TOWSON, Md. --- Moravian College junior pole vaulter Ryan Karnopp has been named as the Landmark Conference Men's Field Athlete of the Week for the second time this winter after his performance last Saturday at the Kutztown University Last Chance Invitational.

Karnopp set a Moravian and Landmark Conference record as he recorded an ECAC qualifying height of 5.05 meters (16-6.75) in the pole vault. Karnopp is the first Greyhound to clear 5.00 meters indoors, and he moved into fourth place on the Track & Field Results Reporting System list that determines those to compete at the 2015 NCAA Division III National Championships in March. He finished in a tie with Buck Lanny of host Kutztown at the top of height of 5.05 meters this past Saturday but was second in the meet after needing more attempts at a lower height of 4.70 meters.

"We were starting to watch Ryan slip down the NCAA list to where he was no longer in the top 15 qualifying spots, however, the coaches have been adjusting some aspects of his vault and knew it was just a matter of when, not if, Ryan would finally break out," explained Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "Saturday he did just that with an amazing series, setting his PR on two consecutive bars with no misses. His last two attempts at the 5.11m (16-9) were extremely close which shows that his goal of 17 feet this year could be a very real possibility."

Moravian is scheduled to return to action when the Greyhounds head to Susquehanna University on Saturday, February 28 for the 2015 Landmark Conference Championship meet scheduled to begin at 11:00 a.m. The Hounds are looking to win their sixth straight and seventh overall Landmark title at the meet.