Lake Hickory, N.C. - The Lenoir-Rhyne Women's Triathlon Team host their first and only home race of the season. After their recent qualification for Nationals and win in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, the team hosted a Carolina invitational. The Bears competed against Queens University, Wingate University, and Newberry College. LR placed third overall in team standings.

Instead of a full sprint distance race that would happen in the national qualifiers, the athletes raced a super-sprint, halving the distance to a 375-meter open water swim, a 10-kilometer bike, and a 2.5-kilometer run. The race is faster paced than a sprint distance and takes under 40 minutes for the athletes to complete.

Freshman Kayla Ribbink led the team out of the swim with a 6:05 time, putting her in the chase pack behind two athletes from Wingate and another from Queens. Off the bike, and through the run, she placed first for the LR squad, with a fifth-place finish overall. In the second chase pack, Franziska Neck, along with Chloe Telian, Andie Kuipers, and Nanette Nikolajsen worked strong together to put themselves in powerful positions for the run. Freshman Neck had the 6^th fastest run time of the day, placing her in the top ten.

Remarked by Head Coach Bryant Howard, "Strong runs were led by the freshman Franziska and Kayla."

Moving forward from their podium finish, the team races the East Regional Qualifier at Smith Mountain Lake.
 
Overall Team Results

1. Queens University- 20 pts
2. Wingate University- 28 pts
3. Lenoir-Rhyne University- 40

 
LR Finishers (Place)

1. Kayla Ribbink (34:02/5^th)
2. Franziska Neck (35:53/10^th)
3. Chloe Telian (36:30/12^th)
4. Andie Kuipers (36:49/13^th)
5. Teresa Vesely (36:54/14^th)
6. Nanette Nikolajsen (37:00/15^th)
7. Sayti Plank (38:54/19^th)
8. Paige Ewald (39:36/20^th)