YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The Bethany College women's track and field team competed at the YSU Collegiate Invitational hosted by Youngstown (Ohio) State University at the Watson and Tressel Training Site.

Bethany competed across five different events against 15 other teams, including four NCAA Division I teams and five Division II teams. The Bison were led by Academic All-PAC junior Mary Tracey (Clarksburg, W.Va./Liberty) in the track events and Academic All-PAC senior Makenna Philson (Greenville, Pa.) in the field events.

Tracey finished seventh overall and first among Division III competitors in the 5000-meter run with a time of 27:14.96.

Philson led the team in both the weight throw, where she finished ninth overall with a distance of 12.24 meters, and in the shot put with a distance of 10.32 meters. 

Academic All-PAC junior Madison Donelson (Lanham, Md./Annapolis Area Christian) also had a solid day after finishing 25th overall in the 200-meter dash and 16th overall in the 60-meter prelims. Also running in both the 60-meter prelims and the 200-meter dash were freshmen Yakira Cunningham (Columbus, Ohio/Centennial) and Azlyn Cates (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglass), who made her collegiate track debut. 

Freshman Ariana Augustine (Claysville, Pa./McGuffey) had a good day in the shot put where she threw a personal best 10.01 meters to finish just behind Philson at 19th overall. Sophomore Marissa French (Reynoldsburg, Ohio) and senior Amelia Ferguson (Bakersfield, Calif./Highland) also competed in both the shot put and the weight throw while freshman Maisie Barrus (Hysham, Mont.) recorded another PR in the shot put with a distance of 8.55 meters.

The Bison are back in action on Saturday, January 24 as select members will travel to Ashland, Ohio to compete at the Ashland Collegiate Invitational hosted by Ashland (Ohio) University at 10 a.m. in the Niss Athletic Center, while other members of the team will travel to Geneva, Ohio to compete in the Spire Midwest Collegiate Invitational hosted by Spire Institute at 10 a.m. in the Spire Indoor Track and Field Complex.