Brittany Williams Archives - EMU News /now/news/tag/brittany-williams/ News from the ݮ community. Tue, 19 Jul 2016 15:22:25 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 Men finish third and women sixth at ODAC indoor track championships, as three seniors claim five individual titles /now/news/2016/men-finish-third-and-women-sixth-at-odac-indoor-track-championships-as-three-seniors-claim-five-individual-titles/ Mon, 29 Feb 2016 15:51:46 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=27159 EMU’s men finished third at Sunday’s ODAC Indoor Championships, the highest team finish for the Royals since 2007. Bolstered by three gold medals, the Royals’ total of 84 points was their best mark since 2003, well ahead of Lynchburg in fourth at 62. Bridgewater won the team title at 166.

Senior (Staunton, Va./Riverheads) thoroughly dominated the throwing events, easily winning the shot put and weight throw. He was named the Athlete of the Meet, the first EMU male since Michael Allen in 2011, and the first male to win the title at the ODAC’s Indoor Championship.

Classmate (Broadway, Va./Broadway) bettered his prelimary qualifying time with a first-place finish of 8.28 in the finals. His time broke both the ODAC conference and championships records. It was also Robinson’s third ODAC Champion title of his career, repeating as the 60m hurdles champion after also winning the 110m hurdles from outdoor season last spring.

Richard Robinson, hurdling in a meet earlier this season, won the 60m hurdles and set an ODAC record.

Lagging team health hindered the women, who finished sixth, despite a pair of individual championships for senior (Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) who defended her titles in the 800m and mile. Bridgewater edged Washington and Lee 135 to 133 for the team title.

Two Royals also won scholar-athlete awards. Junior was voted the ODAC/Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Scholar-Athlete. A biology/pre-med major with a minor in business administration, Denlinger holds a 3.98 GPA is also a four-time All-ODAC honoree. This is the second straight indoor scholar award for Denlinger.

Chappell-Dick also earned her fifth consecutive ODAC/Virginia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Scholar-Athlete award. She is a biology major with minors in coaching, exercise science and honors. Chappell-Dick holds a 3.84 GPA and has won every scholar-athlete honor possible from the ODAC since the beginning of her junior season.

Men’s results

Heizer PRed in the shot put and the weight throw, while also claiming the three best throws in each at the meet. In the shot put, Heizer’s best landed at a monster 15.81m (51-10.75ft), not only winning gold but also vaulting him to No. 25 in the nation. Then in the weight throw, he landed at 15.06m (49-5.25ft). Both improved on his No. 2 spots in the EMU record books.

Grant Amoentag, competing in a earlier meet this season, jumped personal bests in the triple jump and high jump.

(Lynchburg, Va./Heritage) claimed fourth behind teammate Robinson in the 60m hurldes race in 8.68, while (Winchester, Va./Millbrook) took sixth in 8.73. It was a PR for Faint.

Jumper (Bristow, Va./Patriot) had a great first effort, as the freshman took All-ODAC Third Team honors in the triple jump at 13.61m (44-8ft). His PR distance was the third-best effort in EMU history.

Amoateng then cleared 1.79m (5-10.5ft) in the high jump to claim seventh. The freshman also grabbed seventh in the long jump, landing his best at 6.36m (20-10.5ft). Both efforts were PRs, with the long jump distance putting him No. 8 all-time at EMU.

(Perkasie, Pa./Christopher Dock) earned third place in the 800m for All-ODAC Third Team status. The junior crossed in 1:57.24, behind only a pair of Bridgewater runners.

Running partner (Mount Sidney, Va./Fort Defiance) had a similar finish in the mile, settling for third in 4:25.98. He then took fifth in the 3000m with a time of 9:03.55. Thibodeaux was five seconds behind four runners clumped within just over a second of each other.

The 4×400 relay team staked a third-place. The foursome of Faint, (Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass), (Salem, Va./Salem) and Denlinger finished in 3:27.32. Faint had a great all-around individual effort, highlighted by a fourth-place finish in the 400m, clocking in at 50.83. The sophomore’s PR also bumped him up to No. 8 in the EMU’s record books. Sampson also grabbed two points for taking seventh in the event at 51.47. He comes in at No. 9 in EMU history.

The distance medley relay team added two points towards the team total with a seventh-place finish. (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg), (Philadelphia, Pa./La Salle), (Dayton, Va./Ben Logan) and (Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) came in at 11:52.21.

Women’s results

Oksana Kittrell finished fourth in the triple jump.

Chappell-Dick broke the ODAC Championships record in the mile, registering a time 5:03.54. She was more than four seconds better than the previous best at the ODAC Indoor Meet, beating Carmen Graves’ time of 5:07.84.

Then in the 800m, she edged Marissa Combs of Virginia Wesleyan in 2:20.62, just ahead of Coombs’ 2:20.80. She has now won the last four indoor and outdoor 800m ODAC titles, as well as the last two miles, which are only an indoor event.

Sophomore (Dover, Ohio/Dover), who won the 3000m and 5000m last year, took fifth in the 5000m with a time of 19:36.21. After finishing runner-up last year, (St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) also didn’t run the 3000m.

The distance medley relay team just missed defending last year’s title, coming in second. (Goshen, Ind./Goshen), (King George, Va./King George), (Manheim, Pa./Hempfield) and Paden put together a time of 13:14.36, finishing nearly four seconds behind Bridgewater’s winning foursome.

(Bedford, Va./Liberty) finished fourth in the triple jump. Her first two jumps each landed at 10.57m (34-8.25ft), but Lynchburg’s Shanice Clarke edged her with one late jump at 10.66m (34-11.75ft). Kittrell then settled for eighth in the long jump, sticking her best at 4.78m (15-8.25ft). She was less than an inch from seventh place and 3.5 inches from sixth.

Brittany Williams finished sixth in the 400m and competed in two relay events.

The 4x400m relay team of Williams, Yoder, Chappell-Dick and Schirch took fifth, combined for a time of 4:13.85.

(Waynesboro, Va./Waynesboro) claimed sixth in the 60m dash, crossing in 8.15 in the finals. The freshman’s PR improves her No. 2 time in the EMU record books.

In the 400m, Williams also finished sixth. She was second in her heat, clocking at 1:02.54. Pole vaulter (Denton, Md./North Caroline) was another of the women who finished sixth, as she cleared 2.22m (7-3.25ft).

(Portsmouth, Va./Churchland) finished seventh in the shot put, with her best toss landing at 10.10m (33-2ft).

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Black History Month activities join campus community in education, celebration and discussions on race /now/news/2016/black-history-month-activities-join-campus-community-in-education-celebration-and-discussions-on-race/ Wed, 24 Feb 2016 18:44:34 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=27097 ݮ’s Black History Month events began with a Town Hall on Race and included speakers, a soul food dinner, trivia and game nights, and two movie screenings. Events were coordinated by the and International Student Services, Black Student Alliance (BSA), Campus Ministries and Dining Services. [See slide show below.]

Town Hall on Race

About 50 people attended the evening event. Facilitators from BSA asked participants to discuss in small groups two main questions.

  • In what ways does racism and oppression affect the work of EMU?
  • In what ways does racism and oppression affect the spirit of EMU?

Following the discussion, each group shared key points. Many groups answered both questions with negativity that they have seen around campus.

One group stated that college is a time of discovery, but being in an environment riddled with racism hinders the ability to truly discover oneself. Also mentioned was the feeling of forced relationships within the classroom due to race, which in turn affects the ability to work productively with classmates. Many groups also talked about microaggressions, which are everyday verbal or nonverbal slights or insults that communicate hostile, derogatory, or negative messages – such as racist jokes.

“Microaggressions are products of prejudice and ignorance. Those experiences reach beyond race but affect us all,” said senior Christian Parks, who helped to facilitate the event.

The groups were also asked to discuss what they believed would be a good way for EMU to start instituting change in regards to racism and oppression. Some examples included hiring more people of color as faculty, and extending anti-racism and anti-oppression training in all institutional levels.

Participants were encouraged to attend BSA meetings on the second and fourth Thursday of every month in University Commons Room 124. Parks also mentioned the potential for a privilege-themed playback theater event in March, which would “open the space for white folks on campus to share their experiences of privilege as a way to continue the work of understanding how privilege impacts work and spirit at EMU.”

First-year student Kendi Mwongo said the meeting was “beneficial,” and she would support it in the current format on a monthly basis.

The challenge of committing to racial justice

Pastor and author Drew Hart provided two sermons about recognizing white supremacy and how white Christians can be more responsible and responsive to racism. (Photo by Andrew Strack)

Drew Hart, an author and doctoral candidate at Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia, spoke at a Thursday evening lecture titled “Why Have So Many Christians Been So Wrong for So Long?: Racial Formation and Counterintuitive Solidarity.” He also offered a Friday morning chapel forum on the topic “Learning to Love Black People, ” drawing from Hebrews 11:23-28.

Hart said that an “epistemological divide” exists between people’s understandings of race and racism, with different paths and circles of socialization leading to seeing the same event “from very different perspectives.”

“We have very different ways of understanding, narrating and responding to race in America,” Hart said. “Take note of what’s unique and different about the culture that shaped you.”

He noted that while things have certainly changed in the past four centuries of American history, the country hasn’t “magically delivered on social justice.” Instead, the issues have “mutated into different forms,” and maintained a racialized and hierarchical framework. Going forward, he pointed to the “Jesus-shaped, counter-intuitive way” that is “drawn to the those on the margins of society” and empowers them and seeks to end domination.

Hart, who has a blog titled “” hosted by The Christian Century, uses the hashtag #anablacktivism. He followed up Friday’s chapel time with a talkback session and signed copies of his most recent book, Trouble I’ve Seen: Changing the Way the Church Views Racism (published by Herald Press), while on campus.

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Indoor track records fall at Camel City Invitational, as two athletes earn conference recognition /now/news/2016/indoor-track-records-fall-at-camel-city-invitational-as-two-athletes-earn-conference-recognition/ Tue, 02 Feb 2016 18:07:25 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=26808 Despite merely being happy to get back into action after losing participation in one meet to January’s blizzard, the ݮ track men and women had some lofty efforts at the Camel City Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C. Participating in fields of mostly D-II and D-I athletes, the Royals made their marks by breaking two school records.

For the men,(Mount Sidney, Va./Fort Defiance) took nearly six seconds off of his indoor PR in the 3000m, coming across in a time of 8:43.68 to re-break his own school record of 8:49.20 from the CNU Holiday Open in December.

A foursome of(Perkasie, Pa./Christopher Dock),(Winchester, Va./Millbrook),(Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) and Thibodeaux destroyed the program record in the distance medley relay. The foursome crossed in 10:29.09, topping the 2013 record of 10:37.15 by more than eight seconds and bumping the Royals to the No. 11 spot in the nation this season.

The 4x400m team of Faint, Denlinger,(Philadelphia, Pa./La Salle) and(Salem, Va./Salem) had the seventh-best time in EMU history at 3:28.34.

Denlinger set his indoor PR in the 800m, stopping the watch at 1:56.50. He moves to the second-best time in the event in EMU history. Luke Yoder set the record of 1:55.84 in 2007. Denlinger also sits at No. 23 in the nation so far this season with the time.

A pair of young runners made a splash in the 400m. Faint, a sophomore, clocked at 51.41 to win his heat and earn 21st overall. Faint PRed with the effort and moved up two spots to No. 8 in the EMU history books. Sampson, a freshman, knocked 0.01 of his PR to take sole possession of No. 9 in the books at 51.65.

(Millersville, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) had a successful re-entry to the track season, as he punched an ODAC spot in the 5000m. The 2014 S/SE Region Athlete of the Year in cross country, Gehman finished his race in 16:18.61.

(Staunton, Va./Riverheads) improved upon his EMU No. 2 distance in the weight throw. His best toss landed at 14.87m (48-9.5ft), an improvement of more than two feet. Nathan Turner holds the EMU record at 15.77m (51-9ft). In the shot put, Heizer landed at 14.18m (46-6.25ft).

For his efforts, he was named ODAC Field Athlete of the Week.

In the 60m hurdles,(Broadway, Va./Broadway) crossed in 8.78 while(Lynchburg, Va./Heritage) came in at 8.96.

(Charlotte Court House, Va./Randolph Henry) punched an ODAC ticket in the 200m, winning his heat in 23.69. He also participated in the long jump, sticking his best landing at 6.07m (19-11ft).

(Bristow, Va./Patriot) made just one of his three attempts in the triple jump, but it was good enough to tie him for No. 7 in EMU history at 12.83m (42-1.25ft).

Meanwhile on the women’s side,(Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) put herself fourth in the nation in the mile run with her time of 5:02.05. The All-American was the top D-III runner at the meet and took fifth overall. Chappell-Dick broke the finish line seventh overall in the 800m with a time of 2:16.02. She is ninth in the nation with the time. She was named ODAC Athlete of the Week for her win.

Three other women ran in the 800m, with each earning an ODAC-qualifying time.(King George, Va./King George) had a PR of 2:30.74, jumping herself to No. 6 on the all-time EMU charts. 󳾲(Manheim, Pa./Hempfield) shaved more than a second off of her first collegiate race with a time of 2:31.21 to take No. 8 in EMU history, and(Goshen, Ind./Goshen) came in at 2:33.60.

In the 3000m,(Dover, Ohio/Dover) crossed in 10:34.38. Ծǰ(St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) was 12th overall in the 5000m, clocking in at 20:19.51.

The distance medley relay team of Chappell-Dick, Williams, Yoder and Schirch had a solid time of 13:42.21.

In the field events, sophomore(Bedford, Va./Liberty) was the lone EMU representative. She just missed her indoor PR in the triple jump, landing at 10.55m (34-7.5ft). In the long jump she measured at 4.44m (14-7.0 feet).

The Royals head to Selinsgrove, Pa., next Saturday for the Crusader Challenge hosted by Susquehanna University.

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Senior Hannah Chappell-Dick wins ODAC cross country title, adds to career honors /now/news/2015/senior-hannah-chappell-dick-wins-odac-cross-country-title-adds-to-career-honors/ /now/news/2015/senior-hannah-chappell-dick-wins-odac-cross-country-title-adds-to-career-honors/#comments Mon, 02 Nov 2015 21:14:22 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=25841 For the first time in 13 years, EMU has an individual cross country champion. (Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) continued her incredible senior season by winning the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Championships Saturday, Oct. 31 in Bridgewater. She covered the 6K course in a time of 22:21.9. She now owns All-ODAC First Team hardware from all four of her years.

She becomes the first Eastern Mennonite harrier to win an ODAC championship since Hall of Honor member won her second straight title in 2002.The last winner for the men was Lynn Stoltzfus in 1994. Including Chappell-Dick, the women’s team landed three all-conference finishers and took third place. The men had one all-conference runner and were fifth overall.

Hannah Chappell-Dick, with teammates Jolee Paden (121) and Kat Lehman (119) competes in the ODAC preview meet earlier this season. (Photo by Scott Eyre)

Chappell-Dick has also won four of the five official races she has run this season. After her Oct. 19 performance at the CNU Invitational, topping a field of mostly D-I runners along with the D-III regionally-ranked Christopher Newport squad, she garnered her fourth ODAC Runner of the Week award.

The squad totaled 70 points as a team, finishing just behind second-place Bridgewater at 64.Washington and Lee won the team title with 46 points. Rounding out the scoring were (Dover, Ohio/Dover), (St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden), (Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg), (Goshen, Ind./Goshen), (Gig Harbor, Wash./Peninsula), and (King George, Va./King George).

Not just running honors

Chappell-Dick is a senior majoring in with minors in , and . She plans on spending a year after graduation working with an intentional community/service program called (through the DOOR program) in Atlanta, Georgia, where she’d also continue training and competing with the Atlanta Track Club.

Her decision after that depends on how her training is going, she says. She may enroll in graduate school for a master’s in public health or an MBA. Chappell-Dick says she’s also interested in coaching.

She talks about her choice to attend and compete at EMU, as well as future plans, in .

Chappell-Dick was a two-time All-American in track and field last year, finishing second in the indoor mile and third in the 1500m at those respective NCAA D.III championships in 2015.

For now, though, there’s the regional and national meets to finish out the cross country season and an indoor and outdoor season of track to look forward to, as well as juggling the demands of the classroom and her extra-curricular activities.

Giving back

Chappell-Dick celebrates after her ODAC championships win. She intends to keep competing after graduation and hopes to coach in the future. (Photo by Michael Sheeler)

A leader in the classroom as well as on the field, Chappell-Dick is serving as a student representative on the throughout the 2015-16 academic year.

She is also working with the athletic department to rebuild the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee at EMU, in which student-athletes are able to give feedback on proposed NCAA legislation, advocate for student-athletes on campus, and serve the community through various projects.

With teammate , Chappell-Dick started a track club called “FLASH” for 10 to 12-year-olds, which meets twice a week in the spring. She’s also active in Big Brothers Big Sisters and at Shalom Mennonite Church.

Working around her athletic schedule, Chappell-Dick completed her cross-cultural requirement during a summer 2014 trip to Guatemala. “We stayed with host families and attended language and cultural lessons during the day at CASAS, a program through Semilla Seminary in Guatemala City,” she said.

This semester, she is living in an intentional community theme house on campus. The goal of residents of “Bridge House” is to “bridge the gap” between first-year students and seniors with twice-monthly social gatherings.

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Men’s and women’s track and field teams compete at ODAC Championships /now/news/2015/mens-and-womens-track-and-field-teams-compete-at-odac-championships/ Mon, 20 Apr 2015 20:17:18 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=23991 Boosted by four gold medals and one silver, the Eastern Mennonite track men charted a third place finish at the ODAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships this weekend. The meet was hosted by Bridgewater College, with events both Friday and Saturday.

(Staunton, Va./Fort Defiance) helped to highlight the day as he pointed in a couple of events. The sophomore had a short lead on a handful of finishers to win the 800m as he crossed in 1:55.02. It was easily Thibodeaux’s season best time, although more than a second and a half off his PR from last year. The second place runner came in at 1:55.86 while teammate(Perkasie, Pa./Christopher Dock) was third in 1:55.99, earning All-ODAC Third Team honors.

Thibodeaux then came in fourth in the 1500m with a PR time of 4:02.38, putting him fourth in the EMU history books as well.(Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) destroyed his PR and won his heat by six seconds to take sixth place in the event in 4:08.29.

󳾲(Manheim, Pa./Manheim Central) made a dazzling debut in the javelin, coming from the fourth seed to win gold with a PR throw of 50.10m (164-4ft). He moves to No. 5 all-time at EMU.

The men also had some great finishes in the hurdles. The Royals went 1-and-3 in the 400m hurdles, as freshman(Winchester, Va./Millbrook) claimed the gold. Faint’s winning time was 54.23, a PR for him and fifth in EMU history. Junior(Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) also staked his PR, taking third place in the race in 57.04 and putting him at No. 10 in the EMU books.

(Broadway, Va./Broadway) pulled away at the finish of the 110m hurdles, grabbing gold and All-ODAC First Team with a time of 15.30. His PR moved him to No. 3 all-time at EMU in the event.(Lynchburg, Va./Heritage) had a gritty effort to claim fourth in the race in 16.25.

(Staunton, Va./Riverheads) earned a silver in the shot put. The big man landed at 14.39m (47-2.5ft), crushing his outdoor PR and moving to No. 2 in EMU history. He earned All-ODAC Second Team honors with the throw and was just six inches short of first place at 14.54m (47-8.5ft).

The Royals had two point-takers in the high jump.(Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite), who entered as the favorite in the event, settled for a bronze finish. He took third based on jumps, tying his season best at 1.91m (6-3.25ft). Faint was sixth at 1.73m (5-8.0ft), setting his PR.

Faint also took a point in the triple jump, earning sixth by a single millimeter with his PR at 13.07m (42-10.75ft). He moves in ninth all-time at EMU as well.

󳾲(Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass) took fifth in a tight finals of the 200m dash. After standing in eighth after the prelims, Dews clocked a 22.55 PR in the finals, with all of the top six finished within 0.47 seconds of each other.

Nisly grabbed the final point in the 3000m steeplechase, leading a group of four EMU runners in sixth place with a tie of 10:19.04.

In the relays, the 4x100m squad of(Freeman, S.D./Freeman Academy), Dews,(Ashburn, Va./Briar Woods) and(Appomattox, Va./Appomattox) earned fourth place with a time of 44.05. The 4x400m foursome of Dews, Faint, Bush and Denlinger came in fifth in 3:22.50.

The men racked up 86 points to comfortably finish in third place for their highest outdoor finish since 2006. Bridgewater won the men’s title with 154 points while Lynchburg was second with 132. Washington and Lee was behind the Royals with 66 tallies.

Women Stand Fourth At ODACs And Win Individual Honors

Highlighted by four gold medals, the EMU track and field women earned their highest finish at the ODAC Outdoor Championships in nine year. The meet was hosted by Bridgewater College Friday and Saturday.

To no one’s surprise,(Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) and(Dover, Ohio/Dover) led the charge for the women, with each winning two gold medals with their All-ODAC First Team status.

Becca Borg is No. 2 all-time in EMU’s javelin record book. (Photo by Scott Eyre)

Chappell-Dick won the 800m and 1500m, breaking the ODAC Championships record in the 800m. In the two-lap race she had a pair of Bridgewater runners hanging near her, but not enough to challenge for top honors. Chappell-Dick won in a time of 2:13.64, breaking the meet record of 2:13.91 set by Roanoke’s Carmen Graves two years ago.

In the 1500m, the All-American was her usual self, leading the pack in 4:46.81. While a comfortable pace off her PR, it was still good enough to give Chappell-Dick the win by more than three seconds. Lehman actually crossed fourth in the race in 4:53.38.

Lehman was then dominant in the two distance events. In the 5000m she broke away from the pack early and strided her way to a facility record time of 18:03.55, breaking the old mark by more than 37 seconds. Teammate(St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) claimed the silver with a second place finish at the ODAC meet, timing at 19:02.62.

Lehman ran a great race to win the 10,000m Friday night. The freshman ran with the pack for most of the race, before making her move with two laps to go. Lehman made a quick pass of Roanoke’s Kerri Dalton to take over the lead, and then bolted away with more than a 19-second margin over the final 800m. Lehman’s winning time was another facility-record 39:01.45, a comfortable win over Dalton’s 39:20.83. Paden stayed with the lead group most of that race as well and came in fifth with a time of 40:03.77.

(Bedford, Va./Liberty) completed a great first season in the jumping events. She took fourth in the long jump, landing a PR jump at 5.27m (17-3.5ft), less than an inch behind the All-ODAC status of third place at 5.29m (17-4.25ft). The distance also bumped her up to No. 3 in EMU history. In the triple jump, Kittrell grabbed another fourth place finish, totaling 10.72m (35-2ft).

Ծǰ(Strasburg, Va./Strasburg) was one of four women to break the facility record in the hammer throw. She claimed fourth with a landing at 44.10m (144-5ft), within sight of Bridgewater’ Katelyn Senger in third with 44.18m (144-11ft). It was a huge PR for Bane, upping her own school record, which had been 39.28m (128-10ft). Bane added a point to the team total in the discus, taking sixth with a season best of 31.00m (101-8ft).

Chappell-Dick also earned some points in this high jump. In just her second-ever effort in the event, the junior tied for fourth by clearing 1.51m (4-11.5ft).

(Peninsula, Wash./Gig Harbor) was sixth in the javelin, as the junior landed at 30.97m (101-7ft) and inched up her PR and No. 2 spot in the EMU history books.

󳾲(Gig Harbor, Wash./Peninsula) grabbed a point in the 3000m steeplechase. She earned sixth place with a time of 13:07.23.

The 4x400m relay team of(King George, Va./King George), Chappell-Dick,(Virginia Beach, Va./Tallwood) and(Goshen, Ind./Goshen) claimed fourth, just missing All-ODAC status, with a time of 4:04.41. The 4x100m group of(East Norriton, Pa./Christopher Dock), Chappell-Dick, Kittrell, and McKinsey was sixth with a time of 52.16.

The Royals had 77 points as a team, earning fourth place overall for their highest team finish since 2006. Roanoke won the women’s side with 156 points, followed by Bridgewater at 105 and Washington and Lee at 91. Lynchburg and Virginia Wesleyan were tied for fifth behind EMU with 63.

The ODAC Championships meet completes the main season for the Eastern Mennonite track teams. Now the focus turns to twilight meets and preparing for hopeful runs at the NCAA National Championships in late May. The next meet scheduled for the Royals is the Liberty Twilight Qualifier on April 29.

Individual Awards
The Royals picked up a trio of individual honors at the ODAC Championships as well.Kat Lehmanwas named the Rookie of the Year, winning two events and looking for another trip to the national meet after going in cross country and indoor track as well.

Hannah Chappell-Dickmade it a sweep of the ODAC/Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete awards, as she also claimed that honor in cross country and indoor track. Chappell-Dick recently added an All-American title to her name after finishing second in the mile at the national indoor meet to go with a 3.86 GPA as a biology major.

Coach Jason Lewkowiczwas named the ODAC Coach of the Year, as he was recognized for his work with the women in picking up his first ODAC award in his final season with the Royals.

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Royals distance runners set ODAC indoor track records /now/news/2015/royals-distance-runners-set-odac-indoor-track-records/ Mon, 23 Feb 2015 21:09:13 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=23393 There are certainly times when getting caught up in the wrong crowd is a bad thing. But for two EMU track and field women, getting caught up in a crowd of D-I runners produced amazing results, as both junior(Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) and freshman(Dover, Ohio/Dover) rode the pace of top-flight women at Saturday’s UCS Invitational and broke ODAC records.

In the mile, Chappell-Dick broke the five-minute barrier for the first time and did so quite handily. She charted a time of 4:56.37, shattering her own school record of 5:05.65, and breaking the ODAC record of 4:58.17 set by Roanoke All-American Carmen Graves in 2013. The junior also sits at No. 4 in the nation this year with the time. She placed sixth at the meet, behind runners from Virginia Tech and North Carolina.

ٱ(St. Joseph, Ill./St. Joseph-Ogden) ran the mile for the first time this year and jumped to No. 7 in the ODAC this season at 5:27.27.

Lehman’s mark also came in her only event of the day, the 3000m, where she crossed in 9:55.49, whacking more than 27 seconds of her PR and school record of 10:22.72. She shattered the Old Dominion Athletic Conference record with the time, as the old mark was 10:10.61, set by Roanoke’s Casey Smith in 2001. Nationally, Lehman leaps to No. 9 as she looks to join Chappell-Dick with a trip to the NCAA National Championships. She took fourth in the race, coming in behind two women from Wake Forest and one from Virginia Tech.

Eastern Mennonite sent only a handful of athletes to the meet in Winston-Salem, N.C. Elsewhere,(King George, Va./King George) earned the No. 5 time in EMU history with a time of 1:02.52.

In the long jump,(Bedford, Va./Liberty) came close to her PR with a best leap of 4.96m (16-3.25ft). The freshman’s best effort this year is 5.05m.

The duo of(Staunton, Va./Fort Defiance) and(Perkasie, Pa./Christopher Dock) continued to shine in the men’s 800m. Thibodeaux just beat his teammate, taking eighth overall with a time of 1:57.18. It was his PR, which is No. 4 in the ODAC and improves him to No. 4 in EMU history. Although Thibodeaux sits one spot behind Denlinger in program history, Denlinger came in just behind him in Saturday’s race, crossing in 1:57.22.

(Winchester, Va./Millbrook) set a new PR in the triple jump, charting the No. 9 distance in the EMU books at 12.47m (40-11.00ft).

EMU had four men running in the 200m.(Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass) led the way with a time of 23.77, just missing his PR by .01.(Ashburn, Va./Briarwood) tied his PR by finishing in 23.86.(Nelson, Va./Nelson County) crossed in 24.38 while(Appomattox, Va./Appomattox) timed at 25.12.

Wheeler also clocked at 54.09 in the 400m.

The Eastern Mennonite track teams wrap up the indoor season next week at the ODAC Indoor Championships in Landover, Md.

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Royals rise to the occasion at Hilton Garden Invitational /now/news/2015/royals-rise-to-the-occasion-at-hilton-garden-invitational/ Mon, 02 Feb 2015 15:21:21 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=23057 Even without sending their full teams to the Hilton Garden Invitational in Winston-Salem, N.C., over the weekend, EMU’s indoor track and field teams defended their regional status. Both the men and the women were ranked at No. 7 in the D-III South/Southeast Region in the season’s first listings earlier this week.

Freshman distance runner(Dover, Ohio/Dover) cemented her status as an elite athlete, breaking EMU’s record in the 5000m and taking second place overall at the mostly D-I meet. Lehman roasted the track to a finish of 17:43.77, finishing in between a pair of runners from the University of North Carolina. She destroyed her own EMU record of 18:10.40, set in December.

ٱ(Gig Harbor, Wash./Peninsula) broke her personal record in the event, crossing in 20:15.98 to also grab the No. 8 spot in EMU’s history books.

In the 4x400m relay, the women’s foursome of(King George, Va./King George),(Virginia Beach, Va./Tallwood),(Harrisonburg, Va./Spotswood) and(Bluffton, Ohio/Bluffton) timed the No. 3 effort in program history at 4:20.40.

Chappell-Dick was the top D-III finisher in the mile run, taking a time of 5:16.47.(Goshen, Ind./Goshen) clocked a season best in the 800m at 2:36.34, narrowly missing the ODAC qualifying time by 0.05 seconds. And Williams broke her PR in the 400m, timing at 1:04.62.

(Bedford, Va./Liberty) landed a nice effort in the triple jump, measuring at 10.44m (34-3.00ft). Also in the field,(Strasburg, Va./Strasburg) had a best toss of 13.02m (42-8.75ft) in the weight throw.

For the Eastern Mennonite men,(Staunton, Va./Riverheads) had a monster toss in the shot put. His best heave of 14.00m (45-11.25ft) was not only the top D-III distance at the meet, but also put him third in EMU history and with the second-best throw in the ODAC this season. He was also solid in the weight throw, landing at 11.93m (39-1.75ft)

(Millersville, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) punched an ODAC ticket in the 5000m, but more importantly earned the No. 2 time in the EMU record books. His time of 15:49.48 was only behind cross country teammateJacob Landis‘ 15:41.94, a record set last year.

In the 800m run, sophomore(Perkasie, Pa./Christopher Dock) earned the third-best finish in EMU history with a time of 1:57.01.(Staunton, Va./Fore Defiance) wasn’t far behind as he landed at No. 4 in the EMU books at 1:57.77.

The duo also ran in the mile. Denlinger again crossed first in 4:31.19 to take seventh in program history, while Thibodeaux had his season best run at 4:35.20.

(Philadelphia, Pa./La Salle) earned a trip to the ODAC Championships in the 200m, timing at 23.90. In the 400m, EMU had two men qualify for ODACs, highlighted by(Winchester, Va./Millbrook) PRing in 52.07.(Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) had a finish of 53.11.

(Broadway, Va./Broadway) continued his road back in the 60m hurdles with a season best time of 8.79.

Then in the 4x400m relay, the Royals had a foursome cross in 3:30.16, which was just a tenth of a second behind a team from ODAC rival Washington and Lee.(Lynchburg, Va./E.C. Glass), Bush, Denlinger and Faint combined for the No. 7 time in EMU history.

And a foursome also landed in No. 7 in the distance medley relay, as(Churchville, Va./Fort Defiance),(Nelson, Va./Nelson County),(Richmond, Va./Huguenot) and(Lancaster, Pa./Lancaster Mennonite) clocked at 11:08.35.

(Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) kept in his ODAC-leading shape by clearing 1.92m (6-3.5ft) in the high jump.

Eastern Mennonite’s teams are back in action next weekend, participating at the DuCharme Invitational in Carlisle, Pa., on Saturday.

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