LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Golden Eagle track & field team hit their stride at the Elliston Earlybird Invitational, with Clarion athletes winning three individual events and performing well in others at the meet hosted by Lock Haven.
 
In the distance events, Bailey Royhab set the pace for the field in the 10,000m, winning the event by a margin of 44 seconds. The freshman made her debut in long-distance race, breaking the tape in 41:10.48, coming up just 10 seconds shy of automatic qualification for the PSAC Outdoor Championships in May. It was also 44 seconds faster than Lock Haven's Molly Snyder, who took second place.
 
Three Golden Eagles placed in the top-four of the 3000m Steeplechase, with Abby Sullivan and Gabby Kutchma both hitting PSAC qualifying marks in the process. Sullivan took second overall with a time of 11:58.32, while Kutchma crossed the line in 12:05.75. Mackenzie Carver placed third in the 800m, finishing in 2:28.90.
 
Clarion's other two victors came in the field, with Shelly Jones and Emma Pesicka winning the Shot Put and Discus events, respectively. Jones won the Shot Put with her fourth throw of the day, hitting a mark of 12.14m. That was the only throw by any competitor in the field to clear 12 meters. Pesicka, meanwhile, improved on her previous Discus toss of 38.21m with a mark of 38.34m at Lock Haven. That came on her third toss of the day, and put her more than two full meters ahead of teammate and second-place finisher Madison Brooks.
 
Brooks had a strong day in the field as well, hitting a PR in the Hammer that shot her onto the program's all-time top-five list in the event. Brooks threw the implement 38.63m, good enough for fifth place at the meet and fourth on the all-time performance list at Clarion.
 
In the jumps, Sadie Leisinger placed second in the High Jump with a mark of 1.57m, giving her a new outdoor PR in the event and qualifying her for the conference championships. Delaney Beard hit the conference mark in the Triple Jump, posting a PR of 11.13m to place third in the field.
 
Back in the track events, Leah Perry stood out in the 100H, taking second overall with a time of 17.06. She also placed fourth in the 400H with a time of 1:14.56, and took fifth in the High Jump at 1.47m.