ALLIANCE, Ohio - December 7, 2024 - Both Hiram indoor track & field programs opened their respective seasons on Saturday inside Peterson Field House as part of the Mount Union Toy Drive Collegiate Opener.

Day 1 of competition set the stage for what figures to be a season chock full of new accomplishments and record-setting performances.

Women's Recap

The 60-meter hurdles showcased two of the team's top returners, with Trezure Bates and Makyndree Smith posting times of 9.74 and 10.21 in prelims to qualify for the finals in the event. Bates stayed steady and placed third in the finals (9.84), while Smith – who holds the program record in the 60-meter hurdles (9.65) – wasn't too far behind with a fifth-place mark of 9.91.

In the 3,000-meter run, Elaine Guyette finished fifth in the field of eight with a time of 11:41.57. Shortly thereafter, Kylie Moser led the Terriers with a time of 5:50.54 in the one-mile run, which ranked fifth. Both of the long-distance events were composed entirely of PAC opponents.

Alisah Ward made her collegiate debut in the 400-meter dash, placing 11th (1:06.97). Frances Popik did the same and ranked third in the 500-meter dash (1:26.78), while Sophie Bystrom returned to the track and had a strong showing in the 800-meter run (3:09.00).

In the field events, Karalyn Rutkowski tied for second place in the high jump (4' 11¾"), nearly pulling off the victory in her first collegiate meet. In the triple jump, Kelsey Downs established the indoor school record with a mark of 26' 3" (8.00m).

Lillyan O'Bryant placed 24th in the weight throw (10.57m) and Sam Volpe beat her own program record with a ninth-place mark of 36' 5" in the shot put to round out a strong day for the women.

Men's Recap

It was a day for the record book on the men's side, with multiple student-athletes establishing program records in new events for the program, which is in its second season of competition since returning to Hiram.

Sebastian Regalado established the school record in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 9.49 in prelims before improving on that clip with a time of 9.37 in the finals. The freshman placed seventh out of the nine student-athletes who also qualified for the finals.

The same can be said for the 60-meter dash, which saw Nathan Feltner (7.20) and Kevin Dycks (7.24) enter their names onto the Hiram record list in their respective collegiate debuts. The duo narrowly topped their teammate, Tucker Marmash, who set the program record in the 2023-24 season (7.31).

In the 500-meter dash, Hiram featured all three student-athletes who participated in the race: DeAco Curry (1:10.50), Connor Green (1:20.86) and Maurice Wadesisi (1:22.93). Wrapping up the day in the track events was Kamran Walton (23.51) and Feltner (23.79) in the 200-meter dash, both of whom ranked in the top-20 among the 46 student-athletes in the event.

Christian Berish established the program record in the hammer throw (33' 5¾") and placed 13th in the shot put (41' 11½") to begin his second season on the right note. In the jumps, Job Gibson placed sixth in the high jump (5' 11½") and Marmash ranked seventh in the long jump (19' 0").

What's Next

Both teams won't return to competition until Saturday, Jan. 25 for the Spire Midwest Open in Painesville, OH.