Indoor Track Finishes Strong at RIT Invitational and Valentine Invitational

The Canisius men's and women's indoor track teams competed Friday in the RIT Invitational, while select runners visited Boston University Friday and Saturday for the David Hemery Valentine Invitational.

At RIT, the Golden Griffins posted several top-ten finishes to close out the indoor portion of the regular season. In the women's competition, sophomore Katie Gawronski won the 1000-meter run with a time of 3:16.52. Senior Bailey Pierce was the runner-up in the 1000, crossing the finish line in 3:17.46. Junior Brynne Ketchum clocked a time of 3:34.68 in the event to finish in eighth overall.

In the women's one-mile run, freshmen Taylor Heschke and Elizabeth Conforti finished with times of 5:36.08 and 5:39.63, respectively, good for seventh and 10th place finishes.

Sophomore Maura Jordan established a school record in the 60-meter dash, posting a time of 8.55 seconds.

The Canisius 'A' team of Gawronski, Jordan, Leah Wardner, Pierce and Heather Bugenhagen shined in the 4x400 relay, clocking in at 4:29.16 to finish in second overall.

In the men's competition, fifth-year Turner Dirrigl placed first in the men's 1000 with a time of 2:37.96 and fourth in the one-mile run, finishing in 4:27.15. Sophomore Pat Garland crossed the finish line in 2:41.61 in the 1000 for the Blue and Gold, while fellow sophomore Kevin Board finished less than a second behind, with a time of 2:41.71, for a fifth-place finish. Freshman Jacob Raichel ran the 1000-meter in 2:46.65 to earn a ninth-place finish.

Senior Richard Moore had a strong outing, securing second place in the 800-meter with a time of 2:02.05. Sophomore Collin Rice completed the 800 in 2:04.14 to finish in eighth.

At Boston University, senior Libby Benzer nearly set a new school record in the women's one-mile run. Benzer crossed the finish line in 5:06.14, which was one-tenth of a second shy of the current program record. The Orchard Park, N.Y., native now ranks second all-time for Canisius in the event.

Juniors Marissa Silba, Tom Appenheimer and Andrew Perreault all set PRs in Boston. Silba ran the women's 3000-meter in 10:27.93, while Appenheimer finished in 14:32.63 in the men's 5000 to secure third all-time in the Canisius record book. Perreault made his mark on the record book as well, posting a time of 4:10.33 in the one-mile run to rank second all-time for the Golden Griffins in the men's mile.

Senior Michael Peppy also ran a PR in the 5000-meter, clocking in at 14:34.10 to secure fourth all-time for Canisius in the event.

The Golden Griffins will prepare this week for the 2022 MAAC Indoor Track and Field Championships, which will be held Feb. 19-20 at the New Balance Track & Field Center at The Armory in New York City.

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

Kevin Board: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Heather Bugenhagen: 5' 4"; Junior

Turner Dirrigl: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

Pat Garland: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Katie Gawronski: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Maura Jordan: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Brynne Ketchum: 5' 5"; Junior

Richard Moore: 5' 11"; Senior

Michael Peppy: 5' 11"; Senior

Players Mentioned

Libby Benzer
: 5' 11"; Senior

Kevin Board
: 6' 0"; Sophomore

Heather Bugenhagen
: 5' 4"; Junior

Turner Dirrigl
: 5' 11"; Graduate Student

Pat Garland
: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Katie Gawronski
: 5' 6"; Sophomore

Maura Jordan
: 5' 8"; Sophomore

Brynne Ketchum
: 5' 5"; Junior

Richard Moore
: 5' 11"; Senior

Michael Peppy
: 5' 11"; Senior