The Milwaukee women’s track and field team had a successful outing during the second day of the Duke and Marquette Invitationals. Highlighting the Duke Invitational, Cailin Kinas set a new program record in the 3000m steeplechase, clocking in at 10:49.51 and surpassing her previous record of 10:56.40. Her performance earned her a tenth-place finish.
Head coach Andrew Basler expressed his excitement, stating, “It was really awesome to Cailin run a great race and break her school record by nearly seven seconds.”
The team also saw commendable performances in the heptathlon. Anna Szepieniec accumulated 5,052 points, placing her second in the school’s all-time rankings and earning fifth place in the “A” group. Kallie Volk won the “B” group with 4,941 points, putting her fourth in the school’s history. Volk’s achievements in the long jump and javelin, along with a strong finish in the 800m, secured her win. Basler added, “Our multis had some highlights battling through adverse conditions on day two.”
Other notable performances at Duke included Anelise Egge’s mile run, where she placed 33rd with a time of 4:30.53, Olivia VanZeeland’s sixth-place finish in the high jump, and the participation of Katie Burns and Victoria Evtimov in the 100m dash. The final day of the event is scheduled to start Saturday with field and track events in the morning.
At the Marquette Invitational, the Milwaukee team claimed victory in four events. The 4×100 relay team consisting of Isabel Roloff, Angelica Refinski, Lilly Wepking, and Kalea Weyenberg secured the top position with a time of 47.28. Roloff and Refinski also excelled in the 100m dash, finishing first and second respectively.
Continuing their success, Weyenberg and Refinski led in the 200m with Weyenberg taking the win. “A lot of positive things happened today at the Marquette Invite,” Basler commented.
Rachel Helm and Ally Schmitz recorded competitive times in the 800m run, while Brooke Crosby finished second in the 100m hurdles. Basler was pleased with the results, saying, “Rachel and Ally both ran very solid races in the 800m run. I was excited to see Brooke in the 14’s in the 100m hurdles.”
Hailey Soriaga matched her career best in the pole vault, achieving second place with a 3.66m clearance.
