Tempe, Az. – The Royals wrapped up their 2022 triathlon season on Saturday, taking on the nation's best at the 2022 Women's Collegiate Triathlon National Championships.
EMU sent a trio of competitors to Arizona and they all showed out as EMU returns to Harrisonburg with three top-16 finishes. As a team, the Royals finished fifth, out of 12 teams, with 134 points. North Central College took the team title with 215 points, followed by Trine University with 201 points.
Highlights
- Jenna Weaver was the top finisher for the Royals, finishing 11th overall in the field of 57. She finished the swim in 13:39.8 and followed that up with a bike time of 40:06.7. She ended the competition with a run time of 21:37.6, for a combined time of 1:17:34.3. Her 11th place finish is the highest individual finish for an EMU competitor in the program's history.
- Just two spots behind Weaver, Vanessa Gardiner nabbed 13th place in her first national competition. Her combined time of 1:18:31.3 was a combination of a 13:38.5 swim, a 42:08.6 bike and a 20:30.9 run.
- Rounding out the scoring for EMU was Jessica Buckwalter, who is brining home 16th. She finished the swim portion in 15:03.3, completed the bike in 40:41.7 and took down the run with a time of 21:02.9, giving her a combined time of 1:19:45.6.
Coach Joanna Friesen on Today's Race
"The EMU women put forward a great performance today at DIII National Championships. The women have really been putting in the work on the swim and it showed! All three finished the swim in the middle of the field and were able to find draft packs in the early portion of the bike. Jenna lead the Royals from the start, working with Vanessa at the beginning of the bike and then riding a pack ahead. Jenna had a 13:39 swim, Vanessa 13:38, and Jessica 15:03. Jessica caught up to Vanessa on the bike and they worked together along with another pack. All three moved up by upwards of 8 places on the bike, and continued to work their way up the field in the run. This was a great day for EMU Tri!"
