Wayne State University Athletics

Emily Gordon broke the school record in the 800m run.

Women's Track & Field 2/10/2023 3:53:00 PM Jeff Weiss, Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Media Relations

Record-Breaking Performances Highlight Warriors At Big Meet Friday

Gordon broke the school record in the 800m run.

ALLENDALE, Mich. -- Select members of the Wayne State University women's indoor track and field squad qualified to compete on Friday at the GVSU Big Meet with sophomore Emily Gordon (Northville, Mich.) breaking the school record in the 800m run with an NCAA Provisional time of 2:12.19, which currently ranks 14th in NCAA Division 2 this winter. The school record was set exactly six years to the date (2-10-2017) by Jackie Feist.

QUOTING COACH LOFDAHL
"This weekend we wanted a chance for our top athletes to go up against elite competition, and they stepped up and did some very good things.

"Our relay teams really stepped up, with Elyse Miller running on both of them. The 4x400 team won their heat and with two freshmen and two sophomores competing, it was great experience for a young group that will help them down the road.

"The distance medley crew had a fantastic run on Saturday. Emily Gordon ran an excellent school record 800 the previous night and she ran a gutsy opening leg on the relay. Elyse ran like a seasoned veteran for the second day in a row and got the baton to Rachel who had a breakthrough performance with a high-2:13 split for the 800-meter leg. Thailyia stepped up on the anchor 1600-meter leg against some outstanding milers and held her own with a sub-5 minute performance.

"Reagan Justice had a big indoor PR and just missed breaking our school record in the 5K, and Kaleigh Flowers had another big effort in weight throw. Thailyia in the 3K and Mikayla Williams in long jump and triple jump both had solid efforts as well."

5000m Run
Sophomore Reagan Justice (Canton, Mich. / Salem) recorded the second-fastest time in program history with a provisional mark of 17:01.69 bettering her PR by 26 seconds. The school record of 17:01.55 was set eight years ago by Chelsea Johnson.

Senior Charlene Yarema (Romeo, Mich.) notched a time of 17:51.78, while redshirt senior Ashley Defrain [Ash Goldyn] (Fort Gratiot, Mich. / Port Huron Northern) placed 11th in her heat crossing the finish line in 17:53.67.

60m Hurdles
Sophomore Kay-Lee McSwain (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Huron) finished 28th in a time of 9.21.

60m Dash
Freshman Avery Wilson (Davison, Mich.) placed 28th (7.867), while junior Mikaela Owen (Bridgman, Mich.) finished 44th (8.11).

400m Dash
Sophomore Renae Kutcha (Jackson, Mich. / Lumen Christi) crossed the finish line in 59.04.

3000m Run
Senior Thailyia Christensen (Flushing, Mich.) recorded the fifth-fastest time in program history clocking in at 10:00.64.

4x400m Relay
The WSU quartet of freshman Elyse Miller (Woodhaven, Mich. / Gibraltar Carlson), Kutcha, Wilson and sophomore Makenzie Wellner (Menominee, Mich.) turned in a time of 3:53.90, the second-fastest in school history trailing only the 2016 GLIAC Championship meet performance by Imani Bush, Leah Ellis, Dazmonique Carr and Jordan Baker.

Long Jump
In the Invite section, senior Mikayla Williams (St. Charles, Mich.) placed sixth with a distance of 5.31m, trailing only five Division 1 athletes.

Triple Jump
Williams finished seventh with a mark of 11.15m.

Weight Throw
Graduate student Kaleigh Flowers (Grand Rapids, Mich. / East Kentwood) posted a provisional mark of 17.02m on her third attempt to finish third.

Saturday - DMR
Wayne State's DMR shattered the school record by nearly 17 running an NCAA Provisional time of 11:46.88. The quartet consisted of Gordon, Miller, freshman Rachel Felstow (Leonard, Mich. / Romeo) and Christensen.

DMR - School Record (Emily Gordon, Thailyia Christensen, Rachel Felstow and Elyse Miller).

UP NEXT
In its last competition before the GLIAC Indoor Championships, Wayne State will participate in the SVSU Tune-Up on Friday, Feb. 17.

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Players Mentioned

Thailyia Christensen: Mid-Distance; 5' 3"; Senior; 4-Indoor/3-Outdoor

Ashley Defrain: Distance; 5' 4"; Redshirt Senior; 5-Indoor/3-Outdoor

Kaleigh Flowers: Throws; 6' 2"; Graduate Student; 5-Indoor/3-Outdoor

Emily Gordon: Mid-Distance; 5' 7"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor

Reagan Justice: Distance; 5' 4"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor

Renae Kutcha: Sprints; 5' 7"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor

Kay-Lee McSwain: Hurdles; 5' 6"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/1-Outdoor

Elyse Miller: Sprints; 5' 9"; Freshman; 1-Indoor/1-Outdoor

Mikaela Owen: Sprints; 5' 6"; Junior; 3-Indoor/2-Outdoor

Makenzie Wellner: Sprints/Hurdles; 5' 8"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor

Players Mentioned

Thailyia Christensen
: 5' 3"; Senior; 4-Indoor/3-Outdoor
: Mid-Distance

Ashley Defrain
: 5' 4"; Redshirt Senior; 5-Indoor/3-Outdoor
: Distance

Kaleigh Flowers
: 6' 2"; Graduate Student; 5-Indoor/3-Outdoor
: Throws

Emily Gordon
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor
: Mid-Distance

Reagan Justice
: 5' 4"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor
: Distance

Renae Kutcha
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor
: Sprints

Kay-Lee McSwain
: 5' 6"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/1-Outdoor
: Hurdles

Elyse Miller
: 5' 9"; Freshman; 1-Indoor/1-Outdoor
: Sprints

Mikaela Owen
: 5' 6"; Junior; 3-Indoor/2-Outdoor
: Sprints

Makenzie Wellner
: 5' 8"; Sophomore; 2-Indoor/2-Outdoor
: Sprints/Hurdles