The Basics
Event: Liberty Kickoff
Location: Lynchburg, Va. (Liberty Indoor Track Complex)

The Lead: The Hollins track and field team opened the 2024-25 indoor season with a trip to the Hill City to compete at the Liberty Kickoff, hosted by Liberty University. The two-day event was hosted by the Flames in the Liberty Indoor Track Complex in Lynchburg. The field events started on Thursday night with the remainder of the field and the full track schedule took place on Friday. The field would feature teams and athletes from all NCAA Divisions (I, II, III), including top teams from the ACC and a majority of the DI schools in the state.
 
Highlights & Notes  
 
Thursday Events:

• In the Weight Throw, Hollins would see their best finish of the day when Sanaa Belton posted a final distance of 12.25m and finished 20th. With her throw, Belton now owns the top 10 throws in the young program's history. A quartet of Green and Gold throwers also competed in the event. Ava Kegler (9.36m), Lilly Phillips (8.84m), Tenley Reck (7.78m), and Ella Wilds (5-96m) completed throws in the field of 34 athletes.
• Belton finished 25^th in the Shot Put with 9.98m. Phillips (7.95m), Wilds (7.21m), and Reck (6.71m) also competed in the event.
• A trio of first year athletes would compete in the field of 36 in the Long Jump. Arianna Gomez led the Hollins contingent with a jump of 4.71m. Madison Freideman was two spots back at 4.65m, just ahead of Autumn Dale (4.53m).

Friday Events:

• Gomez posted an 8.78 in the 60m, finishing .97 ahead of teammate Jadyn Rhodes.
• 67 athletes competed in the 200m, and Jazmine Patterson finished in the top half with a time of 27.57. Gomez, Freidman, and Ashlyne Golston finished back-to-back-to-back within .58 of a second of each other while Izzy Workman crossed the line at 31.38.
• Golston (49.24) and Workman (52.56) also competed in the 300m.
• Patterson returned to post 1:03.35 in the 400m, finishing in the top 30.
• In the High Jump, Freidman was 19^th at 1.40m.

Up Next: The track team will be back in action after the holiday break when they make the short trip to Salem to compete at the Finn Pincus Invitational, hosted by Roanoke College, on January 17^th and 18^th.