Ind Track | Kodiaks hit personal bests at Pandas Open

Feb. 11, 2020 - Pushed by high quality USports competition, the Kodiaks indoor track team pushed for many personal bests at the Pandas Open last Saturday in Edmonton. 

The meet, which is hosted by the University of Alberta, was an exhibition stop for the Kodiaks, who won't resume ACAC competition until Mar. 7 in Red Deer. 

Here are the highlights from the weekend, as told by head coach Simon Schaerz. 

Men’s recap

"The men competed incredibly hard against some of the best USport and Club athletes in Canada. The tough competition pushed almost all of them to personal bests. Fast times are important as the ACAC championship event heats are populated in order of seed times. Next up for the men, the RDC Grand Prix at the beginning of March."

• James Marriner (1^st year, Business Administration) cut 0.5 seconds and 3 seconds off his 300m and 600m personal bests, respectively. These times would have placed him in the top five at last year’s ACAC Championships.
• Cooper Cheshire (2^nd year, Agricultural Enterprise Management) lowered his 1500m and 3000m times by 10 seconds and 7 seconds, respectively. Cooper is striving for podium finishes in these two events at the ACAC championships.

Women’s recap

"Much like the men, the women competed well against some of the top USport and Club athletes in Canada. Strong showings by Janelle Graham and Jasmin Salmon has definitely increased the team’s confidence to win a team medal at the ACAC Championships in late March. Next up for the women, the RDC Grand Prix at the beginning of March."

• Jasmin Salmon (3^rd year, Corrections) achieved huge personal bests in both the 600m and 1000m events. Her 1:47 600m and 3:18 1000m times should be good enough to content for an ACAC championship medal.
• Janelle Graham (4^th year, Applied Justice Studies Degree) had one of her strongest ACAC competitions to date. Her 44.74 300m time catapulted her up the ACAC rankings. She is now our top gold medal hopeful for the ACAC Championships.

Full results are available here: http://www.ellistiming.ca/PandasOpen/LiveResults/