TOWSON, Md. --- Moravian University junior sprinter Abby Giamoni and sophomore jumper Ali Haefele have been honored as the Landmark Conference Women's Track and Field Athletes of the Week for their performance last week.
Giamoni had a trio of second place finishes at the Stockton University Osprey Open Saturday. She was the runner-up in the 200-meter dash in a time of 25.81 seconds, and Giamoni helped the 4x100-meter relay team take second in a time of 50.51 seconds and the 4x400-meter relay finish as the runner-up in a time of 4:14.97.
"We had a pretty strong head wind, up to 15mph pretty much all day that the sprint races ran directly into, so we weren't expecting incredibly fast times," stated Director of Track & Field Jesse Baumann. "Despite this, Abby was electric this weekend. She was flying in the 4x100 relay and ran a great turn in the 200 to run one of her better times despite finishing into a 2.2 mph headwind. She only had about 30 minutes heading into the 4x400 and still managed to break 59 seconds and move us up a spot despite a big margin when she got the baton. The big thing about days like Saturday are to learn how to compete but also work on a number of training aspects she'll benefit from as we get later into the season. Saturday was similar to a number of the special endurance workouts we've been running with our sprinters lately that will ultimately pay off in the coming weeks once we get some warmer weather and can get some tailwinds. She's looking as good as ever in her workouts, and we know she's ready to crush her PRs this outdoor season."
Haefele captured first in the triple jump on Friday at the Osprey Open with an All-Atlantic Region Track & Field Conference qualifying and PR distance of 11.66 meters (38-3). On Saturday, Haefele was third in the high jump at 1.52 meters (4-11.75) and third in the long jump at 5.01 meters (16-5.25).
"Going into the past indoor season, Ali was already on pace to accomplish big things, but we didn't know how big," explained Jumps Coach Molly Sear. "She has a lot of potential in all three of the jumping events, but she has improved immensely in the triple jump. After finally breaking 11 meters at the end of our indoor season, she had improved a lot at practice over the last few weeks, so I knew she could jump low to mid 11's. We've struggled getting her on the board for her jumps to count at meets, however, we adjust and I continuously remind her that it only takes one jump, and that's exactly what happened on Friday. The weather conditions weren't perfect, but she has a very great, positive mentality and she is very determined. Although this is only the beginning of our outdoor season, Ali has already exceeded her own expectations. I'm very excited about what the next few weeks can bring, and we're hoping to get her to NCAAs within the next few years."
The Greyhounds are slated to return to action on Friday and Saturday, April 5-6 at the Muhlenberg College Invitational in Allentown.
