NEW ORLEANS – Three members of Kenyon College’s track teams – one woman and two men – were awarded All-Region honors for the 2022 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field season by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Among the honorees were Kenyon College first-year athlete Paula Soric, sophomore Riley Orth and first-year Tapiwa Gono Phiri.
The top five individuals in each track and field event from each region earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors, in addition to each of the members of a top three-ranked relay team.
Soric earned her All-Region award for her performance in the triple jump. On April 23 during the Kenyon Invitational, she recorded her best jump of the season. Her mark of 38 feet, 3 ½ inches (11.67 meters) was a program record, replacing the old mark of 37 feet, 7 inches (11.46 meters) set by Krissann Mueller in the 1984 season.
Her jump at the Kenyon Invitational also ranked as the third best of the season among all athletes in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region.
Before earning the All-Region nod, Soric was declared an All-North Coast Athletic Conference honoree at the conclusion of both the indoor and outdoor campaigns.
Orth earned his All-Region accolade for his performance in the shot put. During the NCAA Division III All-Ohio Championship meet, held at Ohio Wesleyan University on April 16, Orth turned in a throw that traveled 50 feet, ¾ inch. That mark ranked third best among all student-athletes in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Region and was just nine inches shy of setting the Kenyon record.
Gono Phiri, a sprinter, collected his All-Region honor for his showings in the 100-meter dash. After starting the season with a time of 11.21 in the event, Gono Phiri ended the season by breaking the Kenyon record twice. At the University of Mount Union Last Chance Meet on May 19, Gono Phiri turned in a time of 10.74 in the preliminary heat, setting the Kenyon record. Then, in the 100 finals, he broke the record again, clocking in at 10.71. His record time stood as the fifth best in the Great Lakes Region.
Before earning their All-Region nods, Orth and Gono Phiri were declared All-North Coast Athletic Conference honorees at the conclusion of both the indoor and outdoor campaigns. Additionally, Gono Phiri was voted the NCAC indoor and outdoor Newcomer of the Year.
