By: Jenia Freewalt, sports information assistant
ADA, Ohio- On Friday and Saturday, the 22nd and 23rd of April, the Beavers made the short trip to Ohio Northern University to compete at the 3rd Annual Mike Becraft Invitational. The weather was not ideal, with spotty rain and cold gusts of wind making for some tough competing conditions, but the Beavers prevailed!
Kicking off the weekend were the throwing events, in particular, the hammer throw and javelin. Senior Michael Lindhorst (Lindsey/Woodmore) powered through, finishing in 4th place in the hammer with a mark of 48.03 meters! Also placing in 4th overall was freshman Coen North (Denver, Col./North) in the javelin with a big throw of 36.60 meters.
In the women's hammer, senior Emma Payne (Hicksville) took 9th with a throw of 38.51 meters. Also setting a new PR in the hammer was freshman Paige Smith (Springfield/Kenton Ridge) with a throw of 29.62 meters!
On day two of the competition, junior Markus Finley (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) finished 6th overall in the shot put, throwing close to his PR with a distance of 14.08 meters. In the discus, North set a new PR of 31.34 meters. Also setting a PR in the disc was junior Carter Ritchey (Delphos,/Hopewell Loudon) with a mark of 25.55 meters.
Payne placed 7th in the women's discus, throwing close to her PR with a distance of 40.04 meters.
"All around a good two-day meet again," said Assistant Coach Stephanie Fox who works with the throwers. "The weather wasn't ideal again, with the rain and wind the first day and the cold/wind on the second day, but the throwers really pulled through! They have been an amazing group to coach these past two years. As I've stated most weeks, their performances make me excited to see what they do in the upcoming week with our HCAC Championship meet! Furthermore, I am excited to see how the returning throwers do in their future seasons as Bluffton Track and Field Athletes!"
Junior Ethan Ly (Celina) is currently ranked 5th in the HCAC in the 800 meters after racing a new PR time of 1:58.34 on Saturday! Setting a season best this weekend was senior Morgan Adams (Dublin/Coffman) with a time of 2:10! In the women's 800, sophomore Basil Gates (Galion) set a quick new PR of 2:34, followed by teammate Brooke Barnes (Ashland/Crestview) setting a PR of 2:51!
In the men's 1500 meter race, sophomore Tyson Lesher (Millbury/Genoa Area) gave it his all for a season-best time of 4:43. In the women's 1500 meters, sophomore Sammie Unger (Kenton) finished with a quick PR time of 6:03, while junior Miranda Billman (Castalia/Margaretta) left it all on the track with a season-best time of 7:20!
"This was a great confidence booster heading into the conference. Everyone ran their events fresh and really saw their work pay off. Even on a day that was a little windy. We fought through that and competed well," said Assistant Coach Connor Gulick who works primarily with the distance athletes.
Also competing on Saturday were the high jump and long jump competitions. Currently ranked 41st in the nation in the high jump is sophomore Joey Bonham (Vanlue) with a big PR jump of 1.95 meters, placing him 2nd at the meet! Taking 4th was sophomore Kyle Manns (Ottoville).
Sophomore Olivia Rider (Celina) placed 8th in the women's high jump with a mark of 1.48m!
In the men's long jump, freshman Dontrayell Thomas (Madera, Cal./Edison) placed 7th with a big jump of 6.02 meters. Junior Malik Waters (Lima/Perry) finished just before him in 6th place with a jump of 6.11 meters.
The men's 400 meter hurdles was dominated by Manns, placing 1st with a time of 58.32. Sophomore Ja'Ce Nutt (Miamisburg/Valley View) placed 7th with a time of 1:04.57, followed closely by Payton Mikesell (Lima/Bath) who took 8th with a time of 1:05.68. Nutt also finished 7th in the men's 110 meter hurdles with a time of 17.97.
Sophomore Russell Lough (Wintersville/Indian Creek) took 10th in the men's 200 meter dash with a quick time of 23.16. In the women's 200, senior Madalynn Schifer (Bucyrus) finished in 5th with a time of 27.44.
In the men's open 400, freshman Darien Tolbert (Riverside/Stebbins) came in 8th with a time of 53.72.
In the women's 100 meter dash, senior Schifer placed 3rd overall, flying across the line with a time of 12.97.
The men's 4x100 relay, comprised of Thomas, Lough, sophomore Jayden McConnell (Sunbury/Big Walnut) and junior Desmond Gist (Detroit, Mich./Trenton) finished in 4th place on Saturday with a combined time of 44.12. The women's 4x100 relay team placed 3rd with a time of 52.80, and was comprised of Schifer, Rider, sophomore Kinsey Myers (Stryker), and sophomore Kailea Greathouse-Kerr (Manchester, Ind.).
Finally, the men's 4x400 team, comprised of junior Blayden McCoy (Fresno/Ridgewood), sophomore Simon Shawk (Galion), Lough, and McConnell took home the gold on Saturday, speeding away from the competition for a finishing time of 3:22.05. The women's 4x400 relay team, comprised of Myers, Kerr, Barnes, and junior Jenia Freewalt (Delphos/St. John's), finished in 5th place with a time of 4:46.36.
"Another great meet for the team as a whole," exclaimed Head Coach Ben Markison. "The weather was not great for sprints and jumps, but they still came out and had some great performances which shows me that we're ready for conference this coming weekend."
The HCAC Championships will take place on April 28 and 29 at Franklin and serves as a final opportunity this season for the Beavers to compete! The men and women are looking forward to the conference competition and are ready to see where they stand against the other members of the HCAC this weekend!
-BEAVERS-
