Liberty University Club Sports
USA Triathlon Collegiate Nationals
Men’s triathletes sixth, Lady Flames 10th at collegiate nationals near Atlanta
4/25/2023 6:43:17 PM | Triathlon
Liberty University’s men’s triathlon team placed sixth out of 87 collegiate club programs in the April 14-16 USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championships while the Lady Flames landed in 10th out of 22 teams at the event held on Lake Lanier near Atlanta and Liberty earned eighth place out of 88 colleges and universities in the overall team standings.
The Flames totaled 166 points to finish just out of the top five among men's teams, behind Queens of Charlotte (N.C., 24), Wingate (N.C., 47), Colorado Boulder (66), California Berkeley (105), and Colorado State (134). They were paced by Giovanni Bianco who crossed the finish line for Saturday’s Olympic distance race — which started with a 1,500-meter swim followed by a 40-kilometer cycling stage and 10K run — in 26th place out of 590 participants in 1 hour, 58 minutes, 30 seconds.
"Our men's team finished ahead of many of the nation's big-time schools including some from the Big 10, SEC, and PAC 10 conferences such as UCLA, Stanford, Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, UVA, Texas A&M, Texas, and Ohio State," Liberty Head Coach Heather Gollnick said. "This was a very impressive showing from a program of our size."
Bianco was followed closely by fellow Liberty graduate student Drew Thibault, who earned his pro card at last month’s Clermont (Fla.) Draft-Legal Challenge and finished 30th in 1:59:40.
"The week leading up to the race, Drew was dealing with an injury that could have left him out of nationals competition," Gollnick said. "Some intense therapy, lots of prayer, and a sure desire to succeed helped him overcome and perform at a high level, and as a result he was one of our key contributors."
Senior Jack Pizor came in 65th in 2:05:13, junior JJ Bagans crossed the finish line 79th in 2:07:02, and senior Hayden Russell took 102nd in 2:09:41 to round out the Flames’ top five.
Thibault and Bianco placed sixth in 58:36 and 11th in 59:22, respectively, out of 49 triathletes in Friday’s draft-legal sprint, which included a 750-meter swim, 12.3-mile cycling leg, and 5K run.
On the women’s side, junior Mackenzie Foy was Liberty’s fastest finisher in the Olympic distance event, coming in 53rd out of 358 triathletes in 2:32:15, followed by Isabella Lang (81st in 2:36:54) and Leigh Ann Tanner (94th in 2:39:40).
In the draft-legal event, Liz Brower, a sophomore from Anchorage, Alaska, was the Lady Flames’ only finisher, taking 11th out of 43 entrants in 1:07:41. Senior Anna Kate Wirsing started the race but was unable to complete the course as she battled through an injury.
"Wirsing had a significant back surgery in December and her post-surgical therapeutic regimen was considerable," Gollnick said. "She fought like a champion with a deep desire to show up for her team and compete at nationals. I am so impressed by the effort and the sheer desire to overcome and compete again."
Liberty also placed 18th out of 40 teams in Sunday’s Mixed Team Race in 1:13:36.
"Overall, I'm just proud of the effort," Gollnick said, noting the team trained from the first day of school through the winter months and into the spring. "These student athletes put in a tremendous amount of time and dedication to their sport. I also love the way they show the love of Christ to other teams and how they represent our university with class."
Complete results are available online.
Video edited by Kylee Lilge/Club Sports Video & Media Coordinator
