Track and Field Set to Compete in Crosstown Penn Challenge

Saturday, March 23

Philadelphia, Pa.

Temple University

Penn Challenge

Track and Field Set to Compete in Crosstown Penn Challenge

3.22.19 | Women's Track and Field

Schedule

PHILADELPHIA – Coming off of a superb season-opener last weekend at the Charlotte 49er Classic, the Temple University track and field squad is back in action this Saturday, March 23 when they head across the city to compete at the Penn Challenge. The Owls will race at the historic Franklin Field for the first of two times this season, as they look to build off of their momentum from week one as the outdoor season progresses.

About the Penn Challenge
> The 2019 Penn Challenge will be hosted by the University of Pennsylvania, and will feature competitors from Army, Bucknell, Columbia, Georgetown, George Washington, LaSalle, Lehigh, Penn, Rider, St. John's, and Villanova.
> All of the action will take place at Franklin Field, home of the Penn Relays and the host stadium for Penn's football, track and field, and lacrosse teams.

Scouting the Owls
> Sophomore Julianne Foering will throw the javelin for the Owls following the men at 12 pm to kick off the Penn Challenge in the field. Also at noon, sophomores Candus Burks and Kayla Nesbitt-McEwen and freshman Jamie Drayton will compete in the long jump, followed by the triple jump. Nesbitt-McEwen will compete again in the high jump alongside sophomore Aisha Brown after the men compete at noon.
> Temple will put its first 4x100m relay on the track this season to get the running events started at 12:30 pm. Then, freshmen Keegan Simonsen and Shay Strawser and junior Millie Howard will compete in the 1500m at 1:05 pm. Strawser and Howard will both race for the first time on an outdoor track this year, and Howard will look to reset her 2018 record-breaking time of 4:18.73 in the event.
> Following the 1500m, Sydney Williams will compete in the 100m hurdles at 1:45 pm. The sophomore will race the short hurdles for the second straight week, looking to improve upon her season-opening time of 14.69.
> Sophomore Mallorie Smith and junior Madison Beecher are set to run the 400m dash at 2:05 pm. Following, freshman Marissa White will compete for the Owls in the 100m dash for the first time in her career at 2:25 pm.
> The 800m trio of Ashton Dunkley, McKenzie Gelvin and Howard will be back together for the first time this outdoor season at 2:50 pm. At 3:30 pm, Brown and Williams will compete in the long hurdles alongside sophomore Jaida Fenn, who will race the 400m hurdles for the first time in 2019.
> The sprint squad of Beecher, White and Smith will return in the 200m dash at 3:50 pm. Freshman Lexi Walsh will race in the 3000m at 4:15 pm, and the day will conclude with the 4x400m relay at 5 pm.

Last Time Out
> The Owls are coming off of a solid outdoor season-opener featuring four first-place finishes down south at the Charlotte 49er Classic. Multiple personal records were shattered by the Cherry and White as they displayed their talents to set the tone for the 2019 season.
> Building off of her incredible performance at the conference meet a few weeks ago, White was remarkable in the 400m for her first time on an outdoor track in Cherry and White. The freshman dominated the competition, winning the 81-person field by over seven tenths of a second and posting a huge PR of 54.62.
> Carrying this momentum into day two, Foering got the Saturday portion of the meet started with her 2019 debut in the javelin. The sophomore put on a solid season-opening performance, earning a mark of 39.12m (128-4) to finish eighth among 35 competitors.
> The Temple jumpers had an outstanding day in the field, competing on day two in the triple jump and the high jump. Nesbitt-McEwen destroyed her previous personal record in the triple jump, earning a mark of 12.23m (40-1.5) to reset her furthest distance and finish third overall in the 38-person field.
> Brown was phenomenal in the invitational section of the high jump, walking away as the only jumper to clear 1.73m on the day. The sophomore came hungry to defend her title from 2018 and emerged victorious, closing at the mark of 1.73m on her first attempt to take the high jump title.
> After getting on the podium in both the mile and the 800m at the AAC Indoor Championships a few weeks ago, Gottlieb hit the outdoor track for the first time this season with the same fighting mentality. The sophomore dominated the field of 89 runners, crossing the finish line in 2:08.51 to place first overall.
> White continued her momentum and ran a stellar 200m dash. The standout freshman showed out in her first-ever outdoor 200m with the Owls, running another massive PR of over half a second to place third with a time of 24.49. Beecher also had a solid showing in her first short sprint of the season, finishing the race in 25.21.
> The 4x400 relay squad of White, Beecher, Smith and Gottlieb ran a speedy 3:49.40 to get their first mark of the season, earning a fifth place finish in a challenging field.

On the Lookout
> Gottlieb was named both AAC Track Athlete of the Week and Under Armour/OwlSports.com Athlete of the Week after her standout performance at the Charlotte 49er Classic. Her 800m time of 2:08.51 currently ranks first in the AAC and pins her as the frontrunner in the East Region. Her time also puts her top-five in all of Division I, as she currently sits fourth overall and just two seconds behind the nation's fastest.
> White's 400m time of 54.62 is currently the 11th fastest time in the country, and the third fastest time run by any freshman this season. Her 400m mark is also first in the conference and fifth in the region, and her 200m is ninth in the AAC and 20th in the region.
> Brown's mark of 1.73m in the high jump currently pins hers at first in the AAC and tied for fifth in the region. Jones is another Owl sitting first in the conference, after posting a time of 10:45.89 in the steeplechase.