California, PA - Senior Alayna Merkle (Chambersburg, PA) and freshman Bill Oplinger (Kiski Area) both had second place finishes at California University (PA)′s early bird meet to open the outdoor season.
Merkle finished second in the 800 meters and sixth in the 1500 meters to lead seven Geneva women finishing in the top 10 in nine events. Oplinger finished second in the triple jump and fifth in the long jump to lead 15 Golden Tornadoes men finishing in the top 10 in 19 events. The meet was not scored as a team event but provided a valuable chance to break into the outdoor season.
"Our plan is to use these first few outdoor meets as tools to evaluate our athletes in a variety of events," said Geneva track coach Brian Yowler. "It′s a tremendous amount of fun seeing many of our freshmen discover that they can be competitive on the collegiate level."
Both teams will get a chance to build on this opening experience with a meet at Grove City Saturday.
Geneva athletes that placed in the Top Ten at California University′s Early Bird Meet
Women:
Alayna Merkle, 2nd in 800 meters, 6th in 1500 meters
Anna Kluitenberg, 4th in 3000 meter steeplechase
Samantha Fisher, 5th in high jump, 9th in long jump
Rebekah Rupert, 5th in javelin
Mary Keen, 6th in discus
Morgan Peaco, 6th in high jump
Sarah Foy, 7th in shot put
Men:
Bill Oplinger, 2nd in triple jump, 5th in long jump
Jacob LaGorga, 3rd in pole vault
Jacob Mellinger, 3rd in 400 meters
Jordan Rupert, 3rd in javelin
Dalton Paxson, 4th in triple jump, 6th in high jump
Josh Guiser, 5th in 100 meters, 6th in 200 meters
Colin Craig, 6th in triple jump
Ken Kutcel, 6th in 10,000 meter run
Isaac Barringer, 7th in discus, 9th in shot put
Matt Pherson, 7th in javelin
Matt Logan, 8th in discus
Clay Joseph, 9th in triple jump, 10th in long jump
Michael Savino, 9th in 110 hurdles
4x100 meter relay finished third - LaGorga, Aaron Marga, Billy Thomas, and Mellinger
Geneva College invites students to accept the challenge of an academically excellent, Christ-centered education. Offering nearly 40 undergraduate majors, Adult Degree Programs with fully online and campus-based options, and seven graduate degrees, Geneva has programs that place students at the forefront of higher learning. Adhering to the inerrancy of Scripture, a Geneva education is grounded in God′s word as well as in a core curriculum designed to prepare students vocationally to think, write and communicate well in today′s world.