CHICAGO (February 27, 2022) – The Ramblers' men's distance medley relay earned a runner-up finish, while seniors Kathleen Simms and Blake Buysse took home All-Valley honors as the Loyola University Chicago track & field teams opened competition today at the 2022 Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships in Chicago, Ill.
 
Competing in the final event of the night inside the Track & Field Center at Gately Park, the quartet of junior Timothy Harris, sophomore Miguel Abaitua, and freshmen Jason Clayton and Jack Slaughter registered a time of 10:00.32, the 10^th fastest mark in program history, to place behind only Illinois State (9:54.09) on the final leaderboard.  Tonight's effort extended the Ramblers' run of podium finishes in the event to four.  On the women's side of the distance medley relay, senior Olivia Orr, sophomore Fran Hendrickson, and freshmen Erin Connors and Nora Wollen joined forces to clock in at 10:22.99 and claim fourth place.
 
Simms impressed in the women's 5,000m run.  The Louisville, Ky. native locked up the second indoor All-MVC nod of her career, running 16:37.04 to take third.  Senior Claire Hengesbaugh (5^th; 16:30.13) and graduate students Mimi Reimers (7^th; 16:59.68) and Tarynn Cullings (8^th; 17:04.46) also put points on the board for the Maroon & Gold.
 
Buysse highlighted an impressive effort for Loyola in the men's 5,000m run that saw all four Ramblers who crossed the finish line record new personal bests.  The Wayzata, Minn. product shaved just over three seconds off his previous best time in the event, crossing in 14:19.84 to finish in third place.  Fellow seniors Nathan Kolbus (10^th; 14:40.50), Chantz Visse (11^th; 14:41.80), and Ian Cummings (12^th; 14:42.00) joined Buysse in setting new top times.
 
The pairing of sophomore Jayla Johnson and freshman Cameron Woods starred in the sprinting events today on Chicago's South Side.  Johnson added another chapter to a breakout campaign, notching a personal-best 8.81 to place third in her preliminary heat of the women's 60m hurdles and secure a spot in Monday's final.  Woods was impressive across the board, recording back-to-back personal bests in the 60m dash, the second of which saw him advance through a semifinal-round heat in 6.90 after a third-place heat finish.  He went on to see action in the 200m dash preliminaries, running 22.02 (9^th), a time that ranks 10^th all-time at Loyola.  Sophomore Jevan Terry added an impressive effort of his own in advancing out of the 60m dash preliminaries, racing through in a personal-best 6.97 to move to seventh in Rambler annals in the event.
 
Junior Ayoub El-Ashmawi came tantalizingly close to a spot in the men's 400m dash final, ultimately falling one one-hundredth of a second shy after picking up a preliminary heat victory in 49.55 (9^th).  On the women's side of the event, freshman Petra Cokaric secured a new personal best, running 58.40 (19^th).
 
The freshman duo of Grace Kuhn and Gabe Smit led the charge in the mile run preliminaries.  Kuhn raced through in a personal-best 5:12.34 (12^th), while Smit checked in at 4:18.17 (12^th). 
 
Sophomore Melissa Parrella carried the banner for Loyola in the field today, taking fourth in the women's long jump following a season-best leap of 18-05.00 (5.61m).  Parrella also made an impact on the track, posting a time of 7.92 (18^th) in the 60m dash preliminaries, a mark that is tied for the ninth fastest in program history.
 
Action at the 2022 Missouri Valley Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships wraps up on Monday beginning at 9:30 a.m.  Live coverage on The Valley on ESPN is slated for 11:15 a.m.