Women's Indoor Track and Field | 3/19/2024 9:58:21 AM
The Empire 8 Conference announced its 2023-24 Women’s Indoor Track & Field All-Conference awards on Tuesday, March 19. The awards are voted on by the league's head coaches.
Alfred University senior Olivia Gilbert was named the 2023-24 Empire 8 Indoor Track Athlete of the Year. Gilbert won the Empire 8 Championship in the 800-meters and was one of the top middle-distance runners in the region, having excelled in the 600- and 1,000-meter events. She also finished third in the 400-meters at the E8 Championships Gilbert finished the season ranked 48th nationally in the 800-meters and earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors in the event. She is Alfred’s first Empire 8 Indoor Track Athlete of the Year award winner in program history.
Utica University graduate student Jane Fahy was named the 2023-24 Empire 8 Indoor Field Athlete of the Year. Fahy enjoyed an incredible season, culminating by earning runner-up honors in the shot put at the 2024 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships on March 9 with a toss of 14.44 meters. The weekend before, Fahy won the event at the All-Atlantic Region Championships with a career-best shot of 14.63 meters, which at the time, was the fourth-best throw in the nation. She won her fourth straight Empire 8 Indoor Championship in the shot put with a meet record shot of 14.20 meters and was a seven-time winner overall in 2023-24. Fahy, who also earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors in the shot put, is the second Utica student-athlete to garner E8 Field Athlete of the Year honors, joining Kelsey Wands, who won in 2019-20.
Victoria Brewster of Houghton University was named the 2023-24 Empire 8 Indoor Rookie of the Year. Brewster enjoyed a tremendous debut for the Highlanders, sweeping the 60- and 200-meter dash championships at the Empire 8 Indoor Championships. Her winning time of 7.78 seconds in the 60-meter dash at the league championships shattered the E8 Championship record. She finished the season ranked 44th nationally in the 60-meter dash and 70th in the 200-meters (25.50 seconds) and earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors in the 60-meters. Brewster is Houghton’s second E8 Indoor Track and Field Rookie of the Year, joining Nikki Garns, who was honored in 2014-15.
Nazareth head coach James Goss and his staff was named the 2023-24 Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year for the second straight season. The Golden Flyers won their second straight Empire 8 Indoor Track & Field Championship. Overall, Nazareth had 18 different student-athletes earn All-Conference honors, while Lea Richard made her second straight appearance at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
The Empire 8 first, second and third team all-conference selections were determined at the championship meet on Feb. 23-24 from the Kerr Pegula Field House, hosted by Houghton.
One member of each team was named that institution's representative on the 2023-24 Women's Indoor Track & Field Sportswoman of the Year Team. The Empire 8 Conference emphasizes that "Competing with Honor and Integrity" is an essential component of a student-athlete's experience in conjunction with an institution's educational mission. These honorees have distinguished themselves and consistently exhibit the critical traits as outstanding sportswomen.
2023-24 Empire 8 Women’s Indoor Track & Field Award Winners
Track Athlete of the Year: Olivia Gilbert, Sr., Alfred
Field Athlete of the Year: Jane Fahy, Gr., Utica
Rookie of the Year: Victoria Brewster, Fr., Houghton
Coaching Staff of the Year: Nazareth, led by head coach James Goss
Empire 8 Sportswoman of the Year
Annabelle Townsend, Jr., Alfred (Woodsville, NH/Woodsville)
Stephanie Cohen, Fr., Hartwick (Westtown, NY/Minisink Valley)
Neve Tilley, Fr., Houghton (Corfu, NY/Homeschool)
Samantha Luba, So., Nazareth (Buffalo, NY/Frontier)
Tirzah Spivey, So., Russell Sage (Clifton Park, NY/Schenectady)
Allison Lennebecker, Jr., St. John Fisher (Cooperstown, NY/Cherry Valley Springfield)
Jade Dening, Jr., Utica (Remsen, NY/Remsen)
2023-24 Empire 8 Women’s Indoor Track and Field Championship All-Conference Selections
60-Meter Dash
First Team: Victoria Brewster, Fr., Houghton – :7.78 (Meet Record)
Second Team: Alaina Morley, So., Nazareth – :7.88
Third Team: Alexis Lasher, So., Nazareth – :8:11
60-Meter Hurdles
First Team: Anne Spila, Jr., Alfred – :9.32
Second Team: Stefania Grimaldi, Fr., Utica – :9.67
Third Team: Mallory Rice, Fr., Nazareth – :9.84
200-Meter Dash
First Team: Victoria Brewster, Fr., Houghton – :25.90
Second Team: Mackenzie Mix, Jr., Utica – :26.14
Third Team: Alaina Morley, So., Nazareth – :26.45
400-Meter Dash
First Team: Arianna McClendon, Fr., Utica – :59.73
Second Team: Mackenzie Mix, Jr., Utica – 1:00.25
Third Team: Olivia Gilbert, Sr., Alfred – 1:00.47
800-Meter Run
First Team: Olivia Gilbert, Sr., Alfred – 2:18.28
Second Team: Caitlin Voloshen, So., St. John Fisher – 2:22.17
Third Team: Ella Impaglia, So., Nazareth – 2:23.01
Mile
First Team: Caitlin Voloshen, So., St. John Fisher – 5:22.36
Second Team: Ella Impaglia, So., Nazareth – 5:23.63
Third Team: Emily Weaver, Gr., Nazareth – 5:26.31
3,000-Meter Run
First Team: Noelle Linenfelser, So., Houghton – 10:46.87
Second Team: Emily Weaver, Gr., Nazareth – 10:53.34
Third Team: Laura Witt, Sr., St. John Fisher – 10:55.01
5,000-Meter Run
First Team: Noelle Linenfelser, So., Houghton – 18:40.62
Second Team: Lauren DeMichele, Sr., St. John Fisher – 18:55.03
Third Team: Riley Jameson, Jr., St. John Fisher – 19:03.28
4 x 400-Meter Relay
First Team: Mackenzie Mix, Jr., Janaiya Cruz-Bermudez, Sr., Abrianna Wadley, Gr., Arianna McClendon, Fr., Utica – 4:00.12 (Meet Record)
Second Team: Lauren Bendall, Sr., Alexis Lasher, So., Shiana Susa, So., Isabella Heath, Sr., Nazareth – 4:14.60
Third Team: Grace Dolan, Fr., Olivia Grinell, So., Sophia Leach, Fr., Caitlin Voloshen, So., St. John Fisher – 4:16:64
Distance Medley Relay
First Team: Allison List, Fr., Grace Dolan, Fr., Maggie Bacon, Fr., Caitlin Voloshen, So., St. John Fisher – 12:59.65
Second Team: Paige Ackley, Sr., Shiana Susa, So., Kennedy Rose, Fr., Emily Weaver, Gr., Nazareth – 13:05.54
Third Team: Kyra Binney, So., Sarah Coddington, Fr., Miranda Lyon, Fr., Tabitha Clark, Jr., Houghton – 14:03.67
Pole Vault
First Team: Isabel Morse, So., Nazareth – 3.30 meters
Second Team: Rosie Morse, So., Nazareth – 3.30 meters
Third Team: Kiara Tornusciolo, So., Nazareth – 3.30 meters
High Jump
First Team: Hannah Allison, Fr., Utica – 1.57 meters
Second Team: Sarah Merriweather, Gr., Nazareth – 1.51 meters
Third Team: Alaina Morley, So., Nazareth – 1.51 meters
Long Jump
First Team: Nora Devitt, Jr., Utica – 5.56 meters
Second Team: Alaina Morley, So., Nazareth – 5.45 meters
Third Team: Hannah Ragule, Sr., Nazareth – 5.41 meters
Triple Jump
First Team: Nora Devitt, Jr., Utica – 11.45 meters
Second Team: Isabella Heath, Sr., Nazareth – 11.09 meters
Third Team: Hannah Ragule, Sr., Nazareth – 10.94 meters
Shot Put
First Team: Jane Fahy, Gr., Utica – 14.20 meters (Meet Record)
Second Team: Allie Cary, Fr., Utica – 12.91 meters
Third Team: Madison Palmer, Gr., Houghton – 12.62 meters
Weight Throw
First Team: Lea Richard, Sr., Nazareth – 17.56 meters
Second Team: Madison Palmer, Gr., Houghton – 15.11 meters
Third Team: Makenna King, Sr., St. John Fisher – 14.78 meters
Pentathlon
First Team: Bianca Durso, Sr., Alfred – 2,950 points
Second Team: Hannah Ragule, Sr., Nazareth – 2,884 points
Third Team: Stefania Grimaldi, Fr., Utica – 2,815 points
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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