Results
Gainesville, FL – The Patriots put together a solid start to the 2025 NAIA Indoor T&F National Championships on Friday earning a national runner-up finish along with five individuals who qualified for the finals in their respective events. UC sits fifth overall in the team standings after day one.
Mya Hines started the championships with a bang, finishing second overall in the pentathlon with a new school record 3807 points for All-American honors. Hines won the long jump with a 5.81m mark and the high jump with a school record 1.77m clearance. Her second-place finish gives the team eight points, placing them in fifth overall.
The racewalking trio of Alexa Governor, Ava Newkirk, and Lilian Bittencourt each earned a spot in the 3K racewalk finals tomorrow morning. Governor finished second in the prelims with a 16:06.89 while Newkirk and Bittencourt finished back-to-back in 16:07.39 and 16:08.83.
The 5K saw Alina Boshchuk finish in 17:19.59 for an automatic bid to the finals which will take place Saturday afternoon. Tarikua Majocchi also ran in the 5K, making her indoor national debut as a Patriot. The freshman clocked a 17:49.03, respectively.
UC's DMR squad finished day one with a qualifying performance in the preliminary rounds. The group combined for a school record time of 12:01.48, breaking the old record set back in 2013. Sharon Jemeli ran the opening 1200m before passing the baton to Lillian Guzman who brought UC back into the top five heading into the 800m. Elizabeth Lucason took over for the third leg and handled business, giving Boshchuk the baton in the top four. She then cruised to a third-place finish in the heat, giving UC a spot in the DMR finals on Saturday.
The 4x800 was the last event that featured a Patriot on Friday. Julie Meiner-Duedahl began the race before Megan Kitchens took over for the second 800m. Elisa Helferich rank the third leg for UC, passing the honors to Alex Cundiff who crossed the finish line for a combined time of 9:32.47.
Cumberlands will look to build off their day one performances tomorrow for the second day of competition. They will start with the 3K racewalk finals at 10:45 AM.
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