MILLERSVILLE, Pa. — A strong indoor season is set to come to a close as the Marauders look to take a leap at the PSAC Indoor Championships at Lehigh University.

The Millersville indoor track & field team has enjoyed one of their best years in recent history, recording 16 new entries or improved marks in the program record book thus far. The Marauders are sending 23 athletes to compete across 16 different events at the conference meet.

"We have probably one of our better indoor teams that we've ever had here," said head coach Andy Young. "I think the best we've ever finished at the indoor championships is fourth one time, so we're hopeful that we can do that this year. I think we have a bunch of individuals that can help us get there. But at the end of the day, they have to perform on that day."

Going into the season, Young said he expects the team's sprinters to be its strength, hitting the nail on the head with that prediction. Katelyn Murphy and Aasly De Leon have led the charge, with Murphy finishing the regular season ranked fourth in the 60-meter hurdles (8.99) and De Leon second in the 60-meter dash (7.69) and sixth in the 200-meter dash (25.56). Rounding out the sprint events in the 400-meter dash are a trio of Marauders, Jillian Sydnor (58.43), Shelby Derkosh (58.88), and Aubrey Sydnor (59.18), who all have potential to qualify for the final round and snag some points for Millersville.

Two of the standouts, De Leon and Jillian Sydnor, will be making their first conference championships appearance as freshmen. Young said he and his staff have been excited watching both of them run and is looking forward to seeing how they perform at the biggest indoor meet of the year.

"[De Leon] has consistently been running very well indoors. We're trying to see what kind of athlete she's going to be in college. We're really curious as she gets stronger and understands what we want training-wise, how that's going to translate to her performances," said Young. "It's hard not to talk about Sydnor too, because she's another one that can be a very, very good athlete at this level. I think those two are going to have a huge impact on this program this year and in the future."

Though pole vault has normally been the Marauders strong suit at the conference meets, they'll be entering the weekend shorthanded. Millersville will be without Darian Hauf (13-2 1/4), who ranked first in the PSAC and 13^th in Division II. Although missing Hauf, who broke the PSAC record this season,  is a big loss for 'Ville, it also presents an opportunity for breakout senior Megan Malecki. 

Malecki (12-3 1/2) has improved drastically from the end of last year's indoor season, going from narrowly missing All-PSAC this time last year, to finishing as conference runner-up at the outdoor meet, and now entering the weekend with the top accepted entry. With not just an opportunity to earn her first All-PSAC honor in the indoor season, but a conference title as well, Young said her work on the mental side of competing has helped unlock a new set of expectations for her to clear.

"Megan has so much desire and drive to get better," said Young. "She's a great athlete; she's just kind of been in the shadows a little bit. But she was super proud of winning the Susquehanna Invite and hitting the NCAA mark. That was a big deal and something that's been on her radar since she got here."

The Marauders have a solid squad of athletes rounding out the rest of the track athletes, giving them a chance to score some points in the distance runs as well. They'll have Cora Heilman (2:21.15) in the 800-meter run, Bri Pollock (5:17.33) and Emily Massage in the mile run, Massage (18.36.70) in the 5,000-meter run, and a 4x400-meter and Distance Medley Relay team too. Sabela Zablackis (3,017 points) also gives the Marauders a chance to get on the board in the pentathlon, coming into the meet with the third best entry.

On the field side, Chanel Hercules (17-8) looks to follow up her All-PSAC performance from last year in the long jump, and Danika Bolinsky (36-2 1/4) in the triple jump is someone the coaches rave about, as she'll be aiming for a breakout performance. The potential for the most points in the field events is with the throws team. Sarah Hessler has been the Marauders best athlete in the throws throughout the season, entering third in the weight throw (53-5) and fourth in the shot put (43-8). Maddy Downs also qualified for both events, coming into weight throw with the ninth-best entry (49-10 1/2) and shot put with 13^th-best (39-4 1/2). Joining those two in the weight throw will also be Seya Trujillo, who slots in right behind Downs with the 10^th-best entry (47-10). All three have the ability to not just score but finish high on the leaderboard too.

"Seya had a great spring last year and really jumped out, Sarah too. Those two, along with Maddy, are going to have a big impact for our team," said Young. "They all have a profound impact on our program. They can score in multiple throw events, and our hope is that they do that this year and have a really strong PSAC performance."

The meet begins at 11 a.m. on Saturday with the weight throw, long jump, and pentathlon kicking things off, and will resume on at noon on Sunday with the triple jump.