Men’s Cross Country & Women’s Track: Runners Set Records At SPIRE

Steve Boltri
Staff Writer

The University of Dayton men’s cross country team and women’s track team hit the track Feb. 10 at the SPIRE Invitational in Geneva, Ohio.

Both teams had successful showings with a number of athletes earning a handful of spots on the podium, breaking personal records (PR’s) and even a few school records. In total, the men’s and women’s teams each posted nine PR’s.

Men’s Cross Country

Two of those PR’s came in the men’s 5000m, achieved by sophomore J.P Flavin and junior Spencer Danielson, respectively, earning them second and third place in that race. Flavin’s time of 14:35.10 is a new school record.

“J.P Flavin was our big standing out, breaking the school record in the 5K,” coach Jason Ordway commented. “[The team] was very impressive in the longer distance on the night.”

With a time of 4:07.53, junior Chris Negri broke the one mile school record for UD, which he had set just the week prior.
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Ordway was impressed and encouraged by Negri’s performance.

“Today, Chris Negri broke his own record in the mile with a 4:07. It was a big step for him to open the season with that kind of time,” he said.

“Makes us excited to get into the outdoor season and get some nicer weather so we can get some workouts in outside.”

The men have officially completed the indoor season and aren’t in action again until they kick off the outdoor season on Mar. 30 when they head to Cincinnati for the Oliver Nikoloff Invitational.

Women’s Track

On the women’s side, standout performances included the distance medley relay team of redshirt sophomore Emily Borchers, senior Brittany Fisher, freshman Emma Jankowski and sophomore Chloe Flora, who collectively set a PR with a time of 12:00.33 and placed first in that event.

Individually, junior Taylor Vernot impressed in the one mile with a PR and a new school record of 4:47.59, which earned her second-place honors.

Vernot’s outstanding performance earned her recognition as A-10 Track Performer of the Week.

“I’m definitely very humbled to get that honor,” Vernot said. “There’s a lot of track athletes in our conference so to be named the best one this week was amazing.”

With the A-10 Championships quickly approaching, the women’s team seems to be heating up at just the right time.

“This is a great time to be improving,” Vernot said.

“We’re heading right into the conference meet. We’ve got a great lineup I think; a lot of people are really excited to get back on the track and race against our conference competitors. Everybody’s really ready.”
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Despite breaking the school record last weekend in the one mile, Vernot will not be competing in that event this weekend at the conference championships. She’s poised and focused to grab PR’s and podium spots in both the 3K and 5K races.

“I would like to get some new personal bests,” she said. “I would like to get on the podium for both my races. Hopefully that can be achieved.”

As for the team as a whole, Vernot is confident in its ability.

“Team-wise, definitely the big overarching goal for us is a conference championship; that would be amazing,” she said. “I think we have the capability and the potential to do that.”

The team seems focused and ready to give their best at the conference championships in Rhode Island this weekend, Feb. 17-18, and hopes to return home with a title.

Photo Courtesy of Dayton Athletics