Women's Track and Field | 3/29/2025 10:56:00 PM

Oberlin, Ohio - The Oberlin College track and field teams opened the outdoor season this weekend at the Bob Kahn Invitational, hosted at home. The meet memorializes Robert Lewis Kahn '55, a major Oberlin donor who funded the outdoor track now bearing his name. This weekend, the men's team set 18 personal bests and eight conference-qualifying marks, while the women's team picked up 9 and 6, respectively. Many of these personal bests came from athletes' debut competitions, as the outdoor season features different events than indoors. 
 
Friday's weather made for challenging conditions as athletes battled heavy rain and a vicious southerly wind. Early in the meet, a strong gust even flipped Oberlin's large timing tent upside down.
 
Largely due to that wind, few of Oberlin's entrants in the 5,000m ran near their best times. Senior Jonah Barber won the men's race, outkicking classmate Walter Moak on the final homestretch. Though both men aimed to run under fifteen minutes, their times of 15:22 and 15:23 easily clear the conference standard. On the women's side, sophomore Zosia Mateja collected a season-best in 19:28.
 
On the jumps runway, senior Heather Benway and junior Anna Fritz harnessed a strong tailwind in the long jump, despite cold muscles and lashing rain. Benway jumped 5.20m (+5.4) in her final attempt, while Fritz leapt a season best of 5.03m (+5.4). Benway logged all six legal jumps, the shortest of which was still 4.98m. Since the conference has no legal wind limit, both women's marks meet the conference standard of 4.93m. 
 
In the hammer throw, Mary Howell (29.68m), Judah Moenoa (28.69m) and Abraham Cromartie V (33.10m) all made their debuts in the event. 
 
In the javelin, junior Namu Makatiani opened his season with a mark of 41.99m. Fellow junior Andres Adam set a new personal best of 31.35m, while senior Carson Franks threw 35.07 in his debut. 
 
Saturday's weather was far better, with weaker wind and only transient rain showers. Starting the day in the triple jump, Makatiani uncorked a season best jump of 14.51m (+3.3). This winter, Makatiani's indoor best of 14.41m qualified him for the national championships, where he finished 14th. Although the junior will likely need a few more inches to make it to the outdoor installment, today's jump marks a portentous start to his outdoor campaign. 
 
Later in the meet, Makatiani returned for the 110m hurdles. The Nairobi, Kenya native crossed the line in a personal best of 15.05 (+0.6), good for #3 in school history.
 
In the women's pole vault, senior Elinor Frost flew to a season-best mark of 2.75m. Frost, who also stands on four top-10 lists for the swim team, is now well positioned to contend for points at the conference meet.
 
In the shot put, Junior Celia Vaughn shoved the metal sphere 8.79m, adding a centimeter to her previous best.
 
Rounding out the weekend's field events, several Oberlin throwers hurled personal bests in the discus. Howell (22.22m), Moenoa (26.16m) and Cromartie (33.60m) each contested the event for the first time.
 
In the women's 4x100m relay, Benway and Fritz joined junior Ryley Steggall, and first-year Yrva Desormeaux to clock 50.29 in their season opener. Today's time is faster than any race the Yeowomen ran last year, and was achieved with no other teams on the track. 
 
In the day's middle distance action, sophomore Piers Shirk and junior Liam Newman led the Yeomen in the 1500m. Shirk kicked for the win in 3:59.08, while Newman held on for third in 4:00.44. Newman's time was a two-second improvement on his previous best, while Shirk's is the first sub-four run in the conference this year. Both men's times easily surpass the NCAC-qualifying time.
 
Doubling back in the 800m, Newman added another personal best in 1:58.91.
 
In the men's 400m, first-year Raluchi Obioha crossed the line in 53.71, a personal best by nearly two seconds. Junior Treyce Wood also improved his personal best in the one-lap race, clocking 50.88 to meet a conference-qualifying time in the event. On the women's side, junior Clara Smith ran a season best of 64.86.
 
Several Oberlin sprinters ran personal bests in the 100m dash. Freshman Suryansh Yadav ran 11.50 (+2.3) in his first collegiate race, while Adam (12.05) and freshman Miles Nance (11.87) each ran personal bests from the third heat (+1.4).
 
On the women's side, first-year Sawyer Ramberg ran 13.81 (+0.9) in her debut, while Steggall notched a conference qualifying time in 12.77 (+0.9).
 
Just as many Oberlin sprinters ran personal bests in the 200m as they did in its diminutive cousin. Adam came back from the 100m to run a best of 24.48 (+2.0). Nance doubled back to run a hefty personal best of 23.98 (+3.1). First-year Josiah Howard opened his outdoor season with Oberlin's third personal best in the event, running 24.15 (+2.0).
 
The women's squad in the metric furlong was as successful as they were in the century. Ramberg and Benway returned from the 100m to run personal bests of 28.08 (+1.6) and 27.37 (+0.3), respectively. It was Benway's first time contesting the event. Steggall doubled back to run a season best and conference-qualifying mark of 26.57 (+3.2).
 
Senior Cole Fuller opened his season in the 400 hurdles, winning his signature race in 54.95. This season, the school record holder at 53.60 will aim to earn his third conference title in the event. Desormeaux led the Yeowomen in the same race, running a personal best of 71.99.
 
Sophomore Char Purcell and senior Caleigh Lyons were the sole entrants in the women's steeplechase. Both runners met the conference standard in the event, with Purcell at 12:02.97 and Lyons at 12:25.77. Purcell lopped a full 90 seconds off of her former best, continuing her streak of massive personal bests.
 
At the end of the meet, the men's 4x400m relay ran a season-best time of 3:22.40. The squad of Fuller, senior Ezra Taub, sophomore Armand Andry, and senior Sam Fechner produced an eight-second improvement on the team's best indoor time. Andry and Fechner returned to the relay for the first time since last May, buoying the squad's hopes for the outdoor season. Both men were on the school record squad that ran 3:15.16 last winter, but missed this year's indoor season due to injury.
 
The women's 4x400m team of Vaughn, Smith, senior Lillian McFarlin, and senior Sage Serraino ran 4:25.24.
 
As the last full home meet of the season, today's meet also served as the senior day for graduating track and field athletes. The Crimson and Gold honored every graduating member of the team at the end of Saturday's competition. In a moving ceremony held near the finish line, each graduating athlete ran through a tunnel of cheering teammates as jumps coach Ray Harris read aloud their accomplishments and fondest track memories.
 
Head Coach Ben Wach was pleased with the team's performance this weekend. "This meet showed what makes outdoor track cool," Wach said. "We had monsoon rain on Friday and great conditions on Saturday, but our athletes brought intensity and focus in both." 
 
Next weekend, the Crimson and Gold compete at the Wooster Invitational, Friday April 4th and Saturday April 5th. Events start at 1:30 on Friday, and 11:00 on Saturday. 
 
Fans can keep up with their favorite teams on Instagram, Facebook, X, or TikTok, and watch all the home matches live online. The Crimson and Gold's home broadcasts can be accessed on TV through the official Oberlin College Sports Network app on Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV.