For a program in its third season of existence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods' track and field program is off and running.
The Pomeroys competed for the first time in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and took runner-up honors in the River States Conference in the women's RSC Outdoor Track and Field Championships.  
Coach Zach Whitkanack looks forward to continuing to build his young men's and women's programs. But, when taking account of the current state of the program, the SMWC coach has many reasons to look back at the past year with pride in the work of his Pomeroys.
The men's team had strong performances from several underclassmen throughout the season, which wrapped up with a ninth-place finish in the River States Conference.
With strong performances in a variety of disciplines  - distance, sprints and field events – the Pomeroys have much to build upon on the women's side. The Pomeroys accumulated 144 points, behind Point Park University with 194. Rio Grande was third with 112.
"We were a lot closer to Point Park outdoors than indoors. With our recruiting class and them graduating some, we'll hope to be in the mix next year with Point Park and Rio Grande next year with a chance to win it," Whitkanack said.
One reason was Tyresha Clark (Terre Haute North/Terre Haute, Ind.), who won the shot put with a heave of 40-feet, 7.5 inches and took a second all-conference honor with third place in the discus with a mark of 115 feet.  Clark's season- and career-best throw of 41-foot-3 was the highest on the NAIA national qualifying list at 48^th in the country.
The freshman plans to continue to improve in 2023 in those events in addition to the hammer throw, an event which she took sixth place in. Teammate Hannah Ellis (North Vermillion/Dana, Ind.) was third in the hammer throw for all-conference honors.
"We were really positive all season and motivated with a competitive mindset for conference," Clark said. "We'll look to continue to work hard and be ready for next season."
SMWC also scored in several other field events. Freshman Lara Skaggs (Seymour H.S./Seymour, Ind.), junior Kaileigh Pruitt (Seeger H.S./Williamsport, Ind.) and Kaylynn Barton (Terre Haute South/Terre Haute, Ind.) finished sixth, seventh and eight place respectively in the high jump, all clearing 4-feet-9. Pruitt's season-best jump of 5-foot-2 ½ was 59^th in the nation.
In the distance events, the Pomeroys excelled this season. Emily Truax, whose 3,000-meter steeplechase time of 12:06.41 at the RSC meet ranked 58^th in the nation, was All-RSC with her third-place finish.  
Senior Kayla Coryea (Plainfield H.S./Plainfield, Ind.) was runner-up in the 10,000 meters for the Pomeroys, followed closely by Kendyll Schulz (Bloomington North/Bloomington, Ind.). Coryea's 10K time of 40:47.97 was 86^th in the nation.
"It was only my second 10K I ever raced so that was an awesome experience," said Coryea, who also finished second in the 5,000 meters to Alyssa Campbell of Point Park.
Coryea said the program's first RSC meet competing against athletes from 11 other schools was an all-around fun experience.
"It was such an amazing opportunity to go to RSC Meet. We didn't know what to expect. We were trying to get enough points to win but came up short. We look forward to going back next year and hopefully winning it. I was pretty pleased with my performance," Coryea said.
In the sprints, freshman Hope McGuire (Reitz Memorial/Evansville, Ind.) was third in the 200-meter dash to earn all-conference honors and she anchored the 400-meter relay team that took the RSC title with a time of 50.34 seconds. The other members of the champion relay team were sophomore Alyssa Winterstein (Waynesville/Omaha, Neb.), freshman Khloe Hoar (Terre Haute North/Terre Haute, Ind.) and freshman Savannah Lewis (Oldham County/Lagrange, Ky.).
The SMWC men's team was led by four top-five finishers in the RSC Men's Track and Field Championships. Preston Mitchell (St. Thomas Aquinas/Canton, Ohio) took third in the hammer throw. Luke Frey (West Vigo/West Terre Haute, Ind.) was fourth in the long jump, Alden Fuller (West Vigo/Terre Haute, Ind.) fifth in the javelin and Thomas Chapman (Northview/Brazil, Ind.) fifth in the 5,000 meters.
Fuller's mark of 158-6 in the javelin made him 76^th in the NAIA for the highest ranking mark among the SMWC men's athletes.
Chapman capped a strong freshman year, following up on a NAIA National Cross Country Championships qualifying season in the fall with a quality track season.
Chapman set a personal best in the 5,000 meters at the RSC meet with a time of 15:46.30.
"I felt like I should have pushed myself to be in a better position. I was in a good position most of the race. They made it a battle to finish in a good position," said Chapman, who expects bigger things in future seasons. "It set in stone what I kind of want to do. It made a stepping stone for the next year so I can progress. I really want to help the team get a better placing whenever conference rolls around. I'd like to get some wins in some conference races."
Whitkanack expects his young men's distance crew to continue to develop and has an influx of talent on the way to strengthen other areas.