DMR Record Falls; Von Ehren Resets 3K Record on Day One of Penn Relays

Thursday, April 25

Philadelphia, Pa.

Temple University

Penn Relays (Thursday)

DMR Record Falls; Von Ehren Resets 3K Record on Day One of Penn Relays

4.25.19 | Women's Track and Field

PHILADELPHIA – The Owls exceeded expectations on day one of the 125th Penn Relays, putting two new school records in the books and running multiple season-best times. The squad represented the Cherry and White well in front of 24,463 fans at the historic Franklin Field, preparing to carry their momentum into a second day of competition tomorrow.

Meet Highlights
> Temple got day one of the Relays started with Sydney Williams in the college women's 400m hurdles championship. The sophomore added to her slew of steady performances on the season, clocking in at 1:04.43 in a field of fierce competitors.
> After a seven-hour hiatus from racing, the Owls laced up their spikes at 5:30 pm to compete in their first relay event of the day. For the first time, the squad raced in the College Women's Distance Medley Championship of America Invitational, and they did so in good fashion. The quartet of Helene Gottlieb (1200m, 3:28.19), Mallorie Smith (400m, 54.79), McKenzie Gelvin (800m, 2:14.98) and Millie Howard (1600m, 4:52.76) shattered the DMR program record by four seconds, resetting it to 11:30.70 while they raced among some of the nation's fastest.
> On a quick turnaround, Temple was back on the track just 15 minutes later to race a familiar event in the 4x4. While the event may be common for the Owls, the squad of Smith, Williams, Aisha Brown and Madison Beecher ran together for the first time this season. The foursome showed out in the event, running the fastest time for any Temple 4x4 this season at 3:48.60.
> Following the Owls pair of relay events, Lucy Jones hit the track to compete individually in the 3000m steeplechase. The sophomore ran a phenomenal race to put herself on pace to continue knock off time, but faced adversity coming around the final bend. Regardless, Jones ran had a stellar performance to clock in at 10:37.90, just over one second off of her own program-record.
> After the steeplechase, Kira Von Ehren raced in a nontraditional outdoor 3000m under the lights at Franklin Field. Despite not quite matching her personal record on the indoor track from earlier this year, the junior shined in the event, resetting the outdoor program record to 9:52.31 to finish 11th overall.
> To conclude the day-one action for the Temple track and field team, sophomore Michelle Joyce and senior Katie Leisher competed in a late-night 5K. Leisher finished first out of the pair, clocking in at 17:07.99. Joyce trailed near behind her teammate, finishing the 5K in 17:15.73 for a new personal best time.

From the Coach
> "We got the Penn Relays started with Sydney Williams in the long hurdles," said head coach Elvis Forde. "Unfortunately, she got a lane draw that was on the nontraditional part of the track, which I think caused her some problems. Nevertheless, I thought she competed very well considering the circumstances.
> "Later in the day, the DMR established a new school record despite not being at our full strength. We had to juggle some people around, and although we ran well, we know we could be much better with all of the pieces together. Helene led off with an extremely strong 1200m, followed by Mallorie with a really strong showing in the 400m. Those two really put us in the race, and I was very pleased with how they competed. But to still break a school record despite being shorthanded, we have to be impressed and excited about what they will do the rest of the season.
> "I was also very pleased with how our 4x4 relay performed. Today's efforts were a good reflection of how our program is advancing, and I think that is very important. We had Sydney lead off with a solid leg, followed by Mallorie who gave us another outstanding leg less than 30 minutes after running in the DMR, which is difficult to do. Then, Aisha ran her heart out and really ran a great leg to keep her team in it. Even missing Marissa in the relay, we had a season-best performance in the event, which shows how competitive this group can be.
> "Looking at distance night, we had Lucy in the steeplechase. She was running a very well-orchestrated race to have a great performance that would put her higher up in the region, but unfortunately she had a mishap at the water jump and fell into the pit. Hopefully this shows her that she has the ability to run faster, and she just has to believe in herself to go out and execute at the conference championship.
> "Kira established a new school record in the 3K under the lights, which was a very good effort on her part. We hope that she can find her groove in the next few weeks to establish herself at the conference meet in a few weeks.
> "Finally, Katie had a good go at it in the 5K. I know she wanted to break 17 minutes and although that didn't happen tonight, her efforts were outstanding. Michelle has been steady from cross country season until now, and to get a huge PR right before the conference meet is great. She keeps getting better, and we look forward to seeing what she can do. Coach Snyder has done a wonderful job with that group, so now we have to polish them up to get ready for conferences. Overall, I am very pleased with how our athletes performed, and we look forward to carrying this into tomorrow."

Up Next
> The Owls will return to Franklin Field tomorrow, April 26 to compete on day two of the historic Penn Relays. The action will begin in the field at 11 am with sophomores Candus Burks and Kayla Nesbitt-McEwen in the triple jump.
> At 1:55 pm, the Owls will run their first 4x200m relay of the years, featuring junior Madison Beecher, sophomore Mallorie Smith, freshman Marissa White, Williams and Nesbitt-McEwen.
> At 6:05 pm, Temple will conclude Friday's action in the Sprint Medley Relay. The squad will put together its fastest quartet to make its mark on the track in the event and try to reset the program record at the Relays for the second straight year. The SMR will be made up of Beecher, Smith, White and Gottlieb.