The 4x800 meter relay team of sophomore Siobhan Quinn, junior Carlin Sullivan and seniors Haley Keene and Cat Niederpruem highlighted the Canisius indoor track teams performance from the Upstate Challenge Saturday afternoon by setting a new school record in the event at 9:45.72.
“They took down a 19-year-old record with an outstanding team effort,” said head coach Nate Huckle. “Cat sacrificed her individual event so she could run the relay fresh, and Carlin came back 20 minutes after the 3,000 meter to anchor the team. Siobhan and Haley came back from the mile with strong legs, and everything came together in their effort.”
The Blue and Gold saw several other strong performances on the day, including the one mile event where senior Cooper Roach finished third on the men's side with a time of 4:16.05, while Quinn finished in the 10th position in the women's race at 5:10.30. Roach also ran well in the men's 4x800 finishing in first place at 7:57.73 alongside teammates (sophomore) Josh Sopchak, (freshman) Marcus Brown and (senior) Xavier Sauvageau.
Senior Jeff Antolos qualified for the IC4A Championship in the 3000 meter with a time of 8:30.78, while fellow senior Galen Snyder (8:54.44) and freshman Anthony Belfatto (9:08.71) also ran well in the event.
On the women's side, Sullivan placed fifth in the 3000 meter with a time of 10:19.98, while senior Anna Phillips placed twelfth at 10:40.25.
“We made great progress today,” Huckle noted. “Our results point to a strong showing at Youngstown in two weeks.
“We had several athletes set personal bests in the strong 3,000 meter fields. Jeff, Galen and Anthony all raced well, while Carlin and Anna each notched solid seed times for the MAAC Championships a month from now.”
The Griffs will now look ahead to the Youngstown Invite, which they will attend on Feb. 3 from Youngstown, OH.
