Gerber returns in time for championships
The women’s track & field team traveled to Westminster for the Westminster College Invitational on April 16. The Yellow Jackets were one of the 26 teams competing at the invitational and they finished 22nd overall.
As one of the bigger meets that Waynesburg competes in, Falvo thought the team handled it well.
After an earlier-than-usual departure time that Falvo said was more difficult for the athletes to adjust to, the bus arrived in Titan territory around 9 a.m. Saturday. From that point, Falvo said the team got rolling.
The team set up their tent in the bleachers to cover the athletes from the hot sun, something Falvo said was great, but also “zapped” the athletes.
After getting to the meet early and being in the sun all afternoon, Falvo said it was tough for the athletes to adapt to the different way they should be eating and hydrating.
Some of the athletes did not compete in their first race until the late afternoon, and being in the sun all day affected their performance, Falvo said.
Falvo said it was nice to have warm weather and that he could see the difference the weather had on some of the athletes’ times, heights and distances.
Junior Emily Latimer led the Yellow Jackets on the track with a fifth place finish in the 1,500-meter run.
“Emily has been running great all year, so [it’s] not surprising she ran a great time in the [1,500-meter],” said Falvo. “We had seen her and predicted her to run well.”
Sophomore Elinore Loch had another top 10 finish for Waynesburg. Loch finished in sixth place in the 3,000 meter steeplechase.
“We knew what Elinore could do, from doing steeplechase last year, so for her, just getting her feet wet a little bit… she’s going to do some great things over the next two meets in steeple,” said Falvo.
Loch also competed in the 800-meter, finishing in the 19 spot, and was a member of the 4×400 meter relay team.
Also on the track for the Yellow Jackets was sophomore Julie Gerber. Gerber, who has not competed since the Kenyon College Classic on Feb. 20 because of mononucleosis, returned for her first outdoor meet of the season. Gerber competed in the 5,000-meter run, but Falvo said having her back around the team was better than having her competing again.
“Julie does everything we ask her to do, every time we ask her to do it, so [that shows] her dedication to do exactly what she is coached to do,” said Falvo. “It was great to have her back, more so to have Julie Gerber the person back than it was to have Julie Gerber the athlete back. She’s a special person, we love her personality so [we were] happy to see her, the person back, athletically that’s just a secondary bonus.”
Senior Rose Huwe finished in 19th in the discus, but Falvo believes she’ll perform better at the conference championships.
“Rosie has been improving so much in her throws this whole year that I expect nothing less of her going into the next week,” said Falvo. “She should be a top five discus thrower for us and we expect her to do so.”
Yesterday the team traveled to Bethany College for the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Quad Meet. The meet ran too late for results to be published in this week’s publication.
On April 29 and 30, the team will head to Bethany College for the third and final time this season for the PAC Championships. Having prepared all season for the championships, Falvo said the two-day event will take a team effort.
While the team has been competing against the other PAC teams on and off all season, this meet will bring together everyone and will showcase who the best athletes in their respective events are.
“I’m looking forward to a total team effort,” said Falvo. “You never know who is going to surprise you. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s going to take a whole team effort for sure.”
The team was expected to finish fifth this season, but Falvo believes the athletes need to perform well individually to boost the team’s scoring.
“I think we’re going to have to contributions from everybody,” said Falvo.
“To be in the running for a championship you have to get those small victories in the meet.”