Mt. SAC Relays Results | Bryan Clay Invitational Results

TORRANCE, Calif. (April 20, 2018) – Senior Emma Hatch and junior Kevin White both jumped up the NCAA West Region leaderboards with strong showings for the Loyola University Chicago track & field team at the Mt. SAC Relays in Torrance, Calif.
 
"We kept the momentum heading into today and put up numerous top MVC and NCAA Regional marks," Loyola head track & field coach Bob Thurnhoffer said.  "It was so excited to have Michael (Edwards) kick it off with a big personal best in the 400m dash.  Kiera (Washpun) put some great jumps out there and showed she's on the verge of a regional qualifying mark, while Eric (Burns) hit what may be a regional mark as he extended his MVC lead.  Kevin also put up a huge run over at Mt. SAC as well."
 
Racing in the 10,000m run in the late hours of Thursday evening, Hatch turned in a sparkling time of 34:41.02 as she finished second overall.  The Cleves, Ohio product's time, which was the third fastest in program history, extended her lead atop the Missouri Valley Conference leaderboard and unofficially puts her 24^th on the 10,000m run regional chart.  Freshman Mimi Reimers capped off an impressive 24 hours for the Rambler women at the meet in the 5,000m run, as she came across in 16:55.39, the second fastest time in the Valley this season, to move to eighth on the program's outdoor record board in the event.
 
"Emma ran an outstanding race," Loyola assistant track & field coach Alan Peterson commented.  "She stayed patient and made the right moves at the right time.  She's been ready for a breakout race for quite some time, so I'm very excited for her that it finally happened."
 
White posted in a personal-best showing in the 1,500m run, taking seventh place in 3:45.62.  That time moves the Wooster, Ohio native up to fifth on Loyola's all-time top 10 in the event, while also elevating White up to second in the MVC and 20^th in the West Region.  In the 5,000m run, redshirt senior Alex Baker added a season-best time of 14:19.43. 

"Kevin running a five-second personal best today should not be a surprise to anyone," Loyola assistant coach Mircea Bogdan said.  "He has had this result in store for a long time and I'm so happy to see it come through.  Alex ran a solid race and is getting closer to what we know he can do.  The goal is to have him in great shape for the MVC meet, where he can attack the podium."
 
The Maroon & Gold also received several standout performances at the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif.  Leading the way was the long jump pairing of senior Kiera Washpun and sophomore Eric Burns.  Washpun notched a season-best leap of 19-03.25 (5.87m) that moves her into a tie for third in the Valley, while Burns reached 24-05.50 (7.43m) to extend his lead atop the conference leaderboard.  Sophomore Michael Papper moved to 10^th all-time at Loyola with a top jump of 21-06.25 (6.56m). 
 
On the track, sophomore Michael Edwards got the day off to a flying start for the Ramblers in the 400m dash.  Edwards crossed with a personal-best time of 48.25 as he finished 13^th overall.  Senior Cassie Bloch climbed to third all-time at Loyola in the 1,500m run, where she recorded a near three-second personal best, coming through in 4:27.64.  On the men's side of the 1,500m run, sophomore Demetri Panici added a personal-best of his own in the 1,500m run, checking in at 3:53.81. 
 
"The theme of the weekend is to see how many NCAA Regional level marks we can get," Thurnhoffer concluded.  "It's been a lot of fun competing and chasing big showings and we still have plenty of competition to go."
 
Loyola closes out its weekend in The Golden State on Saturday when it makes the short trip to Long Beach, Calif. for the Beach Invitational.