Eastern Michigan Athletics

Photo by: EMU Athletics/Chloe Smith
Gallein and Voronko Prove to be Dynamic Steeplechase Duo at Hillsdale Gina Relays
4/25/2015 12:26:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
Pair posts the 10th and 11th fastest times in the nation
Complete Results
Photo Gallery
HILLSDALE, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)—Eastern Michigan University's women's track and field team took advantage of an in-state meet at the Hillsdale Gina Relays, April 24, amassing six wins and an additional five runner-up finishes.
Friday's action featured a historic running of the 3000m steeplechase for the Green and White, as the pair of Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium-University of Leuven) and Victoria Voronko (Stavropol, Russia-School #42) . Prior to the meet, Voronko had been the dominant leader in Eastern's steeplechase records, holding the program standard by more than 30 seconds. With the addition of Gallein, the Eagles now have a dynamic duo in the event that shattered the Hillsdale Gina meet record by more than 10 seconds. Voronko and Gallein kept pace with each other with considerable distance ahead of the field before Gallein pulled ahead in the final 100 meters to secure the victory in 10:05.52, just .11 seconds ahead of Voronko and less than a second off her record of 10:04.89 to notch the second-fastest mark is Eastern history. Gallein and Voronko have put themselves in great position for the NCAA East Regional, as they are the fifth and sixth-best times in the region as well as the 10th and 11th-fastest marks nationally.
Also winning on the track were Taylor Knoll (Warren, Mich.-Mott (Lansing CC)), Maya Carter (Racine, Wis.-Case), Aaliyah McKinney (South Bend, Ind.-John Adams), and Sarah Chauchard (Montpellier, France-University of Montpellier). Knoll had a clear victory in the 800m run, winning by nearly four seconds in 2:09.93. The Eagles had six competitors in the event, and Natalie Cizmas (Clinton Twp., Mich.-Chippewa Valley) garnered the only other top-10 finish after crossing the line in 2:16.34 for ninth.
Carter made a considerable improvement in the 400m hurdles, edging closer to breaking the one-minute barrier with each race. The Racine, Wis. native clocked in at 1:01.49, pulling Dayna Hurd (Carson, Calif.-Carson) through for second place in 1:03.44.
Appearing in her usual combination of the 100m and 200m, McKinney split a race apiece with Western Ontario's Joy Spear Chief-Morris. McKinney was just four-hundredths of a second off the winning time in the 100m, clocking in at 11.92 seconds, but she later got the upper hand in the 200m in 24.40 seconds to edge out Spear Chief-Morris by .02 seconds. Freshman Jasmine Jones (Greensburg, Pa.-Hempfield Area) also doubled up in the two events, placing fifth in both in 12.40 seconds in the 100m and 25.05 seconds in the 200m. Splitting the time between McKinney and Jones in the 200m was Danielle Clark (Paramaribo, Suriname-Ewald P. Meyer Lyceum), who finished in 24.80 seconds for third and also set a personal record of 57.06 seconds in the 400m dash to finish second while Iesha Hardiman (Santa Clara, Calif.-Adrian Wilcox) took third in 57.44 seconds.
Chauchard picked up the final victory on the track, winning the 100m hurdles in 14.57 seconds. The event was dominated by Eastern athletes as all five competitors finished in the top-10, including Tifani Byrd (Toms River, N.J.-Toms River North) in 14.78 seconds for third and Dace Dreimane (Ventspils, Latvia-Ventspils Gymnasim No. 1) in 15.03 seconds for fourth. Dreimane also represented the Eagles in the finals of the long jump, placing fifth with a leap of 5.53 meters/18 feet 1.75-inches.
The Green and White saw one more victor for the weekend, with Helga Volgyi (Szombathely, Hungary-Savaria Technical College) winning the hammer throw by nearly 17 feet. Volgyi threw just one inch off her collegiate best with a mark of 57.86 meters/189 feet 10-inches. Also competing in the finals of the hammer throw was Adrienne Waisner (Napoleon, Ohio-Napoleon) and Megan Pendleton (Lindsey, Ohio-Woodmoore). Waisner notched a career record, taking fifth with a throw of 50.62 meters/166 feet 1-inch, which is almost a seven-foot improvement on her previous mark, while Pendleton placed ninth at 47.13 meters/154 feet 7-inches.
Eastern saw a runner-up finish from Ellie Braidic (Pandora, Ohio-Pandora-Gilboa) in her outdoor season debut in the pole vault. Braidic vaulted just two centimeters off her outdoor personal record, placing second with a clearance of 3.98 meters/13 feet 0.75-inches. Natalie Uy (Kettering, Ohio-Fairmont) took fourth at 3.88 meters/12 feet 8.75-inches, while Janina Pollatz (Grandview, Mich.-Grand Rapids Christian) placed eighth with a mark of 3.78 meters/12 feet 4.75-inches. Uy also saw action in the high jump, as she and Kristina Coyne (Pittsburgh, Pa.-Chartiers Valley) both tied for eighth after clearing 1.58 meters/5 feet 2.25-inches.
Capping off the night was the 10,000m run, in which Lauren Pottschmidt (Granger, Ind.-Penn) and Megan Hubbard (Hanover, Mich. -Horton) competed. Pottschmidt paced the pair in 37:45.28 to take eighth, while Hubbard set a career record in 39:03.51 to finish 11th.
The Eagles will head south to the Buckeye State next weekend for another competitive weekend, this time taking on the field at the Jesse Owens Track Classic hosted by the Ohio State University. The meet will be held Friday and Saturday, May 1-2 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
EMU Individual Results (* signifies a personal best; ^ is a MAC qualifying mark)
Photo Gallery
HILLSDALE, Mich. (EMUEagles.com)—Eastern Michigan University's women's track and field team took advantage of an in-state meet at the Hillsdale Gina Relays, April 24, amassing six wins and an additional five runner-up finishes.
Friday's action featured a historic running of the 3000m steeplechase for the Green and White, as the pair of Sofie Gallein (Gits, Belgium-University of Leuven) and Victoria Voronko (Stavropol, Russia-School #42) . Prior to the meet, Voronko had been the dominant leader in Eastern's steeplechase records, holding the program standard by more than 30 seconds. With the addition of Gallein, the Eagles now have a dynamic duo in the event that shattered the Hillsdale Gina meet record by more than 10 seconds. Voronko and Gallein kept pace with each other with considerable distance ahead of the field before Gallein pulled ahead in the final 100 meters to secure the victory in 10:05.52, just .11 seconds ahead of Voronko and less than a second off her record of 10:04.89 to notch the second-fastest mark is Eastern history. Gallein and Voronko have put themselves in great position for the NCAA East Regional, as they are the fifth and sixth-best times in the region as well as the 10th and 11th-fastest marks nationally.
Also winning on the track were Taylor Knoll (Warren, Mich.-Mott (Lansing CC)), Maya Carter (Racine, Wis.-Case), Aaliyah McKinney (South Bend, Ind.-John Adams), and Sarah Chauchard (Montpellier, France-University of Montpellier). Knoll had a clear victory in the 800m run, winning by nearly four seconds in 2:09.93. The Eagles had six competitors in the event, and Natalie Cizmas (Clinton Twp., Mich.-Chippewa Valley) garnered the only other top-10 finish after crossing the line in 2:16.34 for ninth.
Carter made a considerable improvement in the 400m hurdles, edging closer to breaking the one-minute barrier with each race. The Racine, Wis. native clocked in at 1:01.49, pulling Dayna Hurd (Carson, Calif.-Carson) through for second place in 1:03.44.
Appearing in her usual combination of the 100m and 200m, McKinney split a race apiece with Western Ontario's Joy Spear Chief-Morris. McKinney was just four-hundredths of a second off the winning time in the 100m, clocking in at 11.92 seconds, but she later got the upper hand in the 200m in 24.40 seconds to edge out Spear Chief-Morris by .02 seconds. Freshman Jasmine Jones (Greensburg, Pa.-Hempfield Area) also doubled up in the two events, placing fifth in both in 12.40 seconds in the 100m and 25.05 seconds in the 200m. Splitting the time between McKinney and Jones in the 200m was Danielle Clark (Paramaribo, Suriname-Ewald P. Meyer Lyceum), who finished in 24.80 seconds for third and also set a personal record of 57.06 seconds in the 400m dash to finish second while Iesha Hardiman (Santa Clara, Calif.-Adrian Wilcox) took third in 57.44 seconds.
Chauchard picked up the final victory on the track, winning the 100m hurdles in 14.57 seconds. The event was dominated by Eastern athletes as all five competitors finished in the top-10, including Tifani Byrd (Toms River, N.J.-Toms River North) in 14.78 seconds for third and Dace Dreimane (Ventspils, Latvia-Ventspils Gymnasim No. 1) in 15.03 seconds for fourth. Dreimane also represented the Eagles in the finals of the long jump, placing fifth with a leap of 5.53 meters/18 feet 1.75-inches.
The Green and White saw one more victor for the weekend, with Helga Volgyi (Szombathely, Hungary-Savaria Technical College) winning the hammer throw by nearly 17 feet. Volgyi threw just one inch off her collegiate best with a mark of 57.86 meters/189 feet 10-inches. Also competing in the finals of the hammer throw was Adrienne Waisner (Napoleon, Ohio-Napoleon) and Megan Pendleton (Lindsey, Ohio-Woodmoore). Waisner notched a career record, taking fifth with a throw of 50.62 meters/166 feet 1-inch, which is almost a seven-foot improvement on her previous mark, while Pendleton placed ninth at 47.13 meters/154 feet 7-inches.
Eastern saw a runner-up finish from Ellie Braidic (Pandora, Ohio-Pandora-Gilboa) in her outdoor season debut in the pole vault. Braidic vaulted just two centimeters off her outdoor personal record, placing second with a clearance of 3.98 meters/13 feet 0.75-inches. Natalie Uy (Kettering, Ohio-Fairmont) took fourth at 3.88 meters/12 feet 8.75-inches, while Janina Pollatz (Grandview, Mich.-Grand Rapids Christian) placed eighth with a mark of 3.78 meters/12 feet 4.75-inches. Uy also saw action in the high jump, as she and Kristina Coyne (Pittsburgh, Pa.-Chartiers Valley) both tied for eighth after clearing 1.58 meters/5 feet 2.25-inches.
Capping off the night was the 10,000m run, in which Lauren Pottschmidt (Granger, Ind.-Penn) and Megan Hubbard (Hanover, Mich. -Horton) competed. Pottschmidt paced the pair in 37:45.28 to take eighth, while Hubbard set a career record in 39:03.51 to finish 11th.
The Eagles will head south to the Buckeye State next weekend for another competitive weekend, this time taking on the field at the Jesse Owens Track Classic hosted by the Ohio State University. The meet will be held Friday and Saturday, May 1-2 at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio.
EMU Individual Results (* signifies a personal best; ^ is a MAC qualifying mark)
Long Jump | |
5. Dreimane, Dace | 5.53m/18-01.75 |
11. Wolanin, Kate | 5.32m/17-05.50 |
13. Pollatz, Janina | 5.19m/17-00.50 |
16. Coyne, Kristina | 5.07m/16-07.75* |
17. Uy, Natalie | 5.04m/16-06.50* |
26. Threatt, Tericka | 4.81m/15-09.50* |
Hammer Throw | |
1. Volgyi, Helga | 57.86m/189-10^ |
5. Waisner, Adrienne | 50.62m/166-01* |
9. Pendleton, Megan | 47.13m/154-07 |
17. Briggs, Reagan | 43.18m/141-08 |
High Jump | |
8. Coyne, Kristina | 1.58m/5-02.25* |
8. Uy, Natalie | 1.58m/5-02.25 |
100m Hurdles | |
1. Chauchard, Sarah | 14.57 |
3. Byrd, Tifani | 14.78 |
4. Dreimane, Dace | 15.03* |
8. Carter, Maya | 15.60 |
9. Wolanin, Kate | 15.68 |
400m Dash | |
2. Clark, Danielle | 57.06* |
3. Hardiman, Iesha | 57.44 |
5. Yeadon, Morgan | 58.14 |
7. Branham, Rebekah | 59.00* |
100m Dash | |
2. McKinney, Aaliyah | 11.92 |
5. Jones, Jasmine | 12.40 |
800m Run | |
1. Knoll, Taylor | 2:09.93^ |
9. Cizmas, Natalie | 2:16.34 |
13. Quaintance, Rebecca | 2:17.32 |
15. Mesa, Claire | 2:18.60* |
17. Klimovich, Agata | 2:18.87 |
19. Bentzley, Danielle | 2:19.20* |
400m Hurdles | |
1. Carter, Maya | 1:01.49*^ |
2. Hurd, Dayna | 1:03.44 |
5. Quaintance, Rebecca | 1:06.55* |
200m Dash | |
1. McKinney, Aaliyah | 24.40^ |
3. Clark, Danielle | 24.80 |
5. Jones, Jasmine | 25.05* |
17. Hardiman, Iesha | 26.08 |
21. Wolanin, Kate | 26.28 |
25. Branham, Rebekah | 26.68* |
Pole Vault | |
2. Braidic, Ellie | 3.98m/13-00.75^ |
4. Uy, Natalie | 3.88m/12-08.75^ |
8. Pollatz, Janina | 3.78m/12-04.75^ |
3000m Steeplechase | |
1. Gallein, Sofie | 10:05.52*^ |
2. Voronko, Victoria | 10:05.63^ |
10,000m Run | |
8. Pottschmidt, Lauren | 37:45.28* |
11. Hubbard, Megan | 39:03.51* |
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