Photo by: Doug McSchooler
Wake Forest Releases 2023 Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field Schedule
1/3/2023 2:52:00 PM | Track and Field
The Demon Deacons will compete in a total of 20 regular-season meets during the 2023 season with 11 being indoors and the final nine being outdoors. Of note, Wake Forest will host the 'Wake Forest Invitational' on Friday, April 21 which will mark the Demon Deacons’ first on-campus meet in the past several years.
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Coming off a stellar 2022 campaign in which several Demon Deacons earned All-American honors, director of track & field and cross country John Hayes officially announced the 2023 schedule for the Wake Forest men's and women's track & field teams Tuesday evening.
"We are incredibly excited about our schedule this year," said Hayes. "It gives our team the flexibility we need to succeed at the highest level. What's most exciting is the very competitive home meet we will host on Friday, April 21st. This one-day meet will feature some of the top track & field and cross country schools on the East Coast. Catering to fans, alumni and the Wake Forest and Winston-Salem communities, we hope to provide a truly memorable experience."
In preparation for the 2023 campaign, Wake Forest competed in two indoor meets during the month of December as several members of the men's and women's teams traveled to Boston, Mass., for the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener, while others remained in Winston-Salem to compete in the Winston-Salem College Kickoff.
2023 Slate (Indoor)
Wake Forest will officially begin the 2023 indoor slate on Jan. 13 as various student-athletes will compete in the Dick Taylor Challenge in Chapel Hill with others traveling to Blacksburg, Va., for the Virginia Tech Invitational. One week later, on Jan. 20, Wake Forest will return to Blacksburg to compete in the Hokie Invitational.
The following weekend, the Demon Deacons will split once again as Wake Forest will be represented at the John Thomas Terrier Classic in Boston and the Bob Pollock Invitational in Clemson, S.C. Seven days later, the Deacs will return to Winston-Salem to compete in the Camel City Invitational.
Coming down the stretch of the indoor season, Feb. 10 will mark a pivotal date for the Demon Deacons as student-athletes will be competing in four different meets in hopes of reaching qualifying marks for the postseason. The Deacs will be represented at the Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash., the Music City Challenge in Nashville, Tenn., the Darius Dixon Invitational in Lynchburg, Va. and the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston.
In the final regular-season meet of the indoor portion of the 2023 slate, Wake Forest will return to Winston-Salem for the JDL DMR Invitational, before heading to Louisville, Ky., for the ACC Indoor Track & Field Championships from Feb. 23-25. The NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships on March 10-11 in Albuquerque, N.M., will mark the conclusion of the 2023 indoor season.
2023 Slate (Outdoor)
The outdoor segment of the 2023 slate will commence on March 16 as the Demon Deacons will travel to Charlotte for the 49er Classic, before making a trip to Raleigh for the Raleigh Relays on March 23. A week later, several Demon Deacons will head to Austin, Texas for the Texas Relays, as others will travel to Palo Alto, Calif., for the Stanford Invitational. The Deacs will then return to the state of North Carolina to compete in the Duke Invitational on April 7.
Prior to hosting the Wake Forest Invitational on April 21, the Demon Deacons will split once again to compete in the Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut, Calif., (April 12) and the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif., on April 13. The final regular-season meet of the 2023 campaign will take place on April 28 as the Demon Deacons will return to Charlotte for the Charlotte Invitational.
Postseason action will begin two weeks later as the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held in Raleigh from May 11-13, while the NCAA East Preliminary Track & Field Championships will take place May 24-27 in Jacksonville, Fla. The 2023 season will conclude with the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships June 7-10 in Austin, Texas.
Familiar Faces
Wake Forest will look to build upon a solid 2022 campaign as the Demon Deacons will return six indoor track & field All-ACC honorees and five outdoor track & field All-ACC honorees from a season ago between the men's and women's programs.
In 2023, the Wake Forest men's track & field team will return First-Team All-American and ACC Champion Thomas Vanoppen. Last season, Vanoppen placed fourth in the 1500m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, becoming the first Wake Forest outdoor All-American since Robert Heppenstall in 2018 and the first 1500m All-American since Kyle Graves in 2015.
In addition to Vanoppen, the Demon Deacon men will return Zach Facioni who collected Second-Team All-American honors a season ago, along with three indoor All-ACC honorees (Thomas Kitchell, Andrew White and Rynard Swanepoel).
For the women, Wake Forest will return Anna Bush and Emma Soderstrom as they both earned All-American honorable mention honors last season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, finishing 18th in the heptathlon and 23rd in the high jump, respectively. Additionally, the Deacs will return All-ACC selection Addison Berry.
Last Time Out
At the Winston-Salem College Kickoff last month, Emily Akin, Thomas Kitchell, Amanda Schaare, Andrew White and Pedro Bravo all earned victories in their respective events as Wake Forest became the only school to have five participants win an event at the annual meet.
In the distance events, Akin and Bravo both had stellar performances as they won the women's 3,000m and the men's mile, respectively. As the only Demon Deacon to compete in the women's 3,000, Akin ran a personal-best time of 10:27.15 to finish first. Additionally, Bravo ran a personal-best in the men's mile (4:16.38) to earn his first collegiate first-place finish.
Wake Forest had stellar performances in both the men's and women's shot put as Kitchell (18.46m) and Schaare (15.28m) won the events. Of note, Mason Ellis and Ashlyn Giles finished second in the men's and women's shot put, respectively. The Demon Deacons' dominance in the throwing events didn't end there as White won the men's weight throw (20.24m), narrowly defeating Kitchell (18.73m) who finished second.
In the women's 4x400m relay, Alexis Lay, Kendall Williamson, Mia Boardman and Mimi Wolk finished second, running a time of 4:02.52.
Of note, Addison Berry finished third in the women's long jump, while Casey Sullivan and Sophie Perez Gonzalez recorded third place finishes in the women's shot put and the women's weight throw, respectively.
At the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in Boston, Wake Forest participated solely in the 5,000m on both the men's and women's side. For the men, Zach Facioni (13:34.21), Ben Mitchell (13:57.10) and Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos (13:59.45) competed for the Demon Deacons. Of note, Facioni broke the Wake Forest all-time record with his time of 13:34.21. In the women's race, Wake Forest was paced by Mackenna Curtis-Collins (16:02.07), Carolien Millenaar (16:21.54) and Caroline Garrett (16:33.39).
Wake Forest Invitational
On April 21, 2023 Wake Forest will host its first on-campus meet in the past several years as the men's and women's programs will welcome numerous Division I programs, including several power-five foes to Winston-Salem.
Slated for late April, the highly-touted Wake Forest Invitational will serve as one of the few meets on the east coast towards the end of the regular season, which will provide a great opportunity for runners to reach qualifying marks for postseason action.
Stay tuned for updates and other pertinent information regarding the Wake Forest Invitational.
Follow The Demon Deacons
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | #GoDeacs
"We are incredibly excited about our schedule this year," said Hayes. "It gives our team the flexibility we need to succeed at the highest level. What's most exciting is the very competitive home meet we will host on Friday, April 21st. This one-day meet will feature some of the top track & field and cross country schools on the East Coast. Catering to fans, alumni and the Wake Forest and Winston-Salem communities, we hope to provide a truly memorable experience."
In preparation for the 2023 campaign, Wake Forest competed in two indoor meets during the month of December as several members of the men's and women's teams traveled to Boston, Mass., for the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener, while others remained in Winston-Salem to compete in the Winston-Salem College Kickoff.
2023 Slate (Indoor)
Wake Forest will officially begin the 2023 indoor slate on Jan. 13 as various student-athletes will compete in the Dick Taylor Challenge in Chapel Hill with others traveling to Blacksburg, Va., for the Virginia Tech Invitational. One week later, on Jan. 20, Wake Forest will return to Blacksburg to compete in the Hokie Invitational.
The following weekend, the Demon Deacons will split once again as Wake Forest will be represented at the John Thomas Terrier Classic in Boston and the Bob Pollock Invitational in Clemson, S.C. Seven days later, the Deacs will return to Winston-Salem to compete in the Camel City Invitational.
Coming down the stretch of the indoor season, Feb. 10 will mark a pivotal date for the Demon Deacons as student-athletes will be competing in four different meets in hopes of reaching qualifying marks for the postseason. The Deacs will be represented at the Husky Classic in Seattle, Wash., the Music City Challenge in Nashville, Tenn., the Darius Dixon Invitational in Lynchburg, Va. and the David Hemery Valentine Invitational in Boston.
In the final regular-season meet of the indoor portion of the 2023 slate, Wake Forest will return to Winston-Salem for the JDL DMR Invitational, before heading to Louisville, Ky., for the ACC Indoor Track & Field Championships from Feb. 23-25. The NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships on March 10-11 in Albuquerque, N.M., will mark the conclusion of the 2023 indoor season.
2023 Slate (Outdoor)
The outdoor segment of the 2023 slate will commence on March 16 as the Demon Deacons will travel to Charlotte for the 49er Classic, before making a trip to Raleigh for the Raleigh Relays on March 23. A week later, several Demon Deacons will head to Austin, Texas for the Texas Relays, as others will travel to Palo Alto, Calif., for the Stanford Invitational. The Deacs will then return to the state of North Carolina to compete in the Duke Invitational on April 7.
Prior to hosting the Wake Forest Invitational on April 21, the Demon Deacons will split once again to compete in the Mt. Sac Relays in Walnut, Calif., (April 12) and the Bryan Clay Invitational in Azusa, Calif., on April 13. The final regular-season meet of the 2023 campaign will take place on April 28 as the Demon Deacons will return to Charlotte for the Charlotte Invitational.
Postseason action will begin two weeks later as the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held in Raleigh from May 11-13, while the NCAA East Preliminary Track & Field Championships will take place May 24-27 in Jacksonville, Fla. The 2023 season will conclude with the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships June 7-10 in Austin, Texas.
Familiar Faces
Wake Forest will look to build upon a solid 2022 campaign as the Demon Deacons will return six indoor track & field All-ACC honorees and five outdoor track & field All-ACC honorees from a season ago between the men's and women's programs.
In 2023, the Wake Forest men's track & field team will return First-Team All-American and ACC Champion Thomas Vanoppen. Last season, Vanoppen placed fourth in the 1500m at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, becoming the first Wake Forest outdoor All-American since Robert Heppenstall in 2018 and the first 1500m All-American since Kyle Graves in 2015.
In addition to Vanoppen, the Demon Deacon men will return Zach Facioni who collected Second-Team All-American honors a season ago, along with three indoor All-ACC honorees (Thomas Kitchell, Andrew White and Rynard Swanepoel).
For the women, Wake Forest will return Anna Bush and Emma Soderstrom as they both earned All-American honorable mention honors last season at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, finishing 18th in the heptathlon and 23rd in the high jump, respectively. Additionally, the Deacs will return All-ACC selection Addison Berry.
Last Time Out
At the Winston-Salem College Kickoff last month, Emily Akin, Thomas Kitchell, Amanda Schaare, Andrew White and Pedro Bravo all earned victories in their respective events as Wake Forest became the only school to have five participants win an event at the annual meet.
In the distance events, Akin and Bravo both had stellar performances as they won the women's 3,000m and the men's mile, respectively. As the only Demon Deacon to compete in the women's 3,000, Akin ran a personal-best time of 10:27.15 to finish first. Additionally, Bravo ran a personal-best in the men's mile (4:16.38) to earn his first collegiate first-place finish.
Wake Forest had stellar performances in both the men's and women's shot put as Kitchell (18.46m) and Schaare (15.28m) won the events. Of note, Mason Ellis and Ashlyn Giles finished second in the men's and women's shot put, respectively. The Demon Deacons' dominance in the throwing events didn't end there as White won the men's weight throw (20.24m), narrowly defeating Kitchell (18.73m) who finished second.
In the women's 4x400m relay, Alexis Lay, Kendall Williamson, Mia Boardman and Mimi Wolk finished second, running a time of 4:02.52.
Of note, Addison Berry finished third in the women's long jump, while Casey Sullivan and Sophie Perez Gonzalez recorded third place finishes in the women's shot put and the women's weight throw, respectively.
At the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener in Boston, Wake Forest participated solely in the 5,000m on both the men's and women's side. For the men, Zach Facioni (13:34.21), Ben Mitchell (13:57.10) and Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos (13:59.45) competed for the Demon Deacons. Of note, Facioni broke the Wake Forest all-time record with his time of 13:34.21. In the women's race, Wake Forest was paced by Mackenna Curtis-Collins (16:02.07), Carolien Millenaar (16:21.54) and Caroline Garrett (16:33.39).
Wake Forest Invitational
On April 21, 2023 Wake Forest will host its first on-campus meet in the past several years as the men's and women's programs will welcome numerous Division I programs, including several power-five foes to Winston-Salem.
Slated for late April, the highly-touted Wake Forest Invitational will serve as one of the few meets on the east coast towards the end of the regular season, which will provide a great opportunity for runners to reach qualifying marks for postseason action.
Stay tuned for updates and other pertinent information regarding the Wake Forest Invitational.
Follow The Demon Deacons
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | #GoDeacs
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