Rockhurst University’s men’s and women’s track and field teams wrapped up their second official indoor season with a series of record-breaking performances at the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) Indoor Track and Field Championships held March 1-2 at the University of Indianapolis Athletics & Recreation Center.
The women’s team posted eight top-25 finishes at the meet and broke numerous school records.
Sophomore Alexis Borum had a standout performance, breaking the school record in the 800m with a time of 2:23.90 to place 20th. She also anchored the distance medley relay (DMR) team alongside freshman Theresa Berger, sophomore Alexis O’Mara and freshman Ellie Beck, helping them secure ninth place with a school record time of 13:12.45. Borum’s mile split of 5:20 in the relay marked a 10-second personal best.
The Hawks’ 4×400 relay team of Berger, Beck, freshman Leah Heck and senior Paige Pistono also showed strong improvement, running 4:17.72 to finish 10th, an eight-second improvement from last year’s conference meet and a new school record.
Sophomore Sarah Farrens placed 19th in the 5000m, while sophomore Molly McClung finished 21st in the 3000m. Heck took 13th in the triple jump, while freshman Ar’Janay Landers placed 15th in the long jump and 17th in the triple jump. O’Mara was recognized as the Hawks’ nominee for the GLVC’s James R. Spalding Sportsmanship award.
The men’s team shared similar success.
Freshman Noah Britton set a new program best in the 800m with a time of 1:53.65, earning fourth place. Sophomore Cole Erusha also made history, breaking the school record in the long jump with a mark of 22-11, securing sixth place. The Hawks’ 4×400 relay team of freshman Nick Marchetti, sophomore Ethan Beach, Britton and freshman Lucas Boyer placed fourth with a school record time of 3:19.67.
Other notable performances include sophomore Andrew Hartegan’s eighth-place 4:21.43 mile run and freshman Myles Jackson’s eighth-place 21-11.50 long jump. Additionally, Jackson was recognized as the Hawks’ nominee for the GLVC’s James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Award.
Reflecting on the conference meet, Cole Bosley, the men’s and women’s head coach, emphasized the progress the program has made.
“We are in an incredibly talented conference, so for us to go in there in our second year as a program and compete with the best of them—and even score some points—I was very proud,” Bosley said. “Almost every athlete performed better than they were projected to.”
Aside from their improvements on the stats sheet, the teams have worked to build a positive team culture. Bosley introduced the “Hawk of the Meet” award as one way to do this.
“When I was an athlete and graduate assistant at Long Beach State University, our head coach had a ‘Big Dog of the Meet’ award,” Bosley said. “I thought it was a fun way to acknowledge great performances and help the team rally around each other.”
The team faced several challenges throughout the season, including illness and weather conditions.
“The flu was running through our team pretty heavily, which was tough because it breaks up the training cycle and consistency,” Bosley said. “The weather was another challenge—when we had blizzard-like conditions, it was tough to get to our indoor track for practice.”
Despite these setbacks, the team adapted.
“If someone was sick, they did what they could, like easy biking or just resting,” Bosley said. “When we couldn’t get to the track, we found other ways to get great workouts in. The team did an amazing job of being flexible.”
With a strong indoor season behind them, Rockhurst’s track and field athletes now shift their focus to the outdoor season, aiming to build on their successes and continue developing as a competitive program in their second year.
“The transition is different for everyone,” Bosley said. “We take a couple of days to reset, but then we hit training hard to make sure our bodies know we have more to accomplish.”
Looking ahead, the team’s goals remain focused on process and effort rather than specific times or placements.
“We try not to talk about specific places or marks,” Bosley said. “Our focus is on putting in the work every day and being the best teammates we can be. If we do that, our performances will reflect it.”
