VU thrower Giorgia Fino breaks her own school record for the second weekend in a row

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Vincennes University freshman Giorgia Fino (Italy) set a new VU school record in the Javelin last weekend at the George Glass Invitational at Taylor University.

Fino then bounced back to break her own record Friday on day one of the Pacesetter Invitational at Indiana State University, placing second at the meet with a distance of 37.79 meters.

Fino helped guide the VU Women's Track team to a seventh-place finish as a team, scoring ahead of NCAA Division I programs like Indiana University and IUPUI.

Sophomore Chloe Knepp (Montgomery, Ind.) finished fourth in the women's 400 meter race, ending with a time of 1:00.89.

Knepp was also paired with sophomores Kaitlyn Koenig (Terre Haute, Ind.) and Kyra Young (South Bend, Ind.) and freshman Brittany Page (Bicknell, Ind.) to take fifth-place in the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 4:33.91.

Koenig would also go on to place eighth in the 3000 meter Steeplechase in her hometown, ending with a time of 13:00.57.

"It was another weekend of competing in cold, windy conditions, but these kids are competitors," VU Head Track and Field Coach Marty Rogier said. "I am proud of how they come to play, no matter what the conditions are. This is a fun group and we are rounding into shape. I believe we are going to see some very good performances as we get into the second half of the season."

"Giorgia reset her own school record and qualified for National," Rogier added. "She appears to be ready to throw much farther too. Chloe ran her best 400 of the year again, into a tough win and I really like where she will be in a couple of weeks."

"Kaitlyn had a new run and set a PR in the steeple. She has a shot at qualifying for Nationals with another drop in her time."

On the men's side, VU was led by freshman Mathew Keitany, who placed third in the 800 meter race, ending at 1:56.24.

Sophomore Manamanya Opiew (Indianapolis, Ind.) also placed in the points in the 800, finishing seventh at 1:58.51.

The two competed against each other on separate relay teams in the 4x400 relay, with Opiew teaming up with freshmen Collin Sutton (New Albany, Ind.) and Jalen Bowman (Evansville, Ind.) as well as fellow sophomore Trenton Faulkner (Vincennes, Ind.) to take fourth place at 3:24.04.

Keitany's team of freshman Yamar Lyons (Kalamazoo, Mich.), sophomore Damien Ross (East St. Louis, Ill.) and freshman Ernest Momodu (Indianapolis, Ind.) placed sixth, ending with a time of 3:37.67.

Bowman would also go on to place third in the 100 meter sprint at 10.76 seconds and eighth in the 200 meter race at 22.15 seconds.

In the field events, sophomore Kyle Stewart (Evansville, Ind.) placed fourth in the Long Jump with a distance of 6.91 meters.

Sophomore Matthew Frazier (Franklin, Ind.) placed fifth in the Pole Vault at 3.92 meters.

Freshman David Beadle (Jamaica) placed seventh in the discus throw with a distance of 41.43 meters and sophomore Jaylen Rush (Palos Heights, Ill.) rounded out the VU scoring with a seventh-place finish in the Javelin at 27.87 meters.

"The guys had some good energy throws on Friday, even as it was sleeting during the competition," Rogier said. "Mason and David both PR'd in the hammer. It is really fun when the big guys get fired up and start slinging the ball and chain."

"I like Trey's effort in the steeple and think he can drop that time a lot in the coming meets," Rogier added. "Kyle is really getting close to hitting a big jump. I think we are going to see it soon. There are a lot of moving part in the Long Jump and he is putting it together."

"Manny and Mathew, as always, provided some energy and ran very strong races in the 800. I'm not sure how low they may go. They are both so talented. Collin Sutton just keeps improving every week and I believe can become a very versatile sprinter for us."

"This week Jalen Bowman earned the coveted 'Trailblazer Willie' award. Jalen had a wind legal 10.76 and 22.15, both very fast for those conditions. I think he is just one hot day away from doing something special."

"Jalen also had a quick turnaround and ran the first leg of the 4x400 and his split was 49 seconds. I really apricated his effort and willingness to step up for the team."

"The 4x400 was a great ending to the day as we ran two teams. Our 'A' team ran a very respectable 3:24, with Collin, Manny and Trenton adding some very quick splits. I believe that's a team that we can take to Nationals. Our 'B' team also gave a nice effort with Yamar, Ernest, Damien and Matthew all passing the stick well."

The VU Track and Field teams will look to carry this momentum into their next meet when VU travels to Owensboro, Ky. to take part in the Brescia Bearcat Twilight Invitational, Friday, April 15.

TEAM RESULTS

WOMEN'S RESULTS

Indiana State – 215.5

Eastern Illinois – 123

Lewis – 94

Grand Valley State – 85

Dayton – 63.5

Rose-Hulman – 25

VINCENNES – 19

Indiana – 18

Huntington – 15

IUPUI – 12

Northwood – 10

MEN'S RESULTS

Indiana State – 256.5

Eastern Illinois – 127

Grand Valley State – 94.5

Rose-Hulman – 47

Lewis – 43

VINCENNES – 34

Northwood – 28

Dayton – 22

Huntington- 22

Triton College – 3

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

WOMEN'S RESULTS

400m

Chloe Knepp – 4 (1:00.89)

3000m Steeplechase

Kaitlyn Koenig – 8 (13:00.57)

4x400 Relay

(Knepp, Koenig, Page, Young) – 5 (4:33.91)

Javelin

Giorgia Fino – 2 (37.79m)

MEN'S RESULTS

100m

Jalen Bowman – 2 (10.76)

200m

Jalen Bowman – 8 (22.15)

800m

Mathew Keitany – 3 (1:56.24)

Manamanya Opiew – 7 (1:58.51)

4x400 Relay

(Sutton, Bowman, Faulkner, Opiew) – 4 (3:24.04)

(Lyons, Momodu, Ross, Keitany) – 6 (3:37.67)

Pole Vault

Matthew Frazier – 5 (3.92m)

Long Jump

Kyle Stewart – 4 (6.91m)

Discus

David Beadle – 7 (41.43m)

Javelin

Jaylen Rush – 7 (27.87m)