The Red Raider track and field team competed as a split squad this weekend as athletes took part in both the ISU Open in Ames, Iowa and the BVU Open in Storm Lake, Iowa.
At the ISU Open, senior Laura Jacobson finished second overall in the 1000m run with a school record time of 2:59.26 and qualified for nationals. It is the second event in which Jacobson has qualified for the NAIA Indoor Championships this season as last week she qualified in the 800m run. Steph Powell finished in 10th place with a time of 3:10.47. Olivia Johnson placed second in the mile, breaking her own school record set last week at the Bill Hillenbrand Invite, with a time of 4:58.8. Charity Miles also broke her own school record in the 3000m with a time of 10:18.82, good for seventh place. Both Johnson and Miles nationally qualified in their respective events last week.
In the distance medley, the team of Johnson, Jess Regan, Jacobson and Miles placed third behind Iowa State and Drake with a school record time of 12:15.73, the fastest NAIA time to date.
On the men's side, Dan Walhof, a junior from Edgerton, Minn. placed 15th in both the mile run and the 5000m. Walhof crossed the line in 4:25.6 in the mile and just missed the national qualifying time in the 5000m with 15:33.87.
The women's team placed second out of eight teams at the BVU Open with a score of 109. The Red Raiders came away with four first place finishes, 11 athletes placed in the top five and 25 top 10 performances. Rae Taylor, Ingrid Carlson, Emily De Weerd and Stephanie Korfe all won their respective events. Taylor took first place in the weight throw with a toss of 14.15 meters. Carlson won the 5000m run with a time of 19:50.83 while teammate Sarah Storm placed third, crossing the line in 20:26.98. Emily De Weerd placed first in the 55m dash with a time of 7.69 and third in the 55m hurdles with a time of 8.91, which provisionally qualifies for indoor nationals. Angela Beckwith placed fifth in the event with a time of 8.09. Korfe won the 3000m run with a time of 11:43.68 while teammate Akacia Wentworth place third in 11:48.69.
Other top finishers for the women's team were: Halee Wilken-third place in the pole vault (2.89m) and Sara Hess and Amanda Schwieger placed third and sixth, respectively, with times of 5:33.04 and 5:56.56.
The men's team placed fourth out of eight schools with a score of 97 points. The Red Raiders recorded nine top five finishes in individual events and took first and second in a pair of relays. In field events, Josh Earleywine took third in the weight throw with a toss of 13.55m. Craig Menke placed fourth in the pole vault, clearing 3.8m. Logan Ogden finished fifth in the shot put with a toss of 13.54m while teammates Paul Lundgren and Michael Ortmeier finished seventh and 10th, respectively.
In the running events, Tyler Peekenschneider and Tom Bartello placed third and fifth in the mile with times of 4:37.03 and 4:59.06, respectively. Mark Den Hartog and Lee Stover finished in second and fourth in the 1000m with times of 2:40.27 and 2:46.26. Jack Peterson and Kyle Sauter turned fifth place performances in their respective events. Peterson, in the 5000m, crossed the line in 16:31.3 while Sauter finished the 55m hurdles in a time of 8.08.
In relay action, the men's 4x800 relay team placed first with a time of 8:21.09. Team members include Nick Tjeerdsma, Kevin Krueger, Ben Brown and Andy Norris.
