Women's Track and Field Claims MAC Indoor Championship Title

Complete Results

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)—Eastern Michigan University's women's track and field team ended the 2015 Mid-American Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in high spirits, claiming the program's fourth MAC Championship with 110.75 points. The last time the Eagles claimed the crown was in the 2010-11 season with a dominating 29-point win. Following Eastern in the standings were Akron (107.75), Kent State (90.75), Northern Illinois (79), Buffalo (50), Toledo (48), Western Michigan (45), Central Michigan (39.75), Bowling Green (35), Miami (26), Ball State (22), and Ohio (9).

"It was a hard fought win and I'm super proud of how hard the team battled until the end," remarked Head Coach Sue Parks. "Akron is a very tough team, and we knew that every point was going to count. We had some setbacks throughout the indoor season and during this meet, but we stayed positive and kept the focus on our goal of winning this championship. We're going to enjoy this win for a few days and then work on getting everyone completely healthy and ready for outdoors."

Eastern started off action with a bronze medal finish in the triple jump, as Dace Dreimane (Ventspils, Latvia-Ventspils Gymnasium No. 1) finished third in the event with a personal record of 12.55 meters/41 feet 2.25-inches. The mark is not only a liftetime-best improvement for Dreimane by five centimeters, but it also ties for fourth on EMU's all-time list with Tomeca Brown's mark from 1998.

In the high jump, Natalie Uy (Kettering, Ohio-Fairmont) tied for ninth with a jump of 1.63 meters/5 feet 4.25-inches. Sarah Chauchard (Montpellier, France-University of Montpellier) also cleared the same height, finishing 13^th overall, while Kristina Coyne (Pittsburg, Pa.-Chartiers Valley) tied for 14^th.

Another medalist immediately followed the triple jump with the mile run, as Victoria Voronko (Stavropol, Russia-School #42) claimed the runner-up spot in 4:51.68. Voronko was followed by Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium-University of Leuven) in 4:52.21 for third. The Eagles had a strong mile performance, with Natalie Cizmas (Clinton Twp., Mich.-Chippewa Valley) taking sixth in 4:56.72.

In the sprints finals, Aaliyah McKinney (South Bend, Ind.-John Adams) finished fourth in both the 60m and 200m dash. In the 60m, McKinney clocked in at 7.59 seconds, followed by Danielle Clark (Paramaribo, Suriname-Ewald P. Meyer Lyceum) in 7.70 for seventh and Jasmine Jones (Greensburg, Pa.-Hempfield Area) in 7.98 seconds for eighth. McKinney went on to notch a personal record in the 200m, crossing the line in 24.53 seconds while Jones took eighth once more in 25.22 seconds.

The Green and White had one representative in the 400m and 800m. In the 400m, Chante Roberts (Lansing, Mich.-Waverly) took eighth in 57.69 seconds, while Taylor Knoll (Warren, Mich.-Mott (Lansing CC)) ran a tight 800m race and came in fourth in 2:12.33. Knoll just missed out on a third-place finish by a slim margin, just .02 seconds behind the bronze medalist.

Going into the 3000m run, Eastern had another MAC champion crowned with Jordann McDermitt (Davison, Mich.-Davison) breaking the MAC meet record in 9:27.98. Voronko also scored for the Eagles, taking fourth in 9:38.13 while Gallein clocked in at 10:02.10.

Eastern desperately needed to get the better of Akron to secure the team victory in the 4x400m relay, and the lineup of McKinney, Roberts, Morgan Yeadon (Indianapolis, Ind.-Pike), and Agata Klimovich (Minsk, Belarus-Minsk School of Olympic Reserve) came up clutch when the team needed them. The quartet finished fifth overall in 3:50.53, but it was all they needed to win the MAC title as the relay team squeaked past Akron's lineup in .04 seconds.

The relay team was able to share its jubilation with the entire EMU team after coming out three points ahead of Akron for the final score, amassing 110.75 points throughout the two days' events.

At the close of the meet, the Eagles landed six individuals on the All-MAC First Team: Ellie Braidic (Pandora, Ohio-Pandora-Gilboa), Cizmas, Knoll, McDermitt, Voronko, and Yeadon. Additionally, Parks was named the MAC Coach of the Year for the second time during her tenure at EMU and the sixth time in her career, having won the award four times at Ball State. McDermitt was honored as the Most Outstanding Track Performer, and Kent State claimed both the Most Outstanding Field Performance and Most Valuable Performer with Danniel Thomas and Dior Delophont, respectively.

The Eagles will take time off as a team until the start of the outdoor season in Raleigh, N.C. when they will compete at Western Michigan, April 4. In the time between now and the start of the outdoor season, the Eagles will wait to see if any members of the Green and White qualify to the NCAA Indoor Championships, March 13-14 in Fayetteville, Ark.

EMU All-MAC First Team
Ellie Braidic
Natalie Cizmas
Taylor Knoll
Jordann McDermitt
Victoria Voronko
Morgan Yeadon

Coach of the Year: Sue Parks, EMU
Most Valuable Performer: Dior Delophont, Kent State
Most Outstanding Field Performance: Danniel Thomas, Kent State
Most Outstanding Track Performance: Jordann McDermitt, EMU

EMU Individual Results (* is a personal best, $ is a MAC record)

Triple Jump
3. Dreimane, Dace	12.55m/41-02.25
18. Coyne, Kristina	10.16m/33-04.00

Mile Run
2. Voronko, Victoria	4:51.68
3. Gallein, Sofie	4:52.21
6. Cizmas, Natalie	4:56.72

400m Dash Finals
8. Roberts, Chante	57.69

60m Dash Finals
4. McKinney, Aaliyah	7.59
7. Clark, Danielle	7.70
8. Jones, Jasmine	7.98

800m Run Finals
4. Knoll, Taylor	2:12.33

200m Run Finals
4. McKinney, Aaliyah	24.53*
8. Jones, Jasmine	25.22

3000m Run
1. McDermitt, Jordann	9:27.98$
4. Voronko, Victoria	9:38.13
14. Gallein, Sofie	10:02.10

High Jump
9. Uy, Natalie	1.63m/5-04.25
13. Chauchard, Sarah	1.63m/5-04.25
14. Coyne, Kristina	1.58m/5-02.25

4x400m Relay
5. McKinney, Yeadon, Klimovich, Roberts	3:50.53

Women's Track and Field Claims MAC Indoor Championship Title

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Players Mentioned

Ellie Braidic

Sarah Chauchard

Natalie Cizmas

Danielle Clark

Kristina Coyne

Dace Dreimane

Sofie Gallein

Jasmine Jones

Agata Klimovich

Taylor Knoll

Jordann McDermitt

Aaliyah McKinney

Chante Roberts

Natalie Uy

Victoria Voronko

Morgan Yeadon

Eastern Michigan Athletics