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WOMEN’S
DISTANCE
TOP RETURNERS
Katie Kennedy, Lauren Berman, Laurie Barton,
Sarah Edwards, Sara Freix, Kayla Richardson,
Rachel Pocratsky
NEWCOMERS
Ellie Brush, Katy Lobeda, Emily Schiesl
OVERVIEW
The biggest loss on either the men’s or
women’s teams came when Green graduated
after one of the greatest careers in Tech
track and field history. She departed as a six-
time ACC gold medalist and a six-time All-
American, and she holds or shares five school
records.
So can the Tech women’s team replace her?
Well, Tech’s cupboard certainly isn’t bare.
Edwards returns after an outstanding
freshman season in which she won the ACC
title in the 3,000-meter steeplechase during
the outdoor season, and she also earned All-
America honors at the NCAA’s outdoor meet.
She carried that success into the summer,
winning the gold medal in the same event at
the Pan American Junior Championships.
Barton also enjoyed a nice freshman
campaign. She came in fifth in the
800 at the ACC’s outdoor meet, and
then she won a silver in the 800 at
the USA Outdoor Championships,
qualifying for the Pan American
Junior Championships, where she
came in fifth.
In
addition,
Kennedy
and
Pocratsky earned All-ACC recognition
last season in the 1,500 and 800,
respectively. As the lone senior in the
distance crew, Kennedy serves as the
leader, and she enjoyed a fantastic
cross country season this past fall,
earning All-ACC and All-Southeast
Region honors.
So the Hokies do return some
talent. Each member just needs to do
a little more to make up for Green’s
production. If that happens, the
Hokies could win yet another ACC
crown, following up on their 2017
outdoor title.
DISTANCE COACH
BEN THOMAS’
TAKE
“The girls, with them winning the
[ACC] outdoor title last spring, it’s
just always fun to have more people
on the same mission, and I think the
girls see it is obviously attainable
now to win a title as well. So I’m just
really excited to have more people in
it to win it, not just physically, but
mentally, and I think we’ve got a real
chance to do that. It should be a fun
season.”
MEN’S JUMPS/
MULTI-EVENTS
TOP RETURNERS
Mackenzie Muldoon, James Carver, James Holt,
Will Kendall
NEWCOMER
Matthew Manilli
OVERVIEW
Muldoon, who competes mostly in the
heptathlon and decathlon, headlines the
group after enjoying a terrific junior season
in which he scored points at both the ACC
indoor and outdoor championship meets.
During the indoor season, he finished seventh
in the heptathlon at the league meet, scoring
5,166 points—the second-best total in school
history. He continued his strong work during
the outdoor season, finishing sixth in the
decathlon at the ACC meet with a personal-
best 6,758 points. Carver, Holt and Kendall
are high jumpers, with Kendall leading the
way. He recorded a top-10 finish in the high
jump at the ACC’s outdoor meet, just missing
out on earning All-ACC honors. His career
best of 2.06 meters (6 feet, 9 inches) during
the indoor season ranks as one of the top five
marks in school history. Tech’s plans call for
Manilli to compete in the heptathlon and
decathlon, and the staff thinks that he could
make an impact right away.
JUMPS/MULTI-EVENTS COACH
PAUL ZALEWSKI’S
TAKE
“I was really proud to see the growth and
development of Mackenzie Muldoon in the
combined events, not only as an athlete
and the improvement of his marks, but as a
competitor. To see that young man step up on
a consistent basis when the team needs him
at his best really impresses me and makes me
proud of him. And the best part, he’s even
better now than he was last year.
“Matt’s [Manilli] certainly got a lot to learn,
but, if what I’ve seen this fall is any indication,
this guy is going to do some great things for
the program in his career. And just having
him around and training with Muldoon, you
can see the balance that they bring each other.
Mack has a lot of experience that Matt is
learning from, and Matt gives Mack someone
to compete with every day in practice. They
feed off each other really well, and I think it’s
going to do wonders for them both this year.”
season preview
track & field
Neil Gourley
