Two days. 17 finals events. 15 podium finishes. One championship trophy.
That was the scene at Elon’s Jerry and Jeanne Robertson Track and Field Complex on May 15 and 16, as Elon hosted and won the Coastal Athletic Association Outdoor Track and Field championships.
Elon women’s track and field’s first-place finish clinched a self-proclaimed ‘Triple Crown’ — winning the CAA in cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field.
The event started with a strong performance from junior Jaqueline Zacharius, who placed first in the javelin throw.
Zacharius did not have the season she expected last year. She said the pressure she put on herself was too much. This year, coming into the championships as the favorite to win the event, her mindset evolved.
“I tried to shift that mentality away from the pressure,” Zacharius said. “Instead, shifting it more towards ‘This is such a cool opportunity,’ and to kind of prove who I am, and prove like what this school and this track team can do.”
Zacharius proved it to everybody at the complex. Her 46.14-meter throw was three meters longer than the closest competition, clinching Elon’s first points of the day.
Senior Jaquliene Zacharius prepare for her javelin throw at the CAA championships hosted in Elon's track complex.
After field events, Elon maintained its dominance on their preliminary events.
The Phoenix won all three qualifying meets in the 1,500-meter dash, thanks to junior Quinn Smith, junior Abigail Beville and senior Julia Bell.
Sophomore Mia Stimpson additionally placed first in the 100-meter hurdles qualifiers — an event not historically won by the Phoenix. Junior Jenna Gilman placed first in the 800-meter dash, and sophomore Duna Viñals placed first in the 400-meter hurdles, giving the Phoenix 10 qualifiers for final races on Saturday.
After the preliminary races, senior Alicen Ashley took the track for the 3,000-meter steeplechase final.
Ashley transferred to Elon mid-season last year, but had not been able to compete until this spring season due to injury. In her first competitive season with the Phoenix, she said she balanced personal goals while still scoring points for the team.
The senior’s focus was to come out of the final race with a time that would qualify her for the NCAA regionals, regardless of the anticipated slower pace around her.
Early on, the strategy worked. Ashley blitzed past the competition and held a commanding lead with roughly 1,000 meters left to run. But she broke ahead slightly earlier than planned, according to assistant coach Mark Rinker.
Monmouth University’s Kristen Sarnicola slowly reeled Ashley back in, taking the lead with 600 meters left to run.
“Naturally, I was getting a little bit freaked out that she was coming up on me,” Ashley said. “But I had full confidence the whole time that once she did, I'd be able to outkick her.”
Ashley surged back ahead during the final lap and separated down the stretch, crossing the finish line first to give Elon another 10 points.
Following Ashley’s dynamic performance, the team entered the last event of the night: the 10,000 meters.
The 25-lap race was Elon’s best performance yet. Senior Katie Blount, junior Hannah Weber and senior Jasmine Young placed first, second and third, respectively — a dominant closeout to the first day of competition.
Elon ended day one with a seven-point lead on the College of William & Mary. Blount said it was a priority to make sure the Phoenix stayed ahead.
“Watching my teammates' live results earlier in the day, and then doing amazing, definitely built up the anticipation for the 10K,” Blount said. “Just wanted to keep everything moving forward, take motivation from how well everyone was doing earlier, and everyone's staying focused on trying to get that triple crown.”
The Phoenix started day two right where they left off.
Senior Hannah Schonhoff set a personal best in the high jump, leaping over the 1.76-meter bar on her second attempt. It’s something she’d never done before. Schonhoff said the goal was to set the standard high.
“I try to get myself to start a little bit higher,” Schonhoff said. “It forces me to get in that mindset of ‘You have to jump up, you have to get up there,’ and so I guess it just gave me the confidence.”
After Schonhoff cleared the pole, she burst into a wide smile.
The momentum carried into the last leg of the heptathlon — a seven-event, two-day competition that senior Lizzie Lopez won last year.
This year, Lopez was third in the event, with only the 800-meter dash remaining. She never trailed in the final race, breaking far ahead of the rest of the field in the first lap.
Her lead only expanded, racing home six seconds before anybody else. The finish pushed her to first in the heptathlon, clinching the event.
Teammate and freshman Greta Urbonaviciute finished second in the 800 meters and second in the heptathlon overall. The win catapulted Elon ahead in the championships.
Building on the momentum, Elon’s hurdles competitors took over.
Stimpson’s personal best time of 13.62 seconds in the 100-meter hurdles final sent Elon’s track complex into a frenzy, clinching Elon’s first place in the event. Viñals followed her own personal best in the 400-meter hurdles final — she fell to the ground in joy and exhaustion after circling the track in 58 seconds.
After victory on Friday, Blount looked unfazed in the 5,000 meters. Her first-place finish was just as dominant. She said that the work she puts in is constant, but seamless because of her team.
“The lucky thing here is that our coaches make it so that I love doing the work and I love the team,” Blount said. “When you break it down, it doesn’t really feel like it at all.”
In total, the Phoenix finished with 193 points — 53 more than the closest competitor.
For a team built on individual events, Elon’s championship was won collectively. From Zacharius’ opening javelin throw to Blount’s closing distance victory, the Phoenix completed the ‘Triple Crown’ together.
“The thing about track, it is so individual,” Zacharius said. “We get so many personalities that come together for one common goal, which is so cool. I just think the support we give each other is so amazing.”