BEREA, Ohio – The Baldwin Wallace University women's outdoor track and field team finished first as the Yellow Jackets hosted the 49th Annual Sparky Adams Invitational inside George Finnie Stadium.
The Yellow Jacket women won the 49th Sparky Adams meet with 148 points while Ohio Wesleyan University came in second with 130 points.
In the field, the female throwers put together a combined eight top-five finishes led by sophomore All-Ohio Athletic Conference thrower Brooke Buckhannon (Collins/Western Reserve). Buckhannon, the two-time reigning OAC Field Athlete of the Week, won both the shot put and the discus throw with marks of 39 feet, 8.5 inches and 131'6", respectively, while also finishing third in the hammer throw by tossing 148'7". Senior thrower Madeline Ziccardi (Cuyahoga Falls) was the runner-up in the hammer throw with a mark of 151'11". Sophomore All-OAC thrower Jillian Roberts (Broadview Heights/Brecksville-Broadview Heights) placed third in the shot put with a 37'6" throw while also bringing home fifth-place finishes in the hammer throw and discus with marks of 132'0" and 115'2", a new career-best hammer throw mark for the sophomore. Fellow sophomore thrower Breeanna Karam (Dover) took home fifth place in the discus with a career-best toss of 116'0". In the high jump, freshman jumper Heather Orr (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian) cleared 4'9.75" to tie for third place.
Out on the track, three separate BW women won event titles in junior All-OAC sprinter Grace Nemeth (Medina), sophomore All-OAC distance runner Kelly Brennan (Akron/Walsh Jesuit) and senior sprinter/hurdler Carlynn Arthur (Danville). Nemeth won the 200-meter dash in 25.54 seconds, Brennan took the 800-meter run in a time of 2:15.01 and Arthur had a career-best time of 1:06.57 to win the 400-meter hurdles. Nemeth also had a third place finish in the 100-meter dash in a time of 12.56 seconds. In the 1,500-meter run, freshmen distance runners Hastings Marek (Pataskala/Watkins Memorial) and Madison Kile (North Canton/Hoover) finished second and fourth, respectively, in career-best times of 4:54.35 and 4:59.61, also respectively. Fellow freshman distance runner Rebecca Penrose (Springfield/Shawnee) also turned in a career-best time in the 800-meter run in 2:21.74.
On Friday, Brennan also competed in the Jesse Owens Track Classic, hosted by The Ohio State University. The sophomore ran in the 1,500-meter race surrounded by NCAA Division I athletes and finished 27th in a time of 4:44.04.
In relay action, the 4x100-meter relay team of Penrose, Nemeth, Arthur and freshman sprinter Ky'leana Allen (Columbus/Bishop Hartley) placed third in a time of 50.91 seconds.
BW will be back in action during the two-day 2018 Ohio Athletic Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships Friday and Saturday, April 27-28, at Kerscher Stadium on the campus of Ohio Northern University.
