EUGENE, Ore. – Graduate student Kennedy Drish and senior Abby Weening were set to represent George Mason at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field from June 10–13.
Drish was the first Patriot to compete, taking part in the women's pole vault on Thursday, June 11. The field consisted of 24 athletes—the top 12 qualifiers from both the East and West regional meets earlier in the month.
The opening height was set at 4.09m. Drish missed her first two attempts, but cleared the bar on her final try. She was unable to clear the next height of 4.24m and finished tied for 23rd place on the sport's biggest collegiate stage. The performance capped a historic season in Green & Gold and solidified her status as one of the nation's top women's pole vaulters.
Drish concluded her two-year George Mason career after transferring from Virginia Tech as a graduate student. While she showed promise and made an immediate impact in her first season with the Patriots, this past year proved to be her breakout campaign.
During the indoor season, Drish broke Mandissa Marshall's school record of 4.30m, set in 2014, by clearing 4.34m at the Virginia Tech Challenge. She claimed the individual title and won gold at the Atlantic 10 Indoor Championships, setting a new meet record with a clearance of 4.20m. She was named Atlantic 10 Women's Field Performer of the Week three times and earned a spot on the A-10 Indoor All-Academic Team.
Earlier in the outdoor season, Drish set another school record by clearing 4.33m at the Bob Davidson Team Challenge. She completed the conference sweep by winning the Atlantic 10 outdoor women's pole vault title. She was also named A-10 Women's Field Performer of the Week once and earned A-10 Outdoor All-Academic Team honors.
Abby Weening will be competing in the women's heptathlon from Friday, June 12 to Saturday, June 13. Her schedule of events is as follows:
Friday, June 12
2:45 p.m. ET / 11:45 a.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon 100m Hurdles (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN+
3:45 p.m. ET / 12:45 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon High Jump (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN+
6:45 p.m. ET / 3:45 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon Shot Put (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN+
9:45 p.m. ET / 6:45 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon 200m (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN2
Saturday, June 13
5:30 p.m. ET / 2:30 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon Long Jump (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN+
6:45 p.m. ET / 3:45 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon Javelin (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN+
9:45 p.m. ET / 6:45 p.m. PT – Women's Heptathlon 800m (Abby Weening) | Watch live on ESPN2
