Marion, Ind.- Loyola’s Vanessa Righeimer and Abraham Thacker competed in the marathon event at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Outdoor Track and Field National Championships Saturday morning in Marion, Indiana.
Righeimer completed her first career marathon placing 49th in the women’s event in a time of 3:38.24. The Chicago native was seeded #52 and picked up three spots on the qualifying field. She qualified for the marathon with a time of 1:33.27 in the Rock n Roll Mardi Gras half marathon in February. A freshman, Righeimer had a stellar outdoor season posting team bests in the 1500 meter with a 5:17.2 at the Louisiana Classic on March 19 in Lafayette and a 19:30.0 in the 5000 meter at the Rhodes College Invitational in Memphis on March 26.
Thacker placed 53rd in the men’s field and completed the event in 3:01.31. He improved 20 spots from his seed of #73 in the race. It was the fourth marathon for the native of Middleway, West Virginia, who qualified for Nationals with a 2:47.59 performance at the Rock n Roll Mardi Gras marathon in February. Also a freshman, Thacker posted the top five finishes for the Wolfpack in the 5000 meter this outdoor season with his best coming at the Rhodes College Invitational, a 17:26.2 performance on March 26.
“I was proud of the efforts that Vanessa and Abraham gave today against the top competition in the NAIA. It was a great step for our program to have two freshman perform on the national stage. With a solid group returning and a talented recruiting class coming in the fall, I’m really excited about next season,” said Loyola head cross country and track coach Andy Canegitta.
Marion, Ind.- Loyola’s Vanessa Righeimer and Abraham Thacker competed in the marathon event at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Outdoor Track and Field National Championships Saturday morning in Marion, Indiana.
Righeimer completed her first career marathon placing 49th in the women’s event in a time of 3:38.24. The Chicago native was seeded #52 and picked up three spots on the qualifying field. She qualified for the marathon with a time of 1:33.27 in the Rock n Roll Mardi Gras half marathon in February. A freshman, Righeimer had a stellar outdoor season posting team bests in the 1500 meter with a 5:17.2 at the Louisiana Classic on March 19 in Lafayette and a 19:30.0 in the 5000 meter at the Rhodes College Invitational in Memphis on March 26.
