Triathlon team lived up to magazine’s billing as one of top 10 programs in nation this spring

It was a season of tremendous potential for Liberty University's men's and women's triathlon teams, who combined for a ninth-place finish out of 80 programs represented at the USA Triathlon National Championships, held April 13-14 in Mission Viejo, Calif.

"We had a great second semester," Liberty Head Coach Heather Gollnick said. "We got to go to Florida to compete (in the Space Coast Triathlon in March) … and then we got to go to nationals out in California and we were top 10 on the combined team side, which was exciting."

At nationals, the men's team landed in ninth place overall while the women posted a 13th-place performance, paced by junior Morgan Dalton's 35th-place finish on the 1,500-meter swim, 26-mile cycling stage, and 10K run in 2 hours, 28 minutes, 27 seconds.

"At the beginning of the season, there was a rating of the top 10 triathlon teams in the country and they had us in there at ninth and we saw that and were like, 'Well, that's something really big to live up to. Can we really do that?'" said freshman Alex Schimmel, who placed 27th out of 551 finishers in the Olympic distance race in 2:02:17 to lead the Flames.

Complete results are available online.

Schimmel had previously won the men's sprint race in Florida, which featured a 400-meter swim, 12-mile bike, and 5K run on mostly flat terrain, in 58:28.9.

He believes the Flames and Lady Flames have only begun to tap into their true talent, and will be prepared to continue their progression throughout the 2024-25 season.

"Everyone's going into the summer really ready to train and to work hard to show up next year even better," he said. "We're in a really good spot right now and really ready to take the program to the next level."

Gollnick said the future of the program looks extremely bright.

"We have a lot of new triathletes coming into the sport, which is always super exciting," she said. "We're really pleased with the group that we have. They worked really, really hard and we saw a lot of improvement throughout the season. One of the most exciting things about having a young team is we are not graduating anybody, so that will be great for coming back knowing that they are super dedicated."

Dalton, who was nominated for Female Rookie of the Year at last month's annual Club Sports Choice Awards, said her first season with the team was unforgettable and she looks forward to making more memories in next year.

"The people I've met through this club and the relationships I've formed are indescribable," she said. "That's the most important thing to me."

The triathlon team was awarded the Team Perseverance Award at the Choice Awards for showing resilience and support for the family of team member Josiah Fowler, a rising senior who died following a cycling crash in nearby Campbell County last May.

"One of my favorite things about the Liberty triathlon team is the team culture," Gollnick said. "They just love hanging out with each other, supporting each other, whether they're the top athlete or newer to the sport, they support each other physically, emotionally, encouraging each other, and spiritually as well, and that's really why we're here, so it's pretty amazing to see."

Video by Colleen Schaner/Club Sports Video & Media Assistant

Triathlon team lived up to magazine’s billing as one of top 10 programs in nation this spring

Players Mentioned

Morgan Dalton

Josiah Fowler

Alex Schimmel

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