CHAMPS AT LAST: Women's Track & Field Wins First Indoor OAC Championship

3/5/2021 6:39:00 PM | By: Garrett Siegel, Staff Writer

WESTERVILLE, Ohio -- The John Carroll University Women's Indoor Track and Field team are the 2021 Indoor Ohio Athletic Conference Champions.

Friday, March 5, 2021 is a day the Blue Streaks will remember for a long time. And it's been a long time coming.

Exactly 678 days ago, JCU Track & Field made history by winning the 2019 OAC Outdoor Championships. A young squad, the Blue Streaks believed something special was brewing in University Heights.

At the 2020 OAC Indoor Championships, the Blue Streaks took second, but sent a large contingent of athletes to the national meet. Then, COVID-19 struck, canceling not only indoor nationals, but the 2020 outdoor season and later the 2021 NCAA Championships for indoor season.

Even still, the Blue Streaks toiled for a season like no other and for an OAC title meet like no other, held on one day instead of the typical two days. And now, the work has paid off.

"It makes everything we've gone through as a group and individually worth it," said Head Coach Kyle Basista. "We've all been affected by COVID, but they worked so hard to succeed amidst the adversity. I can't say enough about these student-athletes."

The team set three school records and won seven events on an unforgettable day for the Blue Streaks.

The meet began at 11 a.m. By 1 p.m., there were two new school records, achieved in the weight throw by Olivia Hurtt and the long jump by Maria DeLuca. Hurtt went into the finals in second place, needing a big PR to win the event. She delivered, setting a new school record twice in a row, with a final mark of 16.85m. Kelsey Dunn placed fifth in the weight throw, and Hurtt would follow her victory scoring in the shot put by placing sixth. DeLuca won the long jump with her new school record with a jump of 5.62m. She just passed Gen Kahn by one inch, who held the mark for 15 years.

"Olivia has been a rock for us," Basista said. "She's been crucial for us all throughout indoor season. She's special."

Courtney Phoennik had perhaps the best indoor performance in school history. She won two events – the triple jump and 500m – and placed third in the high jump and long jump. JCU swept the top four in the triple jump with DeLuca placing second, Genevieve Arnold getting third, and Tori Miller placing fourth. Elizabeth Clemente also had a solid contribution scoring sixth in the high jump and fourth in the high jump.

"I told Courtney, I don't know if I've had anyone do that many events in two days, let alone one day," Basista said. "I can't put that performance into words."

In the field events, Sydney Jenko set the tone with a win in the 5000m, and later placed fourth in the 3000m. Cameron Bujaucius and Morgan Kelley also placed second in third in the 3000m in a herculean effort, as they also ran in the 5000m.

Katy Fellenstein placed fourth in the 1000m, followed by Amanda Keim in sixth. Claire Eberhardt placed second in the 800m, and was a leg of the DMR and 4x400m.

The relays made a gigantic difference this afternoon. JCU placed second in the Distance Medley Relay and the 4x200m.

Lucia Cannata set an OAC record in the 60m dash prelims. She then went on to win the event setting a new PR and school record with a time of 7.65. She also won the 200m, while Taylor Anthony placed sixth. Anthony also placed second in the 60m dash, scoring very clutch points for the Blue Streaks. The duo placed fourth and fifth in the 5k.

John Carroll bested Mount Union, leading by six points going into the 3000m. Finishing with spots two through five, they took a 25-point lead going into the final event, clinching the victory with an end total of 216 points.

"That was the meet for us. We started off really well, but we knew Mount Union would come on strong in sprints and in the middle," Basista said. "I asked several runners to double back in the 5k. We've never had a one day [championship] meet like that before, and they made a herculean effort.

"This means a lot to this group. They are special. It places an exclamation point on this season. We're going to soak it up for now, and hopefully later carry that momentum into outdoor season."

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