Track & Field sprints past competition at Concordia Legacy Meet

ANN ARBOR, Mich. - The Defiance College men's and women's track and field teams traveled north to Ann Arbor, Mich. on Saturday to compete in the Legacy Meet hosted by Concordia University Ann Arbor. The Yellow Jackets won two events on the day with Lisa Markau placing first in the women's 100-meters and the men's 4x100 relay team winning their race. The men's squad finished fifth out of nine teams while the women placed eighth out of eight.

Markau's time of 13.51 is a new personal best while the relay team made up of Ja'qway Janvier, Gashawn Moody, Joshua Gaffney, and Robert Marshall clocked a time of 43.39, the seventh-fastest in program history and the fastest in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference this season.

"Lisa got some confidence back in winning the 100 and we were really happy for her," said Defiance head coach  "She continues to fight every day and we are very proud of her."

"Both 4 x 100's did really well especially with last-minute changes to the men's relays due to some injuries. Gashawn Moody and Joshua Gaffney stepped in big in that relay for us. We expected Qway and Robert to do well, but Moody and Gaffney did an amazing job filling in last minute." said Christianson. 

The Yellow Jackets had impressive performances from Janvier, who finished second in the 100 (11.36) and third (22.88) in 200, and Marshall, who placed third in the 100 (11.40) and fourth in the 200 (22.92).

"Robert and Qway had big days for us and they are ready to do some good things at conference," said Christianson.

Shi'Nique Lawrence also had an impressive outing, placing fifth in the 100 (13.70) and setting personal bests in the 200-meters (28.94) and the high jump (1.44m). "Shi Nique continues to improve weekly with another big day for us in the high jump and the relay and open events," said Christianson.

The next competition for the Yellow Jackets will be the HCAC Outdoor Championship in Terre Haute, Ind. The two-day event hosted by the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology will take place on Friday, April 30, and Saturday, May 1. 

"We are excited to get an opportunity to have a conference championship. We expect to do some big things at conference despite dealing with a lot of challenges this outdoor season. We may not be full-strength next week, but we do expect to get some All-Conference performances." Christianson said. 

He added "I'm very proud of this group. Every track and field program in the country is dealing with many of the same issues right now. We have several people that can do some big things next week. I'm proud of this group for every day we get to the next and ready to face the next day. Our group continues to fight day after despite the emotional drain of this past year. No matter what happens next week I'll be proud of this group."