2023 WIAC Track & Field Championship Website

Whitewater, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse women's track and field team captured its 11th straight Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Championships (presented by Culver's) Saturday night at UW-Whitewater's Rex Foster Track Complex. The Eagles won the title with 363.5 points. UW-Eau Claire was second with 156.0 points and UW-Whitewater third with 85.5.

UW-Oshkosh was fourth (62.0) followed by UW-Stout fifth (57.0), UW-Stevens Point sixth (42.0), UW-River Falls seventh (30.0) and UW-Platteville eighth (23.0). 

It is UWL's 38th (1972-73, 1977-87, 1992-93, 1998-2003, 2005, 2007-10, 2012-19, 2021-2023) WIAC title in school history, the most in conference history. 

The 363.5 points are the most scored in league history, surpassing UW-Oshkosh's total of 313.0 in 1996. UWL scored at least 10 points in 19 of 21 events.

The Eagles won 10 events on Saturday, including sweeping the four field events. Skye Digman, who captured the hammer throw on Friday, won a pair of titles on Saturday. She won the shot put (49-11 3/4) and discus throw (157-4). Digman is the first UWL thrower to win the shot put since Kendra Antony in 2017 and the first to capture the discus throw since Patti Franckowiak in 1998. 

Digman is the second athlete in WIAC history to sweep the hammer throw, shot put and discus throw at the league championships. She joins UW-Oshkosh's Robyn Jarocki who won all three events in 2004, 2005 and 2006. Digman broke her own school record in Friday's hammer throw with a mark of 194-6. She also set a meet record. Digman's throw broke her own school record of 189-2 set earlier this season.

Miah Keller won the triple jump (39-0 1/4) and Ainsley Hansen the high jump (5-7 3/4) on Saturday. Keller is the second straight athlete to win the triple jump for UWL after Samantha Barrett took the crown last season. Hansen is in the first UWL student-athlete to win the high jump since Amy Jo Garringer in 2009. 

Other top-six finishers in the field events included Kylah Frederixon second (38-4 3/4), Samantha Barrett third (37-7 1/4), Hallie Kent fifth (36-11) and Maya Evans sixth (36-10 1/4) in the triple jump. Izzy Carroll was fifth (42-11 3/4) in the shot put with Mady Friese and Olivia Owens finishing tied for fifth in the high jump (5-1 1/4). 

UWL won six events on the track Saturday, including a pair of victories by Emma Lawrence. She won the 100 (13.84) and 400-meter (1:00.80) hurdles. It marks the third straight season Lawrence swept both events at the league championships. She is the fourth runner in WIAC history to win three consecutive 100-meter hurdles titles and fifth to win three straight championships in the 400-meter hurdles. 

Maddie Hannan won the 1,500-meter run (4:30.46) and Emma Malooly captured the 5,000-meter run (18:01.00) on Saturday. Hannan was also second (2:14.13) in the 800-meter run. She is the first runner since Sadie Kroll to win the 1,500-meter run for UWL. Malooly, who won the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Friday, became the first UWL runner to take the 5,000-meter run since Kaitlyn McDaniel in 2016. Malooly is one of three runners in WIAC history to win the 3,000-meter steeplechase and 5,000-meter run in the same championships. She joins Teresa Stanley of UW-Stevens Point in 2003 and Julia Rudd of UWL in 2004. 

The Eagles swept the relays on Saturday as Bella Seitz, Lauren Jarrett, Lawrence and Emily Dawidowich won the 4x100-meter relay (46.73) while Izi Knoernschild, Melanie Kunze, Amber Johnson and Morgan Jennings took the 4x400-meter relay (3:50.08). It is UWL's second straight crown in the 4x100-meter relay and third consecutive in the 4x400.

Other top-six finishers included Brooke McDowell second (14.21) and Amber Grosse sixth (15.02) in the 100-meter hurdles while Kunze placed second (1:01.58), McDowell third (1:01.65) and Gretchen McNeal fifth (1:03.89) in the 400-meter hurdles.

Jarrett placed second (11.65) in the 100-meter dash and fourth (25.15) in the 200-meter dash while Dawidowich finished second in the 200-meter dash (24.75) and third (11.91) in the 100-meter dash. Johnson was second (57.52), Lilly Halvorson third (57.55), Knoernschild fourth (57.96) and Jennings fifth (58.18) in the 400-meter dash. 

Madelynn McIntyre finished third (18:12.71) in the 5,000-meter run with Kimberly Carviou fourth (4:39.88) and Greta Koehler sixth (4:40.06) in the 1,500-meter run.

UWL's Skylar White placed second (4,600 points) in the heptathlon with Allison Anderson third (4,451), Alexys Scheuerell ninth (4,051) and Audrey Braun 10th (3,991). The heptathlon concluded on Saturday with the long jump, javelin throw and 800-meter run. Competitors saw action in the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200-meter dash on Friday.

UWL returns to action Friday, May 12 hosting the Eagle Open at 3 p.m.