Jan. 12, 2018
By Megan Golden
NOTRE DAME, Ind. — The University of Notre Dame track and field team opens the 2018 calendar year with its first road meet of the season. The Irish will travel to Michigan to compete in the first annual Wolverine Invitational at 11 a.m. ET on Saturday.
Seven teams will be traveling to Michigan, including the Irish. Notre Dame will compete in a field of teams consisting of Eastern Michigan, Hillsdale, Michigan State, South Florida, Western Michigan and Western Ontario.
WHAT: Wolverine Invitational
WHEN: 11 a.m. ET on Saturday, Jan. 13, 2018
WHERE: U-M Indoor Track Building (Ann Arbor, Michigan)
LIVE RESULTS: DeltaTiming.com
TWITTER: @NDXCTF
What to Watch
Notre Dame will be competing for the first time since early December, and for many Irish, the Wolverine Invitational will be their first competitive action of the indoor track and field season.
Samantha Murray and Erin Sullivan highlight the middle distance group, racing in the 600m on Saturday. Annasophia Keller will make her Irish track and field debut, racing in the mile. Kaitlin Frei will represent the Irish women in the 3,000m race, the only runner who will be competing in a distance event this weekend.
The Irish are anticipating a breakout season from sophomore Kevin Salvano, who last ran competitively in the 2016 ACC Cross Country Championships. Salvano is scheduled to run in the mile alongside Brian Griffith, Vincent Zona and Parker Jones.
“This is Kevin’s first race since the 2016 cross country season,” Irish assistant coach Sean Carlson said. “He had surgery last spring and has made a fantastic recovery. The goal this weekend is to get him back on the track in a competitive environment and allow him to get back to the athlete we know he is.”
In the infield, Matthew Birzer and Hunter Holton will compete in the high jump for the second time this season. Birzer, who placed second at the Blue and Gold Invitational, will try to top his 7′-0.25″ mark set at the previous meet.
On the women’s side, McKenna Caskey, who made her Irish debut last month, and Kassadee Ifft will compete in the pole vault.
Abbey Kapitan led the Irish throwers at the Blue and Gold Invitational, recording a personal-best 18.01m throw in the weight throw. Kapitan will have the chance to build upon that mark at Michigan.
Logan Kusky and the men’s throws squad will try to improve their marks in their second meet of the season. Kusky, Shae Watkins and John Stefan each will compete in the weight throw.
Pole Vault Summit
Graduate student Nate Richartz, who is eligible for the upcoming outdoor track and field season, is scheduled to jump in the Elite Division at the Pole Vault Summit in Reno, Nevada, on Jan. 12-13. To follow, click here.
To view the complete meet schedule, click here.
Coming Up Next
Notre Dame returns to action at 10 a.m. ET on Jan. 20, when it hosts the Notre Dame Invitational at Loftus Sports Center.
For more on the Irish track and field program, follow @NDXCTF on Twitter and Instagram.
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Megan Golden, athletics communications assistant director at the University of Notre Dame, has been part of the Fighting Irish athletics communications team since August of 2016. In her role, she coordinates all media efforts for the Notre Dame baseball and women’s soccer programs. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Golden is a 2014 graduate of Saint Mary’s College and former Irish women’s basketball manager. Prior to arriving at Notre Dame, she worked in public relations with the Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox.