WINNIPEG, MB – The Marauders finished off their season at the U SPORTS Championships this past weekend in Manitoba. Many young McMaster athletes raced in their U SPORTS debut and will hope to bring this experience into their seasons to come.  

The Marauders competed in four events: the women's 1500m, women's 3000m, women's 4x800m relay, and the men's 4x800m relay. McMaster specializes in distance track, and they competed only on the second and third day of competition. The Guelph Gryphons put up an impressive performance, winning the U SPORTS title on both the men's and women's sides this year. The results can be found here: https://live.athleticsmanitoba.com/meets/30467
 

Results 

Friday, March 8th

Kaitlyn Treleaven and Victoria Lamb were the first two Marauders to race last weekend, as they competed in the 3000m race. Third year Treleaven held the OUA 3000m title from earlier in February with a time of 9:43.17 and was hoping to put up a strong race at the national level. McMaster's 3000m runners started out strong, as the main pack stayed close together for the first kilometer. The runners began to spread out, but Treleaven stayed with the front of the pack, until an unfortunate fall put her behind in the last kilometer of the race. After that set back, the third year got up quickly and fought hard to stay in the race, ultimately finishing in 10th (9:56.87) while teammate Lamb finished behind her in 12th (10:11.36). 

Rosalyn Barrett opened the women's 4x800m relay for McMaster, putting the team in a good position into the first transition where Olivia MacAskill took over. MacAskill held onto the fifth-place spot as the competition began to stretch out. Kaylee White took over as the third runner, fighting with the 12 other teams in the race. Veteran Hannah Goodjohn ran the last leg of the race, and Marauders managed to cross the finish line in 11th (9:11.57).  

The men's 4x800m relay followed the women's relay as the last event of the day, where McMaster's team consisted of Tristan Bouius, Noah Mulkewich, Will Weist, Samuel Patrick, and alternate Connor Black. McMaster's relay was seeded with the tenth fastest time, 7:36.99. The race was many young Marauders their U SPORTS debut, and first year Bouius started off the relay. The start of the race was chaotic, with Queen's and McGill dropping their batons in the first 10 meters of the race. The Marauders fought hard, as Mulkewich took the baton into the first transition. The runners quickly spread out over the track, as second year Weist ran the third leg of the race. First year Patrick finished off the race for McMaster, as they placed 10th with a time of 7:47.97.  

Saturday, March 9th 

Third year Lamb was the only Marauder to race on Saturday, as she competed in the women's 1500m. Lamb was ranked ninth going in, and as the race started the runners seemed to stay together in a group for the first few laps. Mid-race, the separation began to build within the pack, as Lamb ran at the back of the group. The kinesiology major finished in 12th with a time of 4:37.28.  
 

Final U SPORTS Team Standings:    

U SPORTS Major Award Winners:   

Women:

Athlete of the year (track events): Audrey Leduc, Laval 

Athlete of the year (field events): Jennifer Elizarov, Guelph 

Rookie of the year: Chloe Turner, Calgary 

Student-athlete community service award: Celia Markovinovic, Waterloo 

Men:

Athlete of the year (track events): Max Davies, Guelph 

Athlete of the year (field events): Noel Vanderzee, Calgary 

Rookie of the year: Thomas Péladeau, Sherbrooke 

Student-athlete community service award: Evan Essapa, Saskatchewan