By Seth Eaton

WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Nov. 29) – As the cool fall air starts to fall to the frigid, low temperatures of winter, the indoor track season starts as well. 

Last year for the Waynesburg University indoor track team, the women finished 4th out of the 10 teams in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Indoor Championship and the men finished 8th. This year, the team is looking to start and finish the season better. 

Head coach Chris Hardie is looking forward to getting the season underway and helping his athletes work toward the championship. 

“I don’t think we’ve peaked yet and we may have only been to the track one time so far,” Hardie said. “Everyone has been running and training hard though since the middle of November, so I believe we will peak as the season progresses.”

Though the team lost impactful seniors last year, Hardie is excited to see the freshman he brought in compete. 

“It’s always exciting to see the freshman compete,” Hardie said. “You know you recruit them for so long, so to finally see them in a Waynesburg jersey really is special. We have a big group of freshmen this year and it will be exciting to see them in action.”

Assistant Coach Bill Lubich wants his team to compete as best as they can all season long. He is excited to see all of the athletes competing in different events. 

“The main intent for the upcoming indoor and outdoor seasons is to have multiple individuals entered in all events,” Lubich said. “This will require carrying a full roster of athletes with some of those individuals stepping out of their comfort zone to learn and train for additional events.” 

Senior captain Katherine Henderson is ready to pick up where she left off last season. At the end of the indoor track season last year, Henderson was awarded the PAC Co-Most Outstanding Performer from the field. 

“For myself, I want to be the best version of myself that I can be, and I want to focus on having a positive attitude,” Henderson said. “For the team, we are looking to score in every event for the PAC’s. We just got to stay focused and trust in our training. If we do that, we will be successful.”

Henderson wants to be a role model for her younger teammates. She wants to lead by example and show her teammates that they can accomplish anything if they put in the work.

“I think being a leader pushes me even further to work hard,” Henderson said. “ I want to lead by example and show the freshman that if you put in the work then you will get a good outcome.”

For the men’s side, Andrew Kemerer, who is a senior captain, is ready to get the indoor track season underway with his teammates. 

“Personally, I want to start off stronger than I did last year,” Kemerer said. “For the team, I just want to see everyone give one hundred percent and I would definitely like to see us place within the top five by the end of the season.” 

The indoor track season for the Yellow Jackets will begin this Friday, Dec. 2. The meet will take place in Youngstown, Ohio, at Youngstown University at the YSU Icebreaker. The events will start at 1 p.m.