UTICA, N.Y. – The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's indoor track and field team turned in a productive and well-rounded showing at the Utica Fast Trax Invite today, highlighted by event victories, multiple podium finishes, and impressive depth across the distance races.

Lauren Szalkowski paced the Engineers in the 200-meter dash with a runner-up finish in 26.37 seconds, while Ava Marcucci followed with an eighth-place effort in 26.66. RPI posted a strong presence in the 800 meters as Charlotte Koutalidis placed second in 2:20.36, Laura Hoag crossed the line third in 2:21.00, and Anoua Carrie added a fifth-place finish in 2:23.32.

The mile featured another standout performance for the Engineers, as Claudia Wolf captured first place in 5:21.02. Niamh Herraghty finished third in 5:31.31, Josie Howard placed fourth in 5:39.06, Chloe Nebel took fifth in 5:42.06, and Sara Mikula rounded out the top eight with a time of 5:49.26.

RPI's distance group continued to shine in the longer races. Julianne Bleskoski delivered a dominant performance in the 5,000 meters, winning the event in 17:05.41. She was followed by a deep contingent of Engineers, including Gianna Coryea in second at 18:30.82, Ava Handel in third at 18:32.59, Theresa O'Connor in fourth at 18:48.62, and Tessa Bossom in fifth at 18:53.83. Francesca Mavricos placed sixth in 18:56.12, Karina Martinez finished seventh in 19:06.70, and Kaitlyn Fleming earned eighth in 19:30.75. Elsie Corbett recorded an eighth-place finish in the 3,000 meters with a time of 11:53.37.

Brambati was a major force in the field events as well, capturing first place in both the long jump with a mark of 5.45 meters and the triple jump at 11.17 meters. Brambati added a third-place result in the 60-meter hurdles, stopping the clock at 9.08 seconds as well. 

The Engineers also claimed a victory in the high jump, where Tooni Olaleye cleared 1.55 meters to take first, while Gabby Irvin placed fifth at 1.40 meters. Ainsley Rausch finished second with a vault of 3.17 meters, and Isabelle Sullivan added an eighth-place effort at 2.72 meters.

Katie Lynch rounded out the field performances with an eighth-place finish in the shot put, recording a throw of 10.95 meters.

RPI also earned a podium finish in relay action, as the 4x200-meter relay team of Alyssa Fici, Lauren Szalkowski, Ava Marcucci, and Maeve Murphy combined for a second-place finish with a time of 1:46.97.

The Engineers will take next weekend off before looking ahead to the Liberty League Indoor Championships, which run February 27 through March 1 at host RIT.