By: Erin Madden

BEREA, Ohio - The Baldwin Wallace University women's indoor track and field team finished sixth at the Ohio Athletic Conference Elite Meet, hosted jointly by Otterbein University and Capital University. 

Otterbein hosted the high jump, long jump, triple jump and all the running events inside the Clements Recreation Center while Capital featured the pole vault and all the throwing events inside The Capital Center. 

BW finished sixth of 10 teams with a total of 41 points. The University of Mount Union won the meet with 204 points. 

Freshman distance runner Hope Murphy (Mogadore) continues to turn heads in her inaugural collegiate campaign, this time winning the 800-meter run in a career-best time 2:21.07, which moves the freshman up to 16th in the nation in the event. 

The Yellow Jackets had a number of strong performances in the 3,000-meter run, led by senior All-OAC distance runner Hastings Marek (Pataskala/Watkins Memorial). The reigning OAC Women's Track Athlete of the Week ran a career-best time of 10:09.98 to finish as the runner-up while junior All-OAC and Academic All-OAC distance runner Alyssa Laughner (Howard, Pa./Central Mountain) placed third in the same event in a time of 10:17.80. Senior distance runner Molina Otte (Omaha, Neb./Millard West) also turned in a career-best 3k time of 10:29.03 to finish seventh. Marek now ranks seventh in NCAA Division III in the event, Laughner ranks eighth and Otte ranks 14th. One other career best came from freshman distance runner Kamaria Montgomery (Louisville/Canton GlenOak) who finished sixth in the 500-meter dash in 1:27.57. 

Out in the field, sophomore thrower Abby Rodriguez (Grandview, Wash./Prosser) had the best result for the Yellow Jackets when she hit a season-best mark of 38 feet, 0.74 inches to place fourth in the shot put. Sophomore jumper Jenna Sirianni (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell) also notched a season-best mark of 33 feet, 5.75 inches to place seventh in the triple jump and recorded a career-best mark in the long jump with a leap of 16'1". Freshman thrower Selena Shelley (Mentor) had a career-best throw of 40'6" to take eighth place in the weight throw. 

The Yellow Jackets will host Heidelberg University and John Carroll University for their second and final indoor home meet on Sunday, February 21, at 10 a.m. on the Harrison Dillard Track inside the Lou Higgins Center Fieldhouse.