The NCAA 2025 outdoor track and field season ended this weekend out west in Eugene, Ore. with 11 Cavaliers there to compete. It was not a particularly easy meet for anyone and was not quite as satisfying of an end as some might have hoped. Still, three Virginia athletes gained first team All-American Honors — senior Margot Appleton and juniors Gary Martin and Celia Rifaterra.
Appleton also won second team All-American for her 5k time, earning that honor alongside graduate student Will Daley, junior Keyandre Davis and graduate students Annika Kelly and Estel Valeanu. Four other Cavaliers received an Honorable Mention — seniors Jenny Schilling, Alex Sherman, Justin Wachtel and Carly Tarentino.
As for Appleton, she has now officially completed her last two races as a Cavalier. In the 5k, Appleton finished 13th in 15:44.76. But in the 1500, she starred. Appleton headed into the 1500 meters finals, after having finished second in her qualifying heat, as the highest ranked NCAA competitor in the field from her season best time of 4:05.68.
The gun went off and Appleton glided to the back of the pack –– a common strategy for her. Appleton stayed in the back for the first 300 meters and then moved around two other runners in the next lap.
For the next 400 meters Appleton continued to shift around the pack, clearing a duo of competitors before maneuvering in the next lap into sixth place. The bell rang and Appleton appeared to be now solidly in the middle of the pack with a lot of real estate to cover if she wanted a top three finish.
Appleton moved into the second lane around South Carolina’s sophomore Salma Elbadra and two runners from Oregon — junior Silan Ayyildiz and senior Klaudia Kazimierska. In the last 100 meters, Appleton continued to kick, gradually closing the distance between her and Northern Arizona senior Maggi Condon –– the runner who had beat Appleton in the qualifying round –– whom Appleton cleared with 50 meters to go.
Unfortunately, she was not able to catch Washington senior Sophie O’Sullivan, who crossed the line first in 4:07.94, but Appleton finished in second with a time of 4:08.99 –– her highest place finish in an NCAA Championship event throughout her entire collegiate career and therefore a satisfying cap on her time as a Virginia runner.
On the other hand, Martin had a more difficult time with his 1500. He got boxed out at the beginning of the race and had to spend much of the race climbing into a better position, which is a typical strategy for Appleton but not Martin. The men formed a tight pack throughout the entire race, forcing Martin into the second lane for the last lap.
North Carolina senior Ethan Strand, who had been further back, let out a monster kick in the last 150 meters, passing Martin and another few runners and finishing in second. Martin kicked hard but was unable to get around the top four other runners and ended up in fifth with a time of 3:47.58.
In high jump, Rifaterra cleared a jump of 1.84 meters, landing her in seventh place overall, while Tarentino tied for 19th place.
Graduate student Estel Valeanu placed ninth overall in the women’s discus, throwing 58.22 — a new personal best — while in hammer throw, Kelly and Davis respectively placed 14th and 15th. Davis threw 66.24 meters in the men’s event, and Kelly nabbed a mark of 64.87 meters in the women’s.
Back on the track, Daley grabbed a 13th place finish in the 5,000 meters in just 13:36.55. Also in that race for Virginia was Wachtel who finished in 24th in 14:11.51. Schilling placed 17th overall in the women’s 10k, crossing the line in 33:07.58 at her first ever NCAA Outdoors race.
Finishing up the roster of Cavaliers out in Eugene, Sherman tied for 17th with Texas at San Antonio sophomore Hugo Menin. Both hurdlers ran a time of 50.98 seconds.
Now that track has ended for the year, Virginia will look forward to cross country season, which will begin in August — without some major stars like Appleton and Schilling. However, a new group of Cavaliers will have a chance to fill the shoes and spikes these seniors left behind.
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