ST. PAUL, MN – A near-record performance by Morgan Hertz and a pair of runner-up finishes by the University of Mary relay teams on the final day of the 2023 Northern Sun women's outdoor track & field championships lifted the Marauders to 4^th place overall. Sakena Massiah and Nicole Kramchynsky also added All-NSIC finishes for UMary to wrap up the championships.
 
"The women's team scored 12 points more than expected and the energy was high today as everyone emptied the tank for the final meet of the year," said Marauders head coach Cale Korbelik. "I couldn't ask for a better effort given and the support that they gave one another propelled them to great finishes. Highlighted with Morgan getting a conference title in the 400 meter hurdles and leading off our runner-up finishes in the relays, it was great to see everyone step up and be at their best at the finish. We had some special seniors go out with great performances as well. We all enjoyed the happy moments and culmination of the season and careers for our seniors."
 
Hertz cleared the 400 meter hurdles in a stunning time of 59.65 seconds to claim the title. The NCAA provisional qualifying effort missed Julia Hammerschmidt's UMary school record by .02 seconds.
 
The UMary junior from Mott, ND, joins Arianna Passeri as the Marauders individual NSIC champions as Passeri won the long jump on Friday.
 
Additionally both Hertz and Passeri played a key role in leading the Marauders to a runner-up finish in the 4x100 meter relay. Hertz ran the opening leg with Passeri the closer as UMary posted an NCAA provisional time of 46.67 seconds. Massiah and Taylor Weidner were sandwiched in-between to give the Marauders a fast start and all-conference honors in the first race of the day.
 
Hertz and Massiah were the bookends for the Marauders in their 2^nd place finish in the 4x400 meter relay to close out a successful weekend for UMary. Joined by Ava Grimm and Grace Acheson, the Marauders completed the event in 3:48.82 to earn the quartet all-conference honors.
 
Massiah also earned All-NSIC honors for her efforts in the 400 meter dash. The sophomore posted a person-best and NCAA qualifying time of 54.92 to claim second place.
 
The Bridgetown, Barbados, native added a 5^th place finish in the 200 meter run with a time of 24.14 seconds.
 
Kramchynsky finished third in the javelin to earn all-league honors. She finished with her longest throw of the day on her sixth and final attempt, hitting on a distance of 39.52 meters.
 
Several other Marauders also scored for UMary on Saturday:

• Passeri placed 5^th in the 100 meter dash, in addition to her title Friday in the long jump and her work on the 4x100 meter relay team
• Kiran Green claimed 6^th in the 800 meter run with a clocking of 2:17.66. She also ran in the 1500, where she placed 10^th.
• Tia Horning cleared the 100 meter hurdles in a time of 14.83 seconds to place 7^th
• Alyssa Becker finished 8^th in the 5,000 meter run in a time of 17:15.60

Minnesota State University won their fourth straight title with 272.4 points in the 15-team meet. Augustana was second (95), followed by Winona State (82) and UMary (72.2).
 
The Marauders will next compete at the NCAA outdoor championships on May 25-27 in Pueblo, CO.
 
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