Lady Raiders Seeking Their First PSAC Indoor Track Championship
Feb. 22, 2007
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - After finishing
the 2005-06 season ranked No. 14 overall and second in the East Region
behind Kutztown, head coach Dave Osanitch and the Lady Raider indoor track
and field squad are looking to do one better this weekend as they seek
to win the school's first PSAC Indoor Track and Field Championship.
At this year's PSAC Indoor Track and Field Championships, held inside
Koehler Field House on the campus of East Stroudsburg University, Shippensburg
will be propeled by a dominant freshman sprinter, a senior high-jumper and
several talented throwers, some of whom have already qualified for NCAA competition
at the conclusion of the season.
The Lady Raiders earned two second-place individual finishes last year, and
one of them was from senior Monica Speca (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Trinity),
as she
recorded
a high jump of 5-5. So far this season, Speca has already qualified
for the NCAA Championships after landing a career-best high jump of 5-6
that tied the Shippensburg record and at the time set the top mark in the
PSAC (her leap is now the second longest in the PSAC this season).
Shippensburg also has experience competing in this year's host venue, Koehler
Field House. Earlier this season, the Lady Raiders competed in the DeSchriver
Invitational in East Stroudsburg, where senior Megan Schweighofer
(Tyler Hill/Honesdale) recorded a first-place finish in the weight
throw with a toss of 50-4 3/4. This past weekend at the Susquehanna
Open,
Schweighofer recorded the best weight throw in the PSAC this season with
a throw of 53-9 that makes her as the top-qualifier for this
year's championships.
Talented freshman sprinter Mary Dell (Boiling Springs, Pa./Boiling
Springs) has recorded a slew of first-place finishes in her first seaosn for the Lady
Raiders, with two of those top finishes occurring recently at the PSAC East
Challenge. Dell won the 55-meter dash in a time of 7.50 seconds while also
taking first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.55 seconds, and she
will be looking to repeat such dominance this weekend. She will be joined
in the sprints by sophomore Siobhan Richards (York Haven, Pa./York
Haven),
whose fastest time in the 55-meter dash this season was 7.42 seconds, recorded
just three weeks ago at the DeSchriver Invitational.
In other events for Shippensburg, three sophomores will be vying for first
in the 55-meter hurdles. In addition to Richards, sophomores Michelle
Morcom (Moscow/Western Wayne) and Kristina Grussenmeyer
(Holland/Council Rock South) are peeking at the right time, as the duo will be looking to
improve upon their season-best times of 8.61 and 8.95 seconds respectively
at last weekend's Susquehanna Open.
Sophomore Ashleigh Helfrick (Greencastle/James Buchanan) will
also be joining Grussenmeyer for the indoor pentathlon, as both qualified
for the event after
strong showings at the Bison Open in Jan. Helfrick qualified sixth, while
Grussenmeyer qualified in ninth.
When the two-day competition begins Friday inside Koehler Field House, Shippensburg
will be looking to improve upon last year's fifth place finish (67.50 points).
In 2006, it was Kutztown that won its third consecutive women's indoor championship.
In 2007, it is the Lady Raiders who are hoping that they can put an end to
Kutztown's run and earn Shippensburg its first PSAC Championship.
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Lady Raider Track and Field -
