Anderson Takes Seventh in HCAC Indoor Championships

The Anderson University women's track and field team took seventh place with a team score of 34 points during the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference (HCAC) Indoor Championships on Saturday in Terre Haute.

"We are over the moon with excitement about the opportunity to compete again in the Orange and Black," Coach Sol Stephens said. "It's been a long tediously trying year of ups and downs but with the appropriate sacrifices, the women made the most of their opportunities. I couldn't be more proud of my ladies. The excitement, the support, the focus...were all there [on Saturday]. The senior ladies, Emily Smatlak and Victoria Baver, are doing a great job of leading by the examples of what the expectations are. We have work to do to show the needed improvements for outdoor but I am 100% sure they're up for the challenge."

Anderson fielded a 4,000-meter distance medley relay of Emilie Penick (Brookville, Ohio/Brookville), Olivia Moss (Greenfield, Ind./Greenfield-Central), Callie Guthrie (Beavercreek, Ohio/Beavercreek) and Noelle Loller (Lapel, Ind./Lapel), which secured second with a time of 14 minutes, 3.27 seconds to earn all-HCAC recognition.

"The DMR race performance was quietly expected," Stephens said. "We knew we had the legs but the unknown of Moss and Guthrie in middle had me on edge but they did their jobs, especially Guthrie who until now didn't run track."

Loller captured second in the 1-mile run with a personal-record (PR) time of 5:32.67 to earn all-conference honors. The Sophomore from Lapel was edged for the conference title by 0.21 seconds. Loller also secured seventh in the 800 with a PR time of 2:34.69.

"Overall I am really proud of how my races went," Loller said. "The mile was super exciting finishing in a close second! There's a lot of work to still be done but I'm just grateful for the opportunity to be competing again. I am so proud of how everyone competed. We are starting to put the pieces together and I'm excited to see where this season goes for all of us."

"Noelle ran very well," Stephens said. "To walk away with 2 all HCAC awards is a humbling accomplishment. She's been training to prepare for this moment to set up our big race in March and her times and effort reflect that she's on pace to do something special for herself and the team moving into outdoor."

Anderson put together a 4x200 relay of Victoria Baver (Garrett, Ind./Garrett), Emily Smatlak (Lynnwood, Wash./Lynnwood), Krista Franklin (McCordsville, Ind./Mount Vernon) and Kayla Saunders (Louisville, Ky./Presentation Academy), which claimed fourth (2:00.28). The Ravens then fielded a 4x400 team of Smatlak, Penick, Franklin and Moss, which locked up seventh (4:45.91).

"Though my splits weren't quite what I was hoping for, I am proud of the effort I gave [on Saturday," Smatlak said. "We ran the 4x400 for the first time this year and now we have a time to work with for outdoor season. I'm really proud of the effort of our team. Some of the girls had three or four events and they worked hard, kept a positive mindset, and encouraged others during their races. I'm very excited to see what we can do in outdoor season!"

Baver earned a fourth-place finish in the high jump, clearing the bar at 1.38 meters (4 feet, 6.25 inches). The senior Garrett put together a leap of 4.60 meters (15 feet, 1.25 inches) in the long jump. Baver also sprinted to a 200 time of 30.75 seconds.

"Our team showed up despite all the obstacles and had multiple girls with top finishes," Baver said. "Our DMR girls finished 2nd and our 4x200 relay finished fourth. I finished fourth in the high jump and Noelle Loller ran an amazing mile for a second-place finish. Some other girls showed up by making finals in their events. Overall our girls team continues to be small but mighty. I'm really looking forward to outdoor as we continue to work hard as a group."

Abigail Lynn (Springfield, Ohio/Emmanuel Christian Academy) contributed a PR toss of 10.81 meters (35 feet, 5.75 inches) in the weight throw. The freshman from Springfield, Ohio also recorded a throw of 9.13 meters (29 feet, 11.5 inches) in the shot put.

Haley Morvilius (Selma, Ind./Wapahani) captured seventh in the shot put with a distance of 9.90 meters (32 feet, 5.75 inches). The freshman from Selma provided a toss of 8.88 meters (29 feet, 1.75 inches) in the weight throw.

"I let my nerves get the best of me in weight, but I recovered well with placing seventh in shot," Morvilius said. "I'm happy with my performance in shot, but there is still work that needs to be done. Overall, I feel that our team put in a great amount of effort and you could tell that we left it all out there. I'm very excited to see what we can accomplish during outdoor season."

"The throwing sisters of Lynn and Morvilius competed well once they got over the nerves of the meet," Stephens said.

Franklin charged to a sixth-place tie in the 60-meter dash prelims with a PR time of 8.61 seconds. The junior from McCordsville placed seventh (8.72) in the 60-meter dash finals.

"The unexpected points of Morvilius in the shot and Franklin in the 60 with a PR were a pleasant surprise," Stephens said.

Guthrie dropped 21.04 seconds in the 3,000, clocking a PR time of 12:59.95.

"To have Callie run the DMR and then drop 20 seconds in the 3,000 is massive," Stephens said. "It's not reflective in scoring but we see the effort daily in practice so the fruits of her labor will produce."

Penick posted a PR time of 2:37.78 in the 800.

"Running at Conference was an amazing experience! I achieved some goals for myself and I couldn't be happier," Penick said. "That being said there is always room to grow and more goals to achieve!"

Kayla Saunders (Louisville, Ky./Presentation Academy) raced to a PR time of 30.46 seconds in the 200.

Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology captured the HCAC title with a team score of 189 points. Manchester University came in second with 137 points, finishing ahead of Hanover College (100), Bluffton University (47.5), Earlham College (47), Franklin College (46.5), Anderson (34), Transylvania University (31), Defiance College (12) and Mount St. Joseph University (3), which rounded out the HCAC standings.

The Ravens return to action in the outdoor season as they compete in the Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open on March 27 at 10:30 a.m. in Cedarville, Ohio.