Indoor Track Secures Eight Top-Five Finishes in Season Opener

The Canisius men's and women's indoor track teams opened the 2022 season at the Utica Winter Opener on Saturday. The Griffs posted eight top-five finishes, putting forth a stellar performance in their first meet of the year.

In the women's competition, Canisius recorded five top-three finishes in the 500, 800 and 1000-meter races, along with the one mile run and 4x400 relay. Leah Wardner was the first to cross the finish line in the 800-meter race with a time of 2:26.58, a new collegiate PR for the senior. Senior Bailey Pierce ran the 1000 in 3:22.67, which was good for second place.

In her indoor collegiate debut, sophomore Katie Gawronski placed third in the 500, crossing the finish line in 1:26.39. Fellow sophomore Maura Jordan took first in her heat with a time of 1:31.61, for sixth overall. The 4x400 team of Gawronski, Marissa Silba, Chloe Breen and Jules Jones claimed third in the relay, posting a time of 4:35.89.

Junior Sylvea Cleary and senior Libby Benzer made their mark in the Canisius record books with strong performances of their own. Cleary set a new school record in the 60-meter dash, finishing the event in 8.87 seconds. Benzer now ranks fourth all-time for Canisius in the women's mile. Her time of 5:11.49 was a new career-best and landed her a second place finish on the day.

In the men's competition, senior Turner Dirrigl led the way for the Golden Griffins, taking second place in the 1000-meter run. Dirrigl crossed the finish line in 2:35.60 for the Blue and Gold. Sophomore Ronan McDonald followed closely behind, with a time of 2:36.03, for a fourth-place finish in his indoor debut.

In the men's one mile run, junior Andrew Perreault and senior Michael Peppy set new personal-bests with times of 4:21.19 and 4:22.86, respectively, good for fifth and eighth place finishes.

Up Next
The Griffs will be back in action on Friday, Jan. 21, as they travel to Geneva, Ohio for the tenth annual SPIRE Midwest Track and Field Open.

For complete coverage of the Canisius men's and women's cross country and track program, be sure to follow @GriffsRun on Instagram and Twitter.

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Players Mentioned

Libby Benzer: 5' 11"; Senior

Sylvea Cleary: 5' 1"; Junior

Turner Dirrigl: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

Katie Gawronski: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Jules Jones: 5' 4"; Sophomore

Maura Jordan: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Ronan McDonald: 5' 9"; Sophomore

Michael Peppy: 5' 11"; Senior

Andrew Perreault: 6' 0"; Junior

Bailey Pierce: 5' 5"; Senior

Players Mentioned

Libby Benzer
: 5' 11"; Senior

Sylvea Cleary
: 5' 1"; Junior

Turner Dirrigl
: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

Katie Gawronski
: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Jules Jones
: 5' 4"; Sophomore

Maura Jordan
: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Ronan McDonald
: 5' 9"; Sophomore

Michael Peppy
: 5' 11"; Senior

Andrew Perreault
: 6' 0"; Junior

Bailey Pierce
: 5' 5"; Senior