The Shippensburg University women's track & field team, buoyed by five conference titles and 21 place-winning performances on the final day of competition, overcame a Day 2 deficit to record its fourth consecutive PSAC outdoor championship on Saturday in Millersville, defeating second-place Kutztown by a 40-point margin.

Shippensburg, which scored 151 points en route to the league championship, claimed its fourth consecutive “Triple Crown” with the victory – an accomplishment that signifies conference titles in cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field in the same academic year. SU is the only PSAC school to achieve a “Triple Crown” and has won every league title in the three sports since the Fall of 2010.

The Raiders also had to face some adversity entering the final day of competition. After midnight on Saturday, SU's hotel was evacuated for a carbon monoxide scare – leaving both the men's and women's squads outside in the rain for more than four hours. Each member of the team had to be tested for carbon monoxide before it could return to the hotel, resulting in the athletes competing Sunday with limited rest.

“I cannot stress just how proud I am of this group,” head coach Dave Osanitsch remarked of his women's squad. “They could've rolled over and given in, but they never complained, they stood their ground and said that nothing was going to stop us.”

Shippensburg's effort was an especially convincing victory considering that no team was a decisive favorite entering the competition. In the end, it was an impressive performance by an upstart and motivated Kutztown squad that proved to be SU's biggest competition.

“The competition in the league is really great, and we give a huge bit of congratulations to (head coach) Ray Hoffman and Kutztown,” Osanitsch said. “The Golden Bears did an awesome job this weekend, and had a simply tremendous second day – racing out to the early lead. They were phenomenal.” 

The Raiders were simply too strong in many areas this weekend, but especially so in sprints and hurdles. Assistant coach Doug Knol instructed a contingent that scored 83 points out of just seven events – including at least two place-winners each in the 100-, 200- and 400-meter dashes and both the 100- and 400-meter hurdles. SU also won both the 4x100- and 4x400-meter relays.

“Coach Doug Knol's sprint and hurdles crew were simply awesome in this meet,” Osanitsch said. “For them to contribute as many points as they did is sensational.”

The most seasoned member of that talented crew is senior Caitlin Stuetz, who convincingly defended her conference titles in the 100- and 400-meter hurdles and ran the second leg of the victorious 4x400-meter relay squad – resulting in her receiving the PSAC Track and Overall MVP awards.

In four years of PSAC track competition, Stuetz successfully placed all eight times in outdoor hurdles competition – winning three 100-meter and two 400-meter titles in the process.

On Saturday, she completed the 100-meter hurdles in 14.08 seconds to match her school record that she had shared with Michelle Morcom entering (Stuetz ran 14.07 seconds in the prelims on Friday to claim the record for herself) before running the 400-meter hurdles in 1:00.81 – a season PR of more than one second that moves her to 13th in the national rankings.

“There are some special people that just get it done and are the model of consistency,” Osanitsch said. “Caitlin is one. You know she's going to line up and do very well. She has proven that she is the greatest hurdler in Shippensburg University history.”

SU scored 20 points alone in the 100-meter hurdles, as junior Lyndsay Barna placed fourth, sophomore Danesha Butler fifth and junior Daniesa Lyles eighth.

“It was pouring down rain and Caitlin didn't seem fazed by it; our team just kept piling on the points,” Osanitsch said. “I think Stuetz in the hurdles really set us off. Our girls did not get stressed.”

Joining Stuetz on the 4x4 relay that capped off the day was sophomore Bri Fells, junior Monique Clemons and freshman Megan Lundy – the quartet finished up in a season PR of 3:51.31.

The victorious 4x1 relay was composed of Clemons, sophomore Lauren Ellsworth, sophomore Yanie Gaston and senior Courtney Martin and set a new school record – finishing in a NCAA provisional qualifying time of 47.10 seconds.

Martin finished her collegiate career in fine fashion, posting a PR in the 200 meters of 24.98 seconds for a third-place finish – her first-ever sub 25-second time. She also placed sixth in the 100 meters (12.37 seconds). Her outstanding run as a Raider concludes with nine PSAC place-winning performances – including three in the 100, two in the 200 and four straight years on the 4x1 relay. The relay victory was her first conference championship and the third-place finish in the 200 was the highest individual place of her career.

Clemons was the only Raider to contribute points in four events. In addition to her turns on the relays, she finished fifth in the 200 meters (25.41 seconds) and fourth in the 400 meters (1:00.12). Her 400-meter prelim time yesterday of 58.07 seconds stands as her new PR.

Also in the open 400 meters, Lundy was edged at the finish line and settled for second place in 56.56 seconds, while Fells took sixth in 58.20 seconds. Meanwhile, Ellsworth placed fifth in the 100 meters (12.34 seconds) and seventh in the 200 meters (25.64), while Butler added seventh-place turn in the 400-meter hurdles (1:04.99).

Rounding out the track place-winners was junior Stephanie Pryor, who placed third in the 1,500 meters with a PR of 4:39.78. Pryor finished second in the 10K held Thursday night.

Not to be lost in Saturday's slew of performances is the effort of senior thrower Sarah Brotzman, who defended her PSAC championship in the discus with a stupendous PR throw of 146 feet, 2 inches that is an improvement on her personal best of almost five full feet.

Brotzman, a fifth-year senior who did not compete in 2011 because she was studying abroad in South Korea, finishes up as a three-time All-PSAC performer in the discus – supporting her back-to-back PSAC titles in the discus with a second-place finish in 2010. She also placed second last season in the hammer and fourth yesterday in the shot put.

Three other throwers scored points on Saturday. Freshman Briana Davis joined Brotzman on the discus awards platform by placing fifth with a top throw of 123 feet, 9 inches.

In the javelin, junior Lauren Merk notched her second career PSAC place-winning performance with a sixth-place, PR throw of 125 feet, 11 inches. Merk's high school teammate, fellow junior Ashley Merton, extended her streak of consecutive PSAC place-winning performances to three with an eighth-place throw of 124 feet, 8 inches.




Saturday Place-Winners

100
5. Lauren Ellsworth 12.34
6. Courtney Martin 12.37

200
3. Courtney Martin 24.98
5. Monique Clemons 25.41
7. Lauren Ellsworth 25.64

400
2. Megan Lundy 56.56
6. Bri Fells 58.20
8. Monique Clemons 1:00.12

1500
3. Stephanie Pryor 4:39.78

100H
1. Caitlin Stuetz 14.08 (NCAA P)
4. Lyndsay Barna 14.78
5. Danesha Butler 14.84
8. Daniesa Lyles 15.47

400H
1. Caitlin Stuetz 1:00.81 (NCAA P)
7. Danesha Butler 1:04.99

4x400
1. Megan Lundy, Bri Fells, Caitlin Stuetz, Monique Clemons 3:51.31

4x100
1. Monique Clemons, Lauren Ellsworth, Yanie Gaston, Courtney Martin 47.10 (NCAA P)

Discus
1. Sarah Brotzman 146' 2” (NCAA P)
5. Briana Davis 123' 9”

Javelin
6. Lauren Merk 125' 11”
8. Ashley Merton 124' 8”