By: Jenia Freewalt, sports information assistant
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The Beavers kicked off their indoor track season with the "2021 Friday Night Spikes Opener" at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology on Friday, Jan. 15. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they were unable to compete in an outdoor track season, so this was the first live competition the Beavers had seen since the 2020 indoor track season.
The meet had a great start with sophomore Madalynn Schifer (Bucyrus) taking 2nd place in the long jump. Also earning second place was sophomore Emma Payne (Hicksville) in the weight throw.
"The goal of the first meet is always to keep technique together and I thought that this team did that very well...the big marks will come later. I look forward to getting back to work for another solid week of training," explained throws and head coach Kaylea Jachno.
Leading the women's 60-meter dash for the Beavers was sophomore Nina McGinn (Marion/Harding) with a time of 8.34. McGinn also led the women's 200-meter dash with a time of 28.93 and was accompanied by her teammate, Schifer, with a time of 29.03, who took second place in the 200-meter dash. In the 3000-meter run, freshman Miranda Billmann (Castalia/Margaretta) finished in 2nd place with a time of 11:58.82, followed by her teammate and fellow freshman Makenzie Brownrigg (Davison, Mich.) who placed 3rd with a time of 12:23.35.
"I thought it was a solid start to the season," said distance coach Logan Wells. "We're not at full capacity yet, either in training or in personnel, but everyone gave a good effort and set a solid foundation for the rest of the season."
For the men, junior Brandon James (Waynesfield/Waynesfield-Goshen) won the men's long jump with a leap of 6.34m. Also winning his event was freshman Desmond Gist (Detroit, Mich./Trenton) in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.85. Junior Dalton Taynor (Troy/Miami East) finished the 200-meter dash in 3rd place with a time of 24.00.
Overall, the Bluffton women finished in 2nd place and the men took 3rd place.
"We are so grateful for Rose-Hulman hosting us; they always put on a fantastic meet. I thought the team competed very well for our season opener. We had several individual standouts but as a team we showed great potential. I am excited to see what next week holds as we head to Tiffin University." -head coach Kaylea Jachno.
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