Led by a victory from Melanie Wilson (Saint Louis, Mo./Rosati-Kain) in the 55m hurdles, the Valparaiso women’s track and field team finished fifth at the Chicagoland Championships Friday evening in Romeoville, Ill.

The Crusaders tallied 50.5 points over the meet’s 17 events for their fifth-place finish.  Lewis University, which served as the host institution, took the team title with 141.5 points.

Wilson took top honors in the 55m hurdles for the second consecutive meet, crossing the line in 8.43 seconds.  She also added a second-place finish for the Crusaders in the triple jump, leaping 36’7 ½”.

Lakisha Lane(Topeka, Kan./Highland Park) also tallied two top-five finishes for Valpo on Friday.  Lane joined Wilson among the fastest runners in the 55m hurdles, completing the race in 8.66 seconds, good for fourth place.  Lane also recorded a fifth-place showing in the 400m dash with a time of 1:03.13.

Emilie Marsicek (Spalding, Mich./Carney-Nadeau) registered a toss of 43’5 ¾” in the shot put, good for a second-place showing.  Amanda Body (Harlan, Ky./Harlan) tallied a third-place finish for the Crusaders in the 55m dash with a time of 7.47 seconds, while Alyssa Bradford (Mukwonago, Wis./Mukwonago) ran a season-best time of 11:00.76 in the 3,000m run to finish fifth.

The women’s squad returns to the track Friday, February 22 as it travels to Milwaukee to take part in a triangular meet along with UIC.  The meet is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.