ROCHESTER, NY – The Alfred University women's track & field team competed in its final regular season meet with a trip to Empire 8 local, St. John Fisher University on Saturday.
 
The Saxons were led by Mari Jablonski (Monticello, GA/Jasper County) as she ran a total of 15,000-meters on Saturday. She added the 5,000-meter race to her schedule but it was her 10K that was the highlight. From the starter's gun, to the final crossing of the finish line, Jablonski held a lead over the other competitors, clocking in a time of 42:02.92 to win the race. She crossed the finish line with a two-minute lead.
 
"Despite another day of wind, rain, and slightly cold temps, the AU men and women were successful," Interim Head Coach Matt Phillips '10 said. "It's at this point in the season where we are gearing towards championships. Our workouts have shifted to get our student-athletes into a position to execute some really fast times, big jumps and far throws. Today we had some awesome performances. I hope the athletes are as excited as the coaching staff is. We cannot wait to see what they are capable of next week as we head to Utica for our Empire 8 Conference meet."
 
AU had a pair of fourth place finishes in the meet, both coming from jumping field events. Bianca Durso (Utica, NY/New Hartford Senior) tied with Alfred State's Emma Taggart and St. John Fisher's Claudia Vogel in the high jump. The three each cleared 1.52m (4'-11.75"). Nyah Solly (Colden, NY/Springville-Griffith Institute) claimed her fourth place finish with her fifth attempt in the triple jump. She marked a distance of 10.79m (35'-4.75").
 
Back on the track, Durso and Solly were joined by Lina Young (North Collins, NY/North Collins) and Anne Spila (Mechanicsburg, PA/Trinity) for the 4x100-meter relay. The squad finished fifth out of 11 teams with a time of 51.53. They edged out Buffalo State in the final steps as the Bengal team ran a 51.58. AU was just behind the team from Nazareth College, who clocked a time of 50.54.
 
The Saxons added two seventh place finishes, one from the track and one from the field. Olivia Gilbert (Ontario, NY/Wayne Central) ran a 1:01.23 in the 400-meter dash while Madison Palmer (East Aurora, NY/East Aurora), on her fifth throw in the shot put, marked her best distance of the day at 11.44m (37'-6.5").
 
McKenzie Hall (Hornell, NY/Hornell) rounded out the top finishes as she ran in the 1,500-meter run on Saturday. She ran her third personal best time in a row in the event. Prior to the 2023 outdoor season, Hall had a personal best time of 5:08.89, ran in last year's St. John Fisher Cardinal Classic. She broke it first at the Jim Taylor Invite at Susquehanna University with a time of 5:07.47. Hall smashed past that at the Messiah University invite just two weeks ago with a time of 5:00.46. She now has a time of 4:59.54 and is now one of seven runners in the Empire 8 this season to break five minutes.
 
The Saxons will next travel to Utica University to take part in the 2023 Empire 8 Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Friday, May 5 and Saturday, May 6.