This Friday, Notre Dame will head down to Louisville, Kentucky to compete at the Louisville Invitational. The Irish are hoping to use the meet as an opportunity to improve times, continue to gain momentum and pick up more in-meet competition experience as the postseason approaches.
In addition to the Irish and Cardinals, athletes from Michigan State and Purdue will be in attendance.
In particular, Notre Dame’s field athletes will be looking to build off of last weekend’s strong performances at the Sun Angel Classic, hosted by Arizona State. Irish jumps coach Jim Garnham said his squad has been able to find success at Louisville in the past.
“[For the] ten years we’ve gone to that meet since I’ve been here, most of my kids’ lifetime bests have come at that meet,” he said. “[Graduate pole vaulter] Nate [Richartz’s] first time jumping over 18 feet was at that meet last year.”
Richartz already has three first-place finishes in the men’s pole vault and will be looking to pick up a fourth at Louisville. Last weekend, Richartz bested the field after clearing 5.55 meters on his first attempt. Richartz, who currently leads ACC men’s pole vaulters with the two highest successful attempts, will be joined in the event by sophomore teammate Landon Shank.
On the women’s side, freshman thrower Rachel Tanczos will be looking to build off of a third-place finish in the discus throw last weekend. Graduate student thrower Indi Jackson will compete alongside Tanczos in the event. Tanczos and Jackson will also be competing in the shot put, where they will be joined by sophomore teammate Abbey Kapitan.
The Irish will have over thirty athletes competing on the track this weekend, and there will numerous opportunities for Notre Dame athletes to improve season marks. For the Irish women, senior Jessica Harris is the top seed in the 1500-meter run, 15 seconds ahead of her nearest competitor.
Senior Allison Bartoszewicz will be expected to perform well in the 200-meter and 400-meter dashes, having already had multiple strong finishes in the 400- meter dash this season, both individually and on the 4x400 meter relay
Among the men, a tight pack of five Irish runners led by graduate student Elijah Silva and freshman Brian Griffith, will be looking to make an impact in the 1500-meter run.
Garnham said he is excited for the meet and is expecting to see his athletes put forth their best effort.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “No expectations for it. I’m not expecting anyone to come out and have the meet of their life, but again, at the same time, we’re there to compete.”
The meet will kick off on Friday at 11 a.m at Cardinal Park.
