48.07 8:49.50 8:51.17 8:51.66

2010 2003 1999 2002 2002

11:19.81 11:24.76 1:33.63

2008 2007 2002

4x200 Relay

1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Martina Miller, Tameca Williams, Haneefah Norman, Zane Francis Martina Miller, Maxine Dawkins, Tameca Williams, Jamillah Nock Junique Morris, Jamillah Nock, Shani Boone, Jessica Czaikowski Amanda Valentine, Maxine Dawkins, Jeanna Johnson, Marlene Dawkins Amanda Valentine, Pat Itanyi, Tamara Stoner, Kay Iheagwam

Jeanna Johnson, Tameca Williams, Martina Miller, Maxine Dawkins Kristy Beans, Connie Ellerbe, Jennifer Scweizer, Tamara Stoner Jenna Barreto, Chelsea Carrier, Allison Tyree, April Rotilio Amanda Valentine, Kay Iheagwam, Tamara Stoner, Halima Sinceno Jeanna Johnson, Marlene Dawkins, Amanda Valentine, Maxine Dawkins

4x800m Relay 1.)

2.)

3.)

4.)

5.)

Karly Hamric, Keri Bland, Jessica O’Connell, Kaylyn Christopher Merissa Sexsmith, Megan Metcalfe, Jennifer Kemp, Jennifer Davis Jennifer Zawaski, Merissa Sexsmith, Rebecca Stallwood, Kecia Herod Jennifer Kemp, Ailene Smith, Jennifer Davis, Megan Metcalfe Jennifer Davis, Jennifer Kemp, Megan Metcalfe, Ailene Smith

Distance Medley Relay 1.) Kaylyn Christopher, Katelyn Williams, Karly Hamric, Keri Bland 2.) Keri Bland, Abbie Stechshulte, Emma Hunter, Marie-Louise Asselin 3.) Jennifer Kemp, Stacian Brown, Ailene Smith, Megan Metcalfe

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

69

Mountaineer Track Records Event Holder 100-meters Kay Iheagwam (WVU) 200-meters Debbie Bonner (Pitt) 400-meters Connie Ellerbe (WVU) 800-meters Keri Bland (WVU) 1,500-meters Keri Bland (WVU) 3,000-meters Susie Comer (WVU) 5,000-meters Jennifer Colgrove (All.CC) 10,000-meters Charlene Burstrom (WVU) 100 Hurdles Allison Williams (Unat) 400 Hurdles Connie Ellerbe (WVU) 4x100 Relay Pitt 4x200 Relay West Virginia 4x400 Relay West Virginia 4x800 Relay West Virginia Mile Relay West Virginia 2-Mile Relay Indiana, Pa. DMR West Virginia SMR West Virginia Long Jump Pat Itanyi (WVU) High Jump Alethea Moody (WVU) Triple Jump Tessie Palmer (WVU) Pole Vault Alex Acker Shot Put Jodi Reidel (Kent St.) Weight Throw Heather Adams (WVU) Discus Jodi Smith (WVU) Javelin Jodi Smith (WVU) Heptathlon Pat Itanyi (WVU)

Record 11.51 23.80 54.10 2:07.01 4:27.09 9:47.34 17:06.11 35:00.05 13.38 56.95 46.37 1:37.31 3:43.05 8:57.31 3:49.80 9:33.56 12:14.60 4:06.97 20’6 .5” 5’10” 40’ .75” 3.66m 44’10 .5” 16.53m 160’5” 157’5” 5647 points

Year 1995 1989 1988 2008 2008 1981 1983 1987 1996 1987 1989 1988 1988 1990 1984 1983 1995 1984 1995 1990 1989 2008 1983 2013 1984 1984 1997

Shell Building Records Event 55-meters 55 Hurdles 200-meters 300-meters 400-meters 500-meters 600-meters 800-meters 1,000-meters Mile 3,000-meters 5,000-meters 4x400 Relay 4x800 Relay

Long Jump High Jump Triple Jump Pole Vault Pentathlon

70

Holder Tammy Henderson (WVU) Pat Itanyi (WVU) Tammy Henderson (WVU) Janet Dodson (Morgan St.) Edna Brown (Temple) Connie Ellerbe (WVU) Monica Egbuonu (Princ) D.Lamvlelet-McClive (Cor) Kate Vermeulen (WVU) Megan Metcalfe (WVU) Holden (Allegheny) Brown (William & Mary) Temple Megan Metcalfe, Rebecca Stallwood, Merissa Sexsmith, Jennifer Kemp (WVU) Trecia Smith (Pitt) Becky Bryan (West Ontario) Najuma Fletcher (Pitt) Erin Nett (WVU) Pat Itanyi (WVU)

T R ACK & FIEL D

Record 6.82 7.71 24.27 37.54 53.59 1:12.84 1:32.35 2:07.32 2:48.30 4:44.00 9:23.10 16:29.50 3:43.19

Year 1985 1996 1985 N/A 1983 1990 1982 1982 1999 2003 1992 1993 1982

9:00.45 20’10 .5” 5’10” 41’2 .5” 13’1” 4,111

2002 1997 1994 1993 2001 1995

Atlantic 10

Champions

Atlantic 10 Team Indoor Champion

400-meter Dash

55-meter Hurdles

1995 - Mandy Valentine, 57.88 1993 - Halima Sinceno, 57.80

1995 - Patience Itanyi, 07.91

Atlantic 10 Individual Indoor Champions

500-meter Run 1995 - Tamara Stoner, 1:14.35

1995 - 3:54.17 (M. Valentine, H. Sinceno, K. Iheagwam, T. Stoner)

One-mile Run

High Jump

1993 - Erin O’Reilly, 4:55.90

1993 - Chantel Dubois, 5-04.25

3,000-meter Run

Long Jump

1995 - Charity Wachera, 9:59.41 1993 - Erin O’Reilly, 9:46.55

1995 - Patience Itanyi, 20-04.50

1993 • 1995

55-meter Dash 1995 - Kay Iheagwam, 6.96 1993 - Trinese Summerlin, 6.90

200-meter Dash 1995 - Kay Iheagwam, 24.52 1993 - Trinese Summerlin, 24.86

4x400-meter Relay

5,000-meter Run 1995 - Carisa Brown, 17:38.28

ECAC INDOOR

Champions

Year Name Event Time/Distance 2008 Chelsea Carrier 60 meter hurdles 8.46 2007 Jessica Czaikowski 60 meter hurdles 8.36 2004 Megan Metcalfe 1,000 meters 2:47.11 2004 Tara Struyk 5,000 meters 16:22.44 2002 Rebecca Stallwood, Ailene Smith,

Schavia Felder, Megan Metcalfe DMR 11:14.25 2000 Christine Brown Triple Jump 12.95m 2000 Stacian Brown 200 meters 23.95 2000 Merissa Sexsmith 1,000 meters 2:49.08 1998 Kristin Quackenbush Pole Vault 11’8” 1996 Charity Wachera 5,000 meters 16:39.87 1993 Trinese Summerlin 55 meters 6.88 1992 Trinese Summerlin 55 meters 6.92 1990 Erin O’Reilly 1,000 meters 2:53.01 1983 Tammy Henderson 55 meters 6.89 1982 Tammy Henderson 55 meters 7.02

OUTDOOR Year Name Event Time/Distance 2012 Chelsea Carrier-Eades 100 meters 11.82 2012 Stormy Nesbit Triple jump 13.07 meters 2009 Chelsea Carrier 100 meter hurdles 13:30 2008 Clara Grandt 10,000 meters 34:15.07* 2008 Keri Bland 1,500 meters 4:19.02 2005 Jennifer Kemp 800 meters 2:06.33 2005 Jennifer Davis 3,000 meters 9:33.61 2003 Megan Metcalfe 1,500 meters 4:21.81 2003 Tara Struyk 10,000 meters 35:02.44 2002 Stacian Brown 100 meter hurdles 13.51 2002 Megan Metcalfe 3,000 meters 9:20.17 1999 Tameca Williams 400 meters 52.93 1998 Maxine Dawkins 100 meters 11.69 1998 Kristin Quackenbush Pole Vault 11’4 1/4” 1998 Maxine Dawkins, Jenna Johnson,

Martina Miller, Tameca Williams 4x100 meter relay 45.27 1997 Pat Itanyi 100 meter hurdles 13.48 1997 Charity Wachera 10,000 meters N/A 1996 Maxine Dawkins, Pat Itanyi,

Mandy Valentine, Marlene Dawkins 4x100 meter relay 46.51 1996 Maxine Dawkins 100 meters 11.55 1996 Charity Wachera 10,000 meters 34:43.11 1995 Kay Iheagwam 100 meters 11.63 * ECAC meet record

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

71

Big East

INDOOR

Champions

Big East Outdoor Outstanding Track Performer 1996 2011

Marlene Dawkins Chelsea Carrier

Big East Outdoor Individual Champions 100-meter Dash 1998 1999

Maxine Dawkins, 11.58 Stacian Brown, 11.62

200-meter Dash 1996 1998 1999

Marlene Dawkins, 23.67 Maxine Dawkins, 23.44 Stacian Brown, 23.89

400-meter Dash 1996 1999 2000 2011

Marlene Dawkins, 54.57 Temeca Williams, 53.16 Tameca Williams, 53.55 April Rotilio, 52.71

1,500-meter Run 1999 2010

Kate Vermeulen, 4:25.72 Karly Hamric, 4:28.02

5,000-meter Run 2002 2009 2010

Megan Metcalfe, 16:35.63 Clara Grandt, 16:07.55 Marie Louise Asselin, 16:31.04

10,000-meter Run 2003 2010 2011

Megan Metcalfe, 35:08.89 Clara Grandt, 33:31.80 Kate Harrison, 33:59.84

100-meter Hurdles 2006 2008 2011 2012

Jessica Czaikowski, 13.42 Chelsea Carrier, 13.48* Chelsea Carrier, 13.07 Chelsea Carrier-Eades, 12.93

400-meter Hurdles 2011

Chelsea Carrier, 57.48

Pole Vault 1998 2001 2002

Kristen Quackenbush, 3.61m (11’10”) Erin Nett, 3.80m (12’5.5”) Erin Nett, 3.95m (12’11.5”)

Long Jump 2011

Chelsea Carrier, 6.42m (21-3/4)

400-meter Relay 1999 2000

72

45.27 (H. Norman, T. Williams, Z. Francis, S. Brown) 45.39 (S. Brown, S. Cox, Z. Francis, T. Williams)

T R ACK & FIEL D

ClaraGRANDT

OUTDOOR Big East Outdoor Outstanding Track Performer 1996 2011

Marlene Dawkins Chelsea Carrier

Big East Outdoor Individual Champions 100-meter Dash 1998 1999

Maxine Dawkins, 11.58 Stacian Brown, 11.62

200-meter Dash 1996 1998 1999

Marlene Dawkins, 23.67 Maxine Dawkins, 23.44 Stacian Brown, 23.89

400-meter Dash 1996 1999 2000 2011

Marlene Dawkins, 54.57 Temeca Williams, 53.16 Tameca Williams, 53.55 April Rotilio, 52.71

1,500-meter Run 1999 2010

Kate Vermeulen, 4:25.72 Karly Hamric, 4:28.02

5,000-meter Run 2002 2009 2010

Megan Metcalfe, 16:35.63 Clara Grandt, 16:07.55 Marie Louise Asselin, 16:31.04

10,000-meter Run 2003 2010 2011

Megan Metcalfe, 35:08.89 Clara Grandt, 33:31.80 Kate Harrison, 33:59.84

100-meter Hurdles 2006 2008 2011 2012

Jessica Czaikowski, 13.42 Chelsea Carrier, 13.48* Chelsea Carrier, 13.07 Chelsea Carrier-Eades, 12.93

400-meter Hurdles 2011

Chelsea Carrier, 57.48

Pole Vault 1998 2001 2002

Kristen Quackenbush, 3.61m (11’10”) Erin Nett, 3.80m (12’5.5”) Erin Nett, 3.95m (12’11.5”)

Long Jump 2011

Chelsea Carrier, 6.42m (21-3/4)

400-meter Relay KarlyHAMRIC

1999 2000

45.27 (H. Norman, T. Williams, Z. Francis, S. Brown) 45.39 (S. Brown, S. Cox, Z. Francis, T. Williams)

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

73

NCAA

Champions

Pat Itanyi 1995 NCAA Outdoor Long Jump Champion In only her sophomore season, Pat Itanyi became the first female in West Virginia University women’s track and field history to win a national championship by taking top honors in the long jump at the 1995 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Knoxville, Tenn., with a leap of 22'1. Itanyi edged out George Mason’s Diane Guthrie-Greshman who had a jump of 22'0.25" and surpassed her WVU record of 21'10.25", a mark that placed her ranking second entering the meet. A native of Ukehe, Nigeria, Itanyi’s jump was the 10th longest in NCAA History at the time and set a school record in the finals that still stands to this day.

Kate Vermeulen 1999 NCAA Indoor Mile Champion As a freshman, Kate Vermeulen became the second female NCAA champion when she took top honors in the mile at the 1999 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Indianapolis, Ind., with a time of 4:39.07. Vermeulen’s time was her best of the year as she edged out Mary Jayne Harrelson of Appalachian State who finished with a time of 4:39.53. The London, Ontario native is the only indoor champion for WVU and in only one year as a Mountaineer, Vermeulen tied other national champion Itanyi by setting six school records in one season.

Megan Metcalfe 2005 NCAA Outdoor 5,000m Champion In her final season at WVU, Megan Metcalfe concluded an already stellar career as a Mountaineer by capturing the 5,000 meter title at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Sacramento, Calif., with a time of 16:31.88. Metcalfe used a final surge of energy to outkick the defending champion, Sara Bei of Stanford, defeating her by just 0.54 seconds. The Edmonton, Alberta native, finished her career as a nine-time All-American and still holds four school records to this day.

74

T R ACK & FIEL D

WVU Connie ELLERBE

Pat ITANYI

Charity WACHERA

1988, 1989, 1991, 1992

1995, 1996, 1997

1998

As a freshman, she became the first female track and field athlete in school history to earn AllAmerica accolades when she finished seventh in the 400-meter hurdles at the 1988 NCAA Outdoor Championships at Oregon. She again earned All-America honors during her sophomore campaign – finishing ninth in the hurdles at the outdoor meet in Provo, Utah. After redshirting the 1989-90 season, she captured her third All-America honor by finishing fourth in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 56.60. Ellerbe culminated her brilliant career in 1992 by finishing second in the 400-meter hurdles at the NCAA meet in Austin. She also competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials in 1992 where her fifthplace finish in the 400-meter hurdles is the highest a WVU female track athlete has ever placed and she narrowly missed a spot on the U.S. roster.

Alethea MOODY 1990 Moody earned All-America honors during the 1990 season when she placed sixth in the high jump with a leap of 5’ 11 1/4” at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Duke. Two weeks earlier, the junior won the high jump at the Penn Relays and at the ECAC Outdoor Championships; her victory at Penn Relays represented the first female WVU winner at the prestigious meet. She finished the season as the No. 1 ranked jumper in the East and was also selected to compete in the Olympic Sports Festival.

Trinese SUMMERLIN 1993 WVU’s third female track All-American, Summerlin placed sixth in the 55-meter dash at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Indianapolis, blazing to a time of 6.85. The honor capped off an indoor season that saw her take top honors in the 55-meter dash at the ECAC Indoor Championships, as well as the Fairfax Indoor Classic and the George Mason Collegiate Invitational.

Pat Itanyi ended her career at WVU with seven All-America honors and six school records. In 1995, the Ukehe, Nigeria, native culminated a brilliant season by becoming the school’s first female national track champion. During the indoor season, Itanyi placed third in the long jump and fifth in the 55-meter hurdles at the NCAA Indoor Championships at Indianapolis to secure All-America status. At the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Knoxville, Tenn., the sophomore won the long jump with a leap of 22’1”, edging George Mason’s Diane Guthrie-Greshman for the national title.

That jump was the 10th longest in NCAA history at that time. Itanyi took her fourth All-America honor in 1996 at the NCAA Indoor Championships by placing fifth in the long jump. To cap off her senior season at WVU, Itanyi brought home three All-America awards in 1997. She placed eighth in the long jump at the NCAA indoor meet in Indianapolis. During the outdoor season, Itanyi notched third in the long jump and fifth in the heptathlon at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Bloomington, Ind., to once again earn All-America status.

Kristin QUACKENBUSH 1998 Kristin Quackenbush only participated in track for one season, but she left her mark as one of WVU’s most gifted athletes ever. Quackenbush earned All-America status in the pole vault during the outdoor season. Her mark of 12’1 1/2” was good enough for fourth at the NCAA Championships, and was her third-best effort on the season. Quackenbush also placed 10th at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

She captured first place in the Big East and ECAC Championships during both the indoor and outdoor seasons. Quackenbush was only one of three athletes in West Virginia history ever to earn All-America status in two different sports at the time. This 1997 national Gymnast of the Year, excelled in gymnastics at WVU for four years. Her All-American honors in gymnastics include: 1994-95-96 floor, 1994 and 96 vault, and 1996 all-around. She was tied for the most individual All-America awards in West Virginia history with former track stars James Jett and Pat Itanyi.

WVUTrackField

Charity Wachera was one of WVU’s best distance runners during her career. The Nairobi, Kenya, native earned All-America honors in the 10,000-meters during the outdoor season as she crossed the line with a time of 34:29.64, good enough for a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. She also held two school records. She ran a 16:27.27 in the 5,000-meters and a 34:24.00 in the 10,000-meters during the 1998 outdoor track season, both good enough for first alltime. In 1997, Wachera finished 11th with a time of 17:00 to become WVU’s first female cross country All-American.

Kate VERMEULEN 1999 Kate Vermeulen will go down as one of the most prolific distance runners in WVU history.

Vermeulen took just one year to become the NCAA indoor champion in the mile, setting a then-school record with a time of 4:39.07. She earned All-America honors during the indoor season and joins Pat Itanyi (long jump, 1995), Mike Mosser (1000-yards, 1972) and Megan Metcalfe (5,000-meters, 2005) as one of only four West Virginia track national champions.

Vermeulen’s six school records ties Itanyi with the most of any track athlete in the University’s history. During the outdoor season, she captured the 1,500-meters (4:22.89), and managed to run down five throughout the indoor season, which included the 800-meters (2:06.42), the 1000-meters (2:43.01) and the mile (4:39.07). She also anchored the 4x800 relay (8:58.47) and distance medley relay (11:15.50), which both captured school records. She was named Outstanding Track Performer at the Big East Championships and posted the fastest collegiate mile time (4:39.84) during the indoor season.

Merissa SEXSMITH 1999, 2000, 2001 Sexsmith proved to be a picture of consistency throughout her freshman campaign as she earned AllAmerica honors for her participation on the distance medley relay team, where she ran the 800-meter leg of the relay. This team, made up of Rebecca Stallwood (1,200 meters), Tameca Williams (400 meters) and Kate Vermeulen (mile), became the first relay team to win a

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

75

WVU Big East Championship (11:15.40) and set the school record during the indoor season with that time. The team placed fifth at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Sexsmith was also a member of the 4x800 relay team that captured a Big East Championship and a school record. Sexsmith became a two-time All-American when the distance medley team came in second at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2000. She earned her third AllAmerica accolade as a member of the 2001 DMR team.

Tameca WILLIAMS 1999, 2000 A transfer from Southern University, Williams quickly became West Virginia’s top 400-meter runner. She was part of the distance medley relay team, running the 400-meter leg, that captured the school record (11:15.40) and a Big East Championship during the indoor season. She also holds the school record in the 400-meters outdoor with a time of 52.92.

Williams earned her second All-America honor with her membership in the 2000 indoor distance medley relay team. Williams was part of the DMR that finished second at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a time of 11:17.92.

Rebecca STALLWOOD 1999, 2000 Stallwood was a fantastic two-sport athlete for West Virginia’s track and cross country teams for four years. As a freshman, she joined the 1997 women’s cross country team at the NCAA Cross Country Championship and had an equally successful season with the cross country team in 1999, with another NCAA Cross Country Championship appearance. She earned her All-America honors, for her contribution on the distance medley relay team, running the opening 1,200-meter leg. This team captured the Big East Championship and set a school record with a time of 11:15.40. The Burlington, Ontario, Canada, native earned her second All-America honor when the distance medley team finished second at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2000.

Christine BROWN 1999, 2000 An athlete that coaches only dream about, Brown came from Jamaica as a freshman. In her first

76

T R ACK & FIEL D

season, the talented athlete took the U.S. Collegiate track scene by storm. Then after taking a year off to work on her studies, she decided to attend WVU, where in 2000, she went to the NCAA Championships as a top seed. There she earned her All-America honors with a sixth-place finish in the triple jump.

Ailene SMITH 2000, 2001 Smith earned her All-America honors as part of the second-place distance medley relay team at the 2000 Indoor NCAA Championships. Smith, a transfer from Southern University, was all-Big East as a freshman and made a huge impact on the team’s relays. Smith ran the second leg of the 4x800 relay team that finished fourth at the Big East Indoor Championships in 2000 and finished eighth at the Big East Outdoor Championships in the 800 with a time of 2:11.88. Smith earned her second All-America honor as a member of the 2001 distance medley relay team.

Ciara CHIC 2001 Ciara Chic, a Charleston, W.Va., native, was one of the top athletes to come out of West Virginia during the past decade. She earned her All-America honor during her freshman year as a member of the 2001 distance medley relay team, which finished eighth at the 2001 NCAA Indoor Championships.

Megan METCALFE 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Megan Metcalfe, a nine-time AllAmerican, is one of the most prolific distance runners in Mountaineer women’s track and field history. The Edmonton, Alberta, native earned her first All-America accolade as a member of the 2001 distance medley relay team, which finished in eighth place. Metcalfe’s second All-America award, and first individual, came with a third-place finish in the 3,000-meter at the 2002 NCAA Outdoor Championships in a WVU record time of 9:09.95.

Also an outstanding cross country runner, Metcalfe was named the 2000 Big East Freshman of the Year.

Her third All-America honor came with a ninth-place finish at the 2002 NCAA Cross Country Championship, making her just the second female cross country All-American in school history and only the fourth

Mountaineer to earn All-America honors in two sports.

She earned her fourth and fifth All-America accolades in 2003 by finishing fourth in the 3,000-meter at the indoor championships and was a part of the schoolrecord setting distance medley relay team in that same meet. Her sixth and seventh awards came in March of 2004 when she was fifth in the 3,000-meter and again was a member of the DMR team. Metcalfe’s eighth and school-record winning All-America honor came at the 2004 NCAA Cross Country Championships where she recorded a 16th-place overall finish. Metcalfe capped off her brilliant career with a ninth All-America honor and a national championship when she won the 5,000 meters at the 2005 NCAA Outdoor Championships.

Jennifer DAVIS 2004, 2005 Jennifer Davis, a native of Romney, W.Va., earned her first All-America honor as a part of the DMR team that finished fifth at the 2004 NCAA Indoor Championships. The team recorded a time of 11:12.56 en route to a fifth place overall finish. Her second such honor came in the same event at the 2005 NCAA Indoor Championships. The team finished sixth with a time of 11:13.07. Davis currently serves as an assistant coach for the WVU cross country and track teams.

Susan DAVIS 2005 Susan Davis earned her All-America honor as a member of the WVU distance medley relay squad at the 2005 NCAA Indoor Championships. The Romney, W.Va., native helped the Mountaineers achieve a sixthplace finishing time of 11:13.07.

Jennifer KEMP 2003, 2004, 2005 Jennifer Kemp was a three-time AllAmerican as a member of the Mountaineers’ stellar distance medley relay team. The Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, native picked up her first honor in 2003 when she was a part of the school-record quartet that ran 11:11.19 at the NCAA indoor meet. In 2004, she was again a part of the DMR squad that finished fifth. For the third consecutive year, in 2005, Kemp helped the Mountaineer DMR team capture sixth place at NCAA Indoor Championships.

Pam RICHARDSON 2003, 2004, 2005 Pam Richardson was a three-time AllAmerican as a member of the Mountaineer distance medley relay team. The Atco, N.J., native earned her first honor in 2003 as part of the record-setting DMR team that finished fourth in a then school-record time of 11:11.19. She followed that performance by being a part of the 2004 DMR squad that finished fifth at the 2004 NCAA Indoor Championships with a time of 11:12.56. In 2005, Richardson helped the WVU DMR team capture sixth place with a time of 11:13.07.

Abbie STECHSCHULTE 2007 After three years of dedicated work, Abbie Stechschulte finally built herself a name in the track world, showing dominance as a multi-event athlete during the 2007 indoor and outdoor season. As proof, the Columbus Grove, Ohio, native won the 2007 Big East Indoor pentathlon crown and finished sixth at the NCAA Championships, earning her All-America honors.

During the 2007 outdoor season, Stechschulte nabbed an Olympic Trials ‘B’ standard at the 80th Annual Texas Relays, scoring 5,609 points in the heptathlon. At the end of her career, she ranked second in the WVU record book for the pentathlon (4,085 points) and the heptathlon (5,609 points).

Marie-Louise ASSELIN 2008, 2009, 2010 One of the most talented and decorated distance runners to ever wear the Old Gold and Blue, as of 2010, Marie-Louise Asselin, a Sarnia, Ontario, native owns seven All-America medals, including three in cross county and four in track. Asselin’s last cross country season, 2009, was one for the record books as she became one of only two WVU runners to earn three All-America honors in the sport. Along with teammate Keri Bland, Asselin achieved the honor as she finished in 31st place (20:43) at the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championship. The Mountaineers went on to finish sixth, marking the third-consecutive year that WVU finished in the top 10 at the national championships.

Asselin also earned all-region honors for the fourth time in her career and all Big East honors for the third time.

Her success continued into the track season as she posted a second-place finish in the 5,000-meter race at the NCAA Indoor Championships (15:50.53) and a

second-place finish in the 5,000 meter at the NCAA Outdoor Championships (15:53.93).

In 2008, she led WVU to its most successful season in school history, as the Mountaineers took a historic fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championship, first at the NCAA all-Mid-Atlantic Regionals and second at the Big East Championship. Asselin became the first Big East Women’s Cross Country Individual Champion in 2008, as she took the top spot with a time of 20:10.

She then placed 17th at the NCAA Championship race with a time of 20:27 to earn her second consecutive All-American honor. She earned her first All-American title in 2007 as the Mountaineers captured their first Big East Championship and finished ninth in the country. Even though she was just a sophomore at the time, Asselin became WVU’s third All-American in the sport when she finished 17th (14th in the team standings) with a time of 20:39 at the 2007 NCAA Championship. It was a fitting ending to an outstanding season that saw her post the team’s highest finish in the final five meets. Asselin showed glimpses of her abilities just weeks earlier at the Big East Championship where she took second and at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional race, where she placed third in leading her team to an overall second-place finish. Asselin, an all-Big East and all-Mid-Atlantic region selection, was joined by Bland as an All-American, marking the first time in program history that two teammates earned the honor in the same season. In the 2008 indoor season, Asselin went on to place seventh in the 3,000-meter to earn All-America honors and was on the All-America distance medley relay team that took fourth at nationals.

Keri BLAND 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 Keri Bland, a nine-time All-American, continued to leave her name in the WVU record books as the most decorated athlete in WVU track and field history. In 2011, Bland earned third-team All-America honors in the 1,500-meter run with an 18th-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a time of 4:24. She aided the Mountaineers to a sixth-place finish at the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships, marking the third-straight year WVU finished in the nation’s top 10. Bland, along with teammate MarieLouise Asselin, became the only Mountaineers in school history to earn All-America honors for three seasons in cross county, as she finished 34th (20:45).

The Fairview, W.Va., native earned two All-America honors in the 2009 indoor track season, as she placed eighth in the mile and was a part of the distance medley relay team. Bland continued to dominate in the outdoor season, as she earned her fourth honor of the year by virtue of finishing as one of the top U.S. citizens in the 1,500-meter race, marking the second time she earned honors in all three seasons (cross county, indoor track and outdoor track). Bland was an essential part WVUTrackField

of the Mountaineers team in 2008, when she led WVU to its most successful season in school history as the squad placed fourth at the NCAA Championship, first at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regionals and second at the Big East Championship. She was the first Mountaineer to finish at the NCAA Championship, where she finished 14th with a time of 20:20.

In 2007, Bland and Asselin helped guide the Mountaineers to their first conference title and the highest finish at nationals in school history (ninth) in 2007. At nationals, Bland was the second Mountaineer to cross the line in 23rd at 20:58. Bland, along with Asselin, was named a first team All-American, marking the first time WVU’s cross country program had multiple All-Americans in the same year. Bland earned all-Big East and all-Mid-Atlantic region accolades during the season after finishing fourth and seventh, respectively, in those races. In the 2008 indoor track season, Bland was a part of the All-America distance medley team that set a school record and placed fourth in the country. She finished the 2008 outdoor season by earning All-America honors in the 1,500-meters to become the first female in WVU history to earn AllAmerica honors in three sports in the same year.

Karly HAMRIC 2008, 2010 Bruceton Mills, W.Va., native Karly Hamric capped off an excellent career in 2010 as she earned her second All-America honor with a sixth-place finish in the 1,500-meter run (4:17.78) at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Hamric’s first honor came when she ran the 800-meter leg of the distance medley relay at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships to help the unit earn All-America honors. Hamric’s 800-meter split was 2:10.82, as the DMR finished fourth with a school record time of 11:07.64. Hamric was joined by Marie-Louise Asselin, Keri Bland and April Rotilio on the squad. Owns a persona-best time of 4:23.54 in the 1,500-meter.

April ROTILIO 2008, 2010, 2011 April Rotilio earned her third All-America honor in 2011 with a 19th-place finish in the 400-meter dash at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 53.47 seconds. She qualified for NCAAs with a 10th-place finish in the 400-meter at the NCAA East Regional in 53.31 seconds. Rotilio earned her best 400-meter time of the year at the Big East Championships, finishing in 52.71 seconds in first place and became the first Mountaineer since Tameca Williams in 2000 to win the event. Academically, she @WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

77

WVU capped her career with third team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and was named to the Capital One Academic all-district first team.

Rotilio captured her second All-America honor in 2010 as she once again aided the distance medley relay team (Rotilio, Keri Bland, Kaylyn Christopher and Jessica O’Connell) to an eighth-place showing (11:16.39) at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. In 2008, Rotilio earned her first honor as she ran the 400-meter leg of the DMR at the NCAA Indoor Championships, helping lead the Mountaineer unit to a fourth-place finish. The Bellaire, Ohio, native ran the 400-meter split in 55.14. The group, who set a new school record with a time of 11:07.64, featured Marie-Louise Asselin, Keri Bland and Karly Hamric.

Clara GRANDT 2009 Clara Grandt saved the best for last as she posted the finest season of her career and earned her first All-America honor in cross country. The West Union, W.Va., native led the team to a sixth-place finish at the 2009 NCAA Championship, the first Mountaineer to cross the line in 13th place overall. Grandt also earned all-region and all-Big East honors and was named Big East Cross Country Athlete of the Week on Sept. 24, for her efforts in the Midwest Open. There she crossed the line in 17:00.1, 19 seconds before Louisville’s Tarah McKay (17:19.4), for the fastest course time in over 20 years. In the track season, Grandt earned her second honor of the year by virtue of finishing as one of the top U.S. citizens in the 5,000-meter race at the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships. She then capped off her final season as a Mountaineer with a fourthplace showing in the 10,000-meter race at the outdoor championships, giving her four total All-America honors.

Grandt became WVU’s 24th track and field All-American as she earned the honors with a fourth-place showing in the 10,000-meter finals at the NCAA Championship in 2009. Grandt started off the race behind the lead pack before finding her stride around the 6,000-meter mark. The junior closed the gap, and finished with a time of 33:45.16.

Kaylyn CHRISTOPHER 2010 Kaylyn Christopher, a native of Kingwood, W.Va., received her first and second All-America honors in 2010, by virtue of finishing as one of the top U.S. citizens in the mile, and as a member of the distance medley relay team at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Christopher captured her first honor with a 12th-place

78

T R ACK & FIEL D

finish in the mile with a time of 4:46, to finish as one of the top eight Americans in the race. Later in the day, she returned to aid the DMR team (Christopher, Keri Bland, Jessica O’Connell and April Rotilio) to an eighthplace showing (11:16.39). Owns a personal-best time of 4:40.78 in the mile.

Jessica O’CONNELL 2010, 2011, 2012 Another name to be added to the list of great WVU distance runners, Jessica O’Connell earned her first All-America honors as a member of the distance medley relay team (O’Connell, Kaylyn Christopher, Keri Bland and April Rotilio) that finished in eighth place (11:16.39) at the 2010 NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. The Calgary, Alberta, native also was a vital asset in the NCAA Outdoor Regionals in 1,500-meter race, but was tripped on the last leg.

O’Connell still managed to finish in 10th place in the semifinals (4:30.05). She is also a NCAA qualifier in the 3,000-meter race after running a life-time best of 9:16.22 at the NY Fast Times Invitational and went on to win the North American Championships in the 5,000-meter that summer.

Her second All-America honor came in the 3,000-meter at the 2011 NCAA Indoor Championships, when she finished in 16th place to earn second team All-America honors. To qualify for NCAAs, O’Connell earned her first ever Big East title in the 3,000-meter with a time of 9:21.09.

In 2012, she earned her third All-America honor at the NCAA Outdoor Championships where she placed 19th in the 5,000-meter run in 17:10.43 for an honorable mention accolade. That year she also finished eighth in the 5,000-meter at the Big East Indoor Championships and had two first-place marks in the 3,000-meter at the Wake Forest Open and the Larry Ellis Invitational.

Chelsea CARRIER-EADES 2010, 2011, 2012 Chelsea Carrier, an eight-time AllAmerican, left her name in the WVU record books as one of the greatest track athletes in school history. In 2010, Carrier, a Buckhannon, W.Va., native earned her first and second All-America honors at the NCAA Indoor Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Her first honor came after a fourth-place showing in the pentathlon.

Carrier finished with one of her best performances with 4,133 total points. Later in the day, Carrier earned her second honor with a sixth-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles (8.29). Earlier in the season, Carrier was named

Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year after earning two Big East Champion honors and breaking the school record in the pentathlon at the Sykes-Sabock Challenge on Feb. 5. Carrier won the event with 4,136 points to break the school record previously set by All-American Pat Itanyi in 1997 (4,111).

In 2011, Carrier earned first team All-America honors in the heptathlon after placing third with 5,761 points and also earned third team All-America in the 100-meter hurdles after placing 19th in 13.56 seconds. She was named the Mid-Atlantic Field Athlete of the Year, and before that earned three individual Big East titles in the long jump, 100-meter hurdles and 400-meter hurdles. During the indoor season, Carrier earned All-America in the 60-meter hurdles with a fourth-place finish in 8.08 seconds, beating her personal record of 8.15 seconds. She notched another All-American award in the pentathlon with a fifth-place finish with 4,128 points, her second All-America award in the pentathlon. Her junior campaign saw her break the school records in the 60-meter hurdles, pentathlon, 100-meter hurdles and the heptathlon. She also participated at the USA Track and Field Championships following the season, finishing 16th in the semifinals round in a time of 13.04 seconds.

Her 2012 senior campaign notched two All-America awards as she earned first team honors in both the heptathlon and the 100-meter hurdles. She placed third in the heptathlon with 5,839 points and seventh in the hurdles in 13.31. She earned a career- and school-best 12.78 in the 100-meter hurdles during the semifinals at NCAAs and also won the heptathlon for a second consecutive year at the Texas Relays.

Kate HARRISON 2011 Kate Harrison earned her first All-America honor as a track and field athlete at the 2011 NCAA Outdoor Championships where she was first team AllAmerica in the 10,000-meter run by way of a secondplace finish in 34:30.35. She qualified for NCAAs with a first-place finish for the event at the NCAA East Regional in 33:48.64, a personal best for the Toronto, Ontario, native. The championship season began well for No. 16-ranked Harrison as she earned her first Big East title in the 10,000 with a time of 33:59.84, her best mark of the year at the time. Harrison also earned her first All-America honor during the 2011 cross country season with an eighth-place individual finish at the NCAA Championship.

Sarah-Anne BRAULT 2011 Sarah-Anne Brault earned her first All-America honor in 2011 with a second team AllAmerica achievement in the 10,000-meter run as she finished in 10th place in 35:05.36. To qualify for NCAAs, the Winnipeg, Manitoba, native placed sixth in the 10,000 at the NCAA East Regional with a time of 33:51.14, her best mark of the year for the event.

Brault earned a second-place finish in 34:04.63 in the 10,000-meter at the Big East Championships and a solid 10th place in the 1,500-meter race in 4:35.07 at the prestigious Jesse Owens Classic. During the indoor season, Brault finished fourth in the 5,000-meter run in 16:17.95 at the Big East Championships. She also excelled academically by earning second team CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and was named to the Capital One Academic all-district first team.

Meghan MOCK 2011 Meghan Mock capped off a stellar junior season by finishing with third team All-America honors in the long jump at the NCAA Outdoor Championships with a distance of 6.02 meters, good for 20th place among the nation’s elite jumpers. The Berkeley Springs, W.Va., native qualified for the NCAAs for the first time of her career by placing 11th in the long jump at the NCAA East Regional at a distance of 6.07 meters. Mock began the championship portion of the season well with an eighth-place mark for the event at 5.81 meters, advancing to the East regional for the first time. Her junior year was enhanced with a first-place finish in the long jump with a 6.17-meter mark at the Penn Relays, a personal-best and currently ranks third all-time at WVU. At the prestigious Stanford Invitational, she placed fourth in the long jump at 5.70 meters. During the indoor season, Mock finished fourth at the Big East Championships at a distance of 5.86 meters.

Katelyn WILLIAMS 2011 Katelyn Williams earned third team All-America honors in the high jump with an 18thplace height of 1.76 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. To earn her second trip to NCAAs, the Chesterland, Ohio, native placed ninth at the NCAA East Regional, also at a height of 1.78 meters. She started

the outdoor championship season well at the Big East Championships with a second-place finish in the high jump at 1.78 meters and placed third in the heptathlon with 5,044 points. In the heptathlon, she finished first in the high jump with a career-best 1.79-meter height, and had solid finishes in the shot put (3rd, 11.09m) and javelin (4th, 29.30m). At the prestigious Jesse Owens Classic, Williams placed third at 1.70 meters. Her indoor season was highlighted with a fourth-place finish in the long jump at 5.08 meters at the WVU Holiday Classic.

Jordan HAMRIC 2013 Jordan Hamric ended her career as a Mountaineer, earning second team All-America honors.

The Bruceton Mills, W.Va., native posted a 12th-place finish in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the 2013 NCAA Division I Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oreg. Hamric ended her career as the school record holder in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, which she set at the 2013 NCAA semifinals with a time of 10:06.47.

During her senior campaign, Hamric also placed second at the Big 12 Outdoor Championships, third at the Penn Relays and seventh at the Stanford Invitational. It marked the first time in her career that she garnered All-America honors.

Kelly WILLIAMS 2013 Kelly Williams wasted no time to ink her name into the Mountaineer record books. The freshman became the 33rd All-American in WVU track and field program history in 2013. The Chesterland, Ohio, native recorded a seventh-place finish in the mile at the 2013 Indoor Track and Field Championships in Fayetteville, Ark. Williams finished with a time one-mile time of 4:39.30 at the meet, just two seconds off her personalbest mile time of 4:36.77 set earlier in the season.

That time ranks her No. 3 in WVU program history for the mile.

Stormy NESBIT 2014 Stormy Nesbit completed her career as perhaps the greatest jumper in West Virginia University track and field history. The Roseville, Minnesota, native spent three seasons with the Mountaineers. Nesbit

WVUTrackField

concluded her career with an eighth-place finish at the 2014 Division I NCAA Outdoor Track and field Championships in Eugene, Oregon in the triple jump.

The finish earned her First Team All-America status.

Nesbit ended her career as the WVU school record holder in the triple jump (13.19 meters).

Sarah MARTINELLI 2014 Martinelli was named second team AllAmerican in the 3,000 meter steeplechase event where she finished 11th place crossing the finish line in 10:12.73 at the 2014 NCAA Championships. Martinelli was a scholar and an athlete where she was recognized often for her success. The Morgantown native was named the Big 12 Women’s Cross Country ScholarAthlete of the Year, an Academic All-Big 12 First team selection while maintaining a 3.75 GPA, earned All-Big 12 honors by finishing eighth overall at the Big 12 Championships with a personal-best 6k time of 20:44.9 and earned All-Mid-Atlantic Region from finishing in 22nd place overall at the NCAA Regional Meet.

Allison LASNICKI 2014 Allison Lansnicki, a native of Canastota, N.Y., earned third team All-America honors in the 10,000 meter run where she placed 17th during the second day of the 2014 Division I NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore. Lansnicki recorded the second fastest time in school history in this event with a time of 33:456.22.

Kaitlyn GILLESPIE 2015 It’s recognized that distance runner Kaitlyn Gillespie is a strong-minded athlete shown by her many accomplishments throughout her collegiate career.

Gillespie earned second team All-America honors-the first of her career in the 10,000-meter run at the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

She placed ninth overall with a time of 33:44.08 for a new personal best, marking the second-fastest time in program history. This marks Gillespie’s fourth time in her career of being honored an All-American

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

79

All-Time

Coaches AndCaptains

Year Coach Captains 1978 Linda King None 1979 Linda King None 1980 Linda King None 1981 Linda King None 1982 Linda King None 1983 Pat Nicol None 1984 Kim Kemp Jean England, Kris Kavetski 1985 Kim Kemp Lisa Ayers, Kris Kavetski 1986 Laura Nardelli Karen Carpenter, Lori Smith 1987 Laura Nardelli Charlene Burstrom, Karen Carpenter 1988 Laura Nardelli Charlene Burstrom, Traci Purtell 1989 Laura Nardelli Charlene Burstrom 1990 Laura Nardelli Theresa Papa 1991 Martin Pushkin Vicki Stum 1992 Martin Pushkin None 1993 Martin Pushkin Erin O’Reilly 1994 Martin Pushkin Kerryn Davidson, Joleen Tocci 1995 Martin Pushkin Carisa Brown 1996 Martin Pushkin Heather Bury, Mary Ann Myer 1997 Martin Pushkin Charity Wachera 1998 Martin Pushkin Nancy Knapp, Rebecca Stallwood 1999 Martin Pushkin Rebecca Stallwood, Johanna Fisher 2000 Martin Pushkin Rebecca Stallwood, Johanna Fisher 2001 Martin Pushkin Rebecca Stallwood 2002 Jeff Huntoon Stacian Brown 2003 Jeff Huntoon Megan Metcalfe 2004 Jeff Huntoon Tara Struyk 2005 Jeff Huntoon Jennifer Kemp, Pam Richardson 2006 Jeff Huntoon Jessica Czaikowski, Susan Davis 2007 Jeff Huntoon Jessica Czaikowski, Abbie Stechschulte, Halimah Bashir, Alison Spiker 2008 Sean Cleary Halimah Bashir, Alison Spiker 2009 Sean Cleary Alison Spiker, Nicole DeStefano 2010 Sean Cleary Marie-Louise Asselin, Keri Bland, Clara Grandt, Karly Hamric, April Rotilio 2011 Sean Cleary April Rotilio, Chelsea Carrier-Eades 2012 Sean Cleary Chelsea Carrier-Eades, Katelyn Williams 2013 Sean Cleary Sarah-Anne Brault, Sydney Cummings 2014 Sean Cleary Sarah Martinelli, Stormy Nesbit 2015 Sean Cleary None 2016 Sean Cleary Kelly Williams, Maggie Drazba, Amy Cashin and Bria Welker Total *no dual meets -- all invitational competition

AlisonSPIKER

80

T R ACK & FIEL D

Dr.MartinPUSHKIN

Record 1-2 2-0 1-0 2-0 2-1 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 3-4 8-0 11-0 9-2 14-8 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 0-0* 56-17

GENERAL

Information President E. Gordon Gee ������������������������������ Director of Athletics Shane Lyons ���������������� Intercollegiate Athletics Staff ���������������������� Athletic Facilities ����������������������������������������

82 83 84 85

E. GORDON Gee, PRESIDENT

Dr. E. Gordon Gee is one of America’s most prominent higher education leaders, having served as president of some of the most prestigious public and private universities for more than three decades.

When he returned to lead West Virginia University in 2014 as the institution’s 24th president, it was a homecoming of sorts. He was first named WVU president in 1981 at age 36 – at the time, considered among the youngest persons to ever serve as a university president.

He led WVU until 1985 when he went on to presidencies at the University of Colorado (198590), Brown University (1998-2000) and Vanderbilt University (2001-07). He served as president of The Ohio State University from 1990-97 and again from 2007-13.

On his return to the Morgantown campus, he said, “This is not a job to me; it is a calling.” His leadership style bears that out as he works tirelessly to advance the University’s land-grant mission and open doors to the American dream.

In his latest address to the University community, he called for reinventing education for our young people, on our campuses, throughout our state and beyond; transforming health care for our citizens; and cultivating prosperity in our communities. “Doing our best for the 1.8 million people of West Virginia is our noblest calling and our proudest distinction,” he said.

Gee has built a special relationship with the students as well as the state’s citizens, making it a point to visit students where they live, learn and socialize -- and visiting all 55 West Virginia counties during his inaugural year – and at least half in subsequent years.

Born in Vernal, Utah, Gee graduated from the University of Utah with an honors degree in history and earned his J.D. and Ed.D. degrees from Columbia University. He clerked under Chief Justice David T. Lewis of the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals before being named a judicial fellow and staff assistant to the U.S. Supreme Court. In this role, he worked for Chief Justice Warren Burger on administrative and legal problems of the Court and federal judiciary.

Gee returned to Utah as an associate professor and associate dean in the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University, and was granted full professorship in 1978.

One year later, he became dean of the WVU College of Law, and, in 1981, was named WVU’s 19th president.

Gee serves on several education-governance organizations and committees, including the Big 12 Conference Council of Presidents and formerly the Business Higher Education Forum and the American Association of Universities. He was chair of the American Council on Education’s Commission on Higher Education Attainment and served as co-chair of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities’ Energy Advisory Committee. In 2009, King Abdulaziz University in Saudi Arabia invited

82

T R ACK & FIEL D

J.D, ED.D

him to join its international advisory board. In 2009, Time magazine named him one of the top 10 university presidents in the United States.

Active in many national professional and service organizations, he is on the executive committee of the National 4-H Council Board of Trustees and serves on the Board of Directors of the American Council on Education, the nation’s largest higher education organization. He has also served on the boards for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and Limited Brands.

In 2011, Gee began serving as secretary on the Board of Directors of Ohio’s economic development program, JobsOhio. In 2011-12, Governor John Kasich asked him to chair the Ohio Higher Education Capital Funding Collaborative and the Ohio Higher Education Funding Commission. In December 2012, he began serving on the Columbus Education Commission.

Gee has received many honorary degrees, awards, fellowships and recognitions. He is a fellow of the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world’s largest science organization. In 1994, Gee received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Utah, as well as from Teachers College of Columbia University. In 2013, he received the ACE Council of Fellows/Fidelity Investments Mentor Award and the Outstanding Academic Leader of the Year Award on behalf of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He is the co-author of 11 books, including Law, Policy and Higher Education, published in 2012.

He has also authored many papers and articles on law and education.

Gee’s daughter, Rebekah, is the Medicaid Medical Director for the State of Louisiana, and an assistant professor of Public Health and Medicine at Louisiana State University. She is also a Norman F. Gant/American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology/IOM Anniversary Fellow. Dr. Rebekah Gee is married to David Patrón and they have five children.

The GEE FAMILY - Front from left: Nathan, Elly and Ben Patrón. Back from left: Rebekah Gee, Eva Patrón, E. Gordon Gee, Elizabeth Patrón and David Patrón

SHANELyons

DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS

Since being named Director of Intercollegiate Athletics and Associate Vice President at West Virginia University in January 2015, Shane Lyons has not been interested in headlines, he’s been interested in results.

Working furiously behind the scenes, Lyons rolls up his sleeves every day for the betterment of WVU’s student-athletes, fans and athletic department. In his second year on the job, he keeps his fingers on the pulse of more than $110 million in athletic facility improvements that will be completed in the next year. In fact, his first year on the job can be defined as a year of fan enhancements to the WVU Coliseum and Milan Puskar Stadium as he has worked tirelessly to modernize 46- and 36-year-old facilities. Next up on his agenda are student-athlete enhancements with a new Olympic sport weight and training room.

Also in the coming year, Lyons will continue to work with the Morgantown community on bringing a $45 million aquatic and track center to Morgantown, which will provide health and fitness benefits to all ages. When he’s not in his office, he’s an energized fundraiser where his efforts and honesty are appreciated by Mountaineer Athletic Club donors.

Lyons oversees 18 varsity sports, a department budget of approximately $88 million, 200 employees, and approximately 500 student-athletes. He has already put the finishing touches on a $21 million baseball park and renovations are in the final stages to the football and basketball facilities that will bring long overdue new restrooms, concessions, ADA seating and fan comfort.

Leaving the headlines to others, Lyons, confidently behind the scenes, directed a department in his first year that brought an 18th national championship for rifle, 30 All Americans, 110 All-Conference performers, 18 academic award winners and 109 Academic All-Conference selections.

His work with WVU President E. Gordon Gee’s senior leadership team, as well as the Big 12 Conference and other national committees has brought additional respect and positive exposure to his department and the University. He currently serves on the Big 12 Administration Committee, Finance and Budget Committee and the Game Management and Officiating Subcommittee.

Lyons came to West Virginia after spending three years as the deputy director of athletics and chief operating officer at Alabama where he worked closely on day-to-day strategic leadership and direction of the Crimson Tide Athletic program.

During his time at Alabama, his responsibilities included oversight of a $120 million budget, management of the day-to-day operations of the department and oversight of the Crimson Tide’s 21 sports teams. In addition, he played a pivotal role in a historic renegotiation of Alabama’s multimedia rights agreement that started in 2014 and was involved in several significant capital projects totaling more than $85 million.

The Crimson Tide won seven national titles in five different sports during his time there – two in football, two in men’s golf, one in women’s golf, one in gymnastics and one in softball. He also played a critical role in the hiring of four Alabama head coaches.

Prior to joining the Alabama staff in November 2011, Lyons spent 10 years as an associate commissioner at the Atlantic Coast Conference. At the ACC, Lyons focused on conference-wide compliance and academic initiatives, providing direct assistance to the conference’s presidents, chancellors and athletics directors in matters dealing with NCAA regulatory matters.

In addition, he served as the ACC’s human resource manager and was responsible for the administration, negotiation and mediation of the employee benefits program and managing the conference’s organizational policies and procedures. He was part of the senior administrative team for ACC events, including the football championship game, the men’s basketball tournament and men’s and women’s NCAA basketball events. He also was a member and served as chairman on many prominent committees within the NCAA Governance structure during his tenure with the ACC. Prior to working at the ACC, Lyons served as associate athletics director for compliance at Big 12 member Texas Tech from 1998 to 2001. During that time, Lyons assumed responsibility for the leadership, administration and implementation of a comprehensive NCAA compliance program with emphasis toward rules education and extensive monitoring systems. He also served as oversight administrator for several of the Red Raiders’ athletic teams and had financial and operational supervision of the strength and conditioning, nutritional and sports medicine units.

Before joining Texas Tech, Lyons worked at the NCAA for almost 10 years as a senior membership services representative, where he was responsible for the oversight and coordination of the 25 membership service representatives.

Lyons began his career in college athletics in July 1988 as assistant commissioner of the Big South Conference. With the Big South, he was in charge of conference-wide compliance and championships.

A native of Parkersburg, West Virginia, and a graduate of Parkersburg High, Lyons was a standout basketball player for the Big Reds. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in sport management from WVU in 1987 and 1988, respectively.

He and his wife, Emily, a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, have two children: Cameron and Brooke. Lyons is the University’s 12th athletic director.

Shane Lyons through the Years:

1988-89 Big South Conference (Assistant Commissioner for Compliance and Championships) 1989-98

NCAA (Senior Membership Services Representative)

1998-2001 Texas Tech (Associate Athletic Director – Compliance) 2001-11

Atlantic Coast Conference (Associate Commissioner)

2011-15

Alabama (Deputy Director of Athletics/Chief Operating Officer)

2015-present West Virginia (Director of Athletics and Associate Vice President)

The LYONSFAMILY: Cameron, Brooke, Emily and Shane

WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

83

WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY INTERCOLLEGIATEAthletics KeliCUNNINGHAM

Steve URYASZ

Matt BORMAN

Deputy Athletic Director

Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director

MichaelFRAGALE

TerriHOWES

Senior Associate Athletic Director/Executive Director

Senior Associate Athletic Director/Communications

Senior Associate Athletic Director/Sports Administration, SWA

Greg FEATHERSTON

JoeHESKETT

AprilMESSERLY

KevinMILLER

BenMURRAY

Associate Athletic Director/ Governance & Compliance

Associate Athletic Director/ Sports Performance

Associate Athletic Director/ Facilities & Operations

Associate Athletic Director/ Annual Fund

Associate Athletic Director/ Major Gifts & Capital Campaigns

MichaelSZUL

Matt WELLS

Senior Associate Athletic Director/Business Operations

Senior Associate Athletic Director/ External Affairs

ZachECKERT

LaceyGIBSON

Assistant Athletic Director/ Facilities & Operations

Assistant Athletic Director/ Compliance

WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY

Head Coaches

Susan HAMMOND

BryanMESSERLY

SamMORRONE

Assistant Athletic Director/ Donor Relations

Assistant Athletic Director/ Communications

Assistant Athletic Director/ Assistant Athletic Director/ Marketing Business Operations

JasonBUTTS

MikeCAREY

Gymnastics

Women’s Basketball

SeanCLEARY Cross Country/Track

SeanCOVICH

JonHAMMOND

SammieHENSON

DanaHOLGORSEN

Men’s Golf

Rifle

Wrestling

Football

BobHUGGINS

JimmyKING

MarlonLEBLANC

MihaLISAC

RandyMAZEY

VicRIGGS

ReedSUNAHARA

Men’s Basketball

Rowing

Men’s Soccer

Tennis

Baseball

Swimming and Diving

Volleyball

84

T R ACK & FIEL D

NathanielZINN

NikkiIZZO-BROWN

Women’s Soccer

ATHLETICFacilities BASKETBALL PRACTICE FACILITY

CAPERTON INDOOR FACILITY

CARY GYM

DICK DLESK SOCCER STADIUM

DREAMSWORK FIELD

MONONGALIA COUNTY BALLPARK

MOUNTAINEER FIELD AT MILAN PUSKAR STADIUM

MOUNTAINEER TENNIS COURTS

MOUNTAINEER TRACK

WVU BOATHOUSE

WVU COLISEUM

WVU NATATORIUM

WVU RIFLE RANGE

WVU WRESTLING PAVILLION WVUTrackField

@WVUTrackField

WVUTrackField

85

Media Services The West Virginia athletic communications office will be available through the entire 2016-17 women’s track and field season to accommodate any media requests. The following are some guidelines that should make it easy for media members to cover the West Virginia track and field team. Any additional questions should be directed to the track and field contact Samantha Strejeck.

During the Week Any member of the media wishing to interview a runner or member of the coaching staff during the week should the West Virginia track and field contact Samantha Strejeck, via email (sstrejec@mail. wvu.edu) or by phone (304-293-9916), at least 24 hours in advance.

Cell phone numbers will not be available. All WVU student-athletes have been instructed not to conduct interviews without prior approval of the athletic communications staff.

Receiving Information Media members may receive women’s track and field press releases, notes and more via email. To receive such press releases, meet recaps and more, simply email your requests to sstrejec@mail.wvu.edu.

WVUsports.com WVUsports.com is the place for media and fans to browse for the latest on Mountaineer track and field.

Player and coaching staff bios are available at the click of your finger by going to WVUsports.com. After each meet, WVUsports.com is updated with the latest statistics. Not only will you find this season’s stats, but you will also be able to find the WVU record book where you can gain some historical insights.

Social Media WVU track and field is active on various social media platforms- Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Visit facebook.com/ WVUTrackField to like the Facebook page.

To follow the Mountaineers on Twitter visit, Twitter.com.WVUTrackField. To follow the team on Instagram, visit Instagram.com/ WVUTrackField.

MEDIAInformation

ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONSInformation The West Virginia University athletic communications office is located on the second floor of the Coliseum.

Senior Associate Athletic Director, Communications

MichaelFRAGALE

Ashley BAILEY

MAILING ADDRESS

BryanMESSERLY

Charlie HEALY

John ANTONIK

ShannonMcNAMARA Associate Director of Athletic Communications

Athletic Communications office West Virginia University P.O. Box 0877 Morgantown, WV 26507-0877

OVERNIGHT SHIPPING

WVU Athletic Communications 3450 Monongahela Blvd., Room 217 Morgantown, WV 26506

PHONE INFORMATION Office: 304-293-2821 Fax: 304-293-4105

TRACK and FIELD CONTACT Samantha STREJECK

Graduate Assistant Athletic Communications Email: sstrejec@mail.wvu.edu

86

T R ACK & FIEL D

Assistant Athletic Director, Communications Director of Digital Media Mike MONTORO

Director of Football Communications Joe SWAN

Director of Athletic Publications Kristin COLDSNOW

Multimedia Specialist Grant DOVEY

Digital Media Manager Russell LUNA

Associate Director of Athletic Communications

Assistant Director of Athletic Communications Assistant Director of Athletic Communications

Lisa AMMONS

Business Manager Cheryl WIRE

Operations Coordinator Amy PRUNTY

Program Assistant Maggie MATELLA

Graduate Assistant Digital Media Chris PHARIS

Graduate Assistant Athletic Communications

HERE, GOING FIRST IS IN OUR BLOOD. IT’S IN OUR SWEAT. AND IT’S IN OUR NATURE. SO WE WILL GO ABOVE. WE WILL GO BEYOND. AND WHEN EVERYONE ELSE GOES BACK, MOUNTAINEERS #GOFIRST.

LET’S GO.