Barbacci Wins Pole Vault, Sets Historic 60-Meter Mark, Correia Podiums in Shot Put at Moravian Meet
BETHLEHEM, Pa.- The Juniata women's track and field team returned from the winter break at Saturday's Moravian University Indoor Meet at Lehigh University's Rauch Field House. The day was highlighted by a victory in the pole vault and Juniata's fourth-best 60-meter time for Olivia Barbacci, while Nandee Correia earned bronze in the shot put.
Barbacci shared gold in the high jump with a competitor from Division I Lafayette with her mark of 1.60 meters, hitting the mark on her first attempt. It's a 0.03-meter improvement from her previous best, set at the Susquehanna Early Season Invite in December. The new mark still sits as the program's third-best in the event.
In the 60-meter race, Barbacci set an 8.51 to finish in 19th place out of 40 competing, logging the fourth-best time in program history. She is one hundredth off the next-best time set by Caitlyn Pingatore at the 2012 Landmark Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Nandee Correia rounded out the shot-put podium with her 11.21-meter throw, bested only by two throwers from East Stroudsburg. Early in the 2023-24 campaign, the 11.21-meter mark sits 0.04 meters off her previous best set in the 2021-22 indoor season.
In addition to Barbacci, Ashley Alfree and Josie Kelly also set 60 meter times. A 8.92 for Alfree is a new personal best, while she finished 32nd on the day. Her previous best was a 9.10 set at the Susquehanna Tuneup last February. Kelly finished in 39th place with a time of 9.54.
Rebecca Christophel and Kelsey Covert raced in the 200-meter event. Christophel made a 1.02-second improvement on her previous best set at the Susquehanna Invitational in 2022, as she finished in 29.18 to finish in 28th place out of 45 competing. Covert was 40th with a time of 31.23.
Covert also competed in the 60-meter hurdles, where she set a new personal best. She reduced one-tenth from her debut mark set at Susquehanna last month with an 11.11, finishing in 21st place out of 25.
Christophel was able to set a personal record in another event, the 800 meters. She finished in 12th place out of 36 racing with a time of 2:32.97. Her previous best was a 2:41.16, set at the SU Tuneup in 2022. Camille McRoberts and Beck Mensch also raced in the 800 meters. McRoberts set a 2:43.37 in her first 800 to claim 23rd place. Mensch was 36th in her debut with a 3:30.10.
Zoe Biles set her first 400-meter time for Juniata, a 1:10.51 to finish in 30th place out of 35 racing.
Juniata's track competitors closed out the day with the team's first 4x400 meter time of the season. Barbacci, Alfree, Biles, and McRoberts finished in 8th place from a field of ten teams with a time of 4:43.11.
In addition to Barbacci, Alfree and Kelly also competed in the high jump. Alfred set a 1.35-meter mark on her first attempt to tie for 17th place, while Kelly was unable to clear 1.35 meters.
The trio also competed in the pole vault. Kelly and Alfree both cleared 2.29 meters, with Kelly clearing on her second attempt for 16th place and Alfree claiming 17th place with a third-attempt clearance. Barbacci started at 2.89 meters, but she could not clear the height on her three attempts.
In addition to Correia, Kaleah Leisher, and Justice Sheaffer also competed in the shot put, and both set personal bests. For Leisher, she finished in 23rd place with a mark of 8.96 meters, improving on a previous best of 8.72 meters set last month. Sheaffer was 28th with a 7.37-meter throw, improving 0.15 meters from Susquehanna in December.
The trio also competed in the weight throw, with personal bests for Leisher and Sheaffer. Correia had the team's best mark at 13.04 meters to finish in 12th place. Leisher threw 7.00 meters to finish in 30th place, up from a 6.21 meter mark set at Susquehanna in December. Sheaffer improved 2.22 meters from Susquehanna with a 6.40-meter throw and 31st-place result.
The Juniata women's track and field team competes next Saturday, January 27th, as the team heads to Franklin & Marshall College for the Mini-Dip Invitational.