WASHINGTON, Pa. – The Washington & Jefferson College track and field teams look to build off their 2024-25 campaigns for this upcoming season. The men's team begins their 2025-26 indoor campaign at the YSU Icebreaker in Youngstown, Ohio. The women will be split between Youngstown and the Grand Valley State Holiday Open in Allendale, Mich. Both teams begin their seasons on Friday (Dec. 5).
 
2024-25 Season Review: The Presidents had a challenging indoor schedule last season attending three events hosted by Division I institutions. W&J also attended meets hosted by Muskingum, Denison, and Case Western Reserve.
 
The tough schedule helped propel W&J men to a third-place finish at both the PAC Indoor and Outdoor Championships. The women finished eighth at the Indoor Championships and fifth at the Outdoor Championships. The Presidents had two conference champions, including the distance medley relay at the event. These results also gave the Presidents momentum to take into the outdoor season.
 
W&J had five athletes receive podium finishes at the Indoor Championships. Brock Pennington (North East, Pa./North East) '25 was the conference champion in both the 3000- and 5000-meter distance events. Junior Dominic Flitcraft (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell) finished right behind Pennington in both events. Flitcraft also took home the outdoor conference championship in the 10,000-meters.
 
Senior Anthony Cestaro III (Memphis, Tenn./Christian Brothers) had podium finishes in both the 60- and 200- meter sprints with a third and second place finish, respectively.
 
Julian Paul (Pittsburgh, Pa./Montour) '25 finished his indoor career at W&J with a third-place result in the 800-meters and a second-place finish in the mile.
 
The conference winning distance-medley relay team consisted of Flitcraft, Cestaro III, Paul, and Pennington.
 
Senior Sara Schneider had a second-place finish in both the 60-meter hurdles at the indoor event and the 100-meter hurdles in the outdoor event.
 
Key Returners: Senior Claire Anderson (Jamestown, Pa./Jamestown) comes into the indoor season with an All-American third-place finish at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. Herself and Flitcraft swept the PAC Runners of the Year this past cross-country season.
 
Flitcraft also comes into the indoor season with a 90^th place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships, his best finish at the national meet.
 
The Presidents will be putting forth a strong distance field for this track season. Fellow seniors Chloe LoCastro (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) and Maria Gilles (North Ridgeville, Ohio/Lake Ridge Academy) helped lead W&J to their first ever PAC cross country championship. LoCastro was a part of both the 4x400 and distance medley relay teams last season. Additionally, Gilles led the Presidents in the mile and was also a part of the distance medley relay.
 
Junior Katie Kovalchick (Shelocta, Pa./Indiana Area) led W&J in the throwing events after her PAC outdoor championship winning performance in the javelin and a ninth-place performance in the shot put. Kovalchick will look to maintain her impact on the women's team come the outdoor season.
 
W&J will also be fielding a jumps team with many returners. In addition to hurdles, Schneider had an eighth-place finish in the long jump at the indoor championships and a fifth-place finish at the outdoor championships. Schneider was also a member of the 4x100-meter relay team last season.
 
Junior Tavan Schoenberger (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown) will look to continue his strong performances this season after a fourth-place finish in the triple jump and a seventh-place finish in the long jump. These performances were both personal bests.
 
Sophomore dual-sport athlete Alyssa Trn (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg Area) set a personal best in the 60-meter dash at the indoor championships last season. She also had a ninth-place finish in the high jump and was on the 4x100 and 4x400 meter relay teams at the PAC Outdoor Championships. Additionally, Jumper Nick DeSanto (Erie, Pa./McDowell) will be looking to build upon his fourth-place finish in the high gump last season.
 
Sprinter Anthony Cestaro III (Memphis, Tenn./Christian Brothers) broke a 39-year-old school record when he set his personal best in the 100-meter dash last season. He went on to finish third in the conference in both the 100- and 200-meters. Personal bests were also made when hurdler Lainey Hartner (Washington, Pa./Fort Cherry) took time off her 100-meter and 400-meter hurdle marks.
 
Looking Ahead: The Presidents will be split up to open the season with appearances at three different events, the Grand Valley State Holiday Open (Dec. 5), the YSU Icebreaker (Dec. 5, and the Mount Union Toy Drive Invite (Dec. 6).
 
At the beginning of the new year, W&J will be at two Muskingum meets and another meet at Youngstown State. The final events of the indoor season will be held at Denison, Penn State, the Spire Institute, and back at Muskingum. The PAC Indoor Championships are currently scheduled for Thursday (Feb. 26) in Youngstown, Ohio. After the championships, W&J will have one final chance to qualify for nationals at Ohio Northern.
 
W&J begins the outdoor season on Mar. 20 with a two-day event hosted by the University of West Virginia. The Presidents will have a busy six-weeks when they travel to Carnegie Mellon, Slippery Rock, Bucknell, Robert Morris, Baldwin Wallace, and Shippensburg. The PAC Outdoor Championships are currently scheduled for Apr. 30 and May 1 in Morgantown. W&J will also attend final qualifiers at Baldwin Wallace and Widener.
 
Newcomers: W&J welcomes 20 newcomers to the squad this season
 

Brie Crandell (Moshannon, Pa./New Oxford)		Griffin Burnett (Pittsburgh, Pa./South Park)
Jaslyn Debnar (Marianna, Pa./Bethlehem-Center)		Jacob Derry (Canonsburg, Pa./Corry Area)
Rihanna Fordham (Monongahela, Pa./Ringgold)		Dylan Liber (Canton, Ohio/Jackson)
Emily Frankovich (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry)		Andrei Lockhart (Shippensburg, Pa./Shippensburg)
Bobby Mainor (Hermitage, Pa./Hickory)		Braden McWreath (Washington, Pa./Wheeling Central Catholic)
Jazlyn Martino (McDonald, Pa./Fort Cherry)		Daniel Petersen (Monongahela, Pa./Ringgold)
Myleigh Mashburn (Monongahela, Pa./Ringgold)		Christian Ross (Coal Center, Pa./California Area)
Ella Neil (California, Pa./California Area)		Dayton Simmons (Bentleyville, Pa./Bentworth)
Abigael Nicolas (Monongahela, Pa./Ringgold)
Emily Paquet (Eighty Four, Pa./Bentworth)
Zhariah Reed (Republic, Pa./Brownsville Area)
Gianna Sever (New Kensington, Pa./Burrell)

 
Coaching Staff: Head Coach Andy Upton returns for his third season. A three-time PAC Track & Field Coach of the Year and veteran of the Presidents' Athletic Conference, Andy Upton joined W&J as its head coach for men's and women's cross country and track & field in August of 2023. 
 
Upton brought a wealth of coaching experience to the position. That experience paid immediate dividends for the programs. W&J totaled five NCAA Division III national qualifiers in Upton's first year at the helm.
 
Coach Upton retains his full staff coming into this season. Assistant coach Justin Simpson enters his second season with the program. Throws coach Jordan Simpson enters her fourth full season here at W&J. Finally, assistant coach Umar Moore joins the program for his first season. He was the first three-time All-American at Bethany in school history while Coach Upton was at the helm.