March 18, 2003
by Nate Smith
Bluffton played host to HCAC rivals Defiance and Manchester on a cold, windy Tuesday afternoon in Salzman Stadium.
Bluffton's women fought the cold and their opponents, coming out on top, scoring 131 points to capture the tri-meet victory. Meanwhile, the men fought to overcome absences from their own lineup, getting some solid performances while placing third.
The winning performance from the women featured six event winners, to go along with two new school records. Leading the way were the sprinters, who captured wins in four events. The women's 400 meter relay of Amanda Habegger, Jana Hammer, Rita Muether, and Marquita Miller won convincingly in a time of 52.24, setting a new school record in that event. Muether then came back to capture a second record in the 200 meters, at 26.44. Meanwhile, Habegger and Hammer each won events in the 300 hurdles and 100 meters, respectively. It was the second consecutive year that Habegger captured the tri-meet title in the 300 hurdles. Habegger also finished as the high scorer in the meet with 24 points.
The Beavers' women captured two event titles in the field events, with Laurel Miller winning the triple jump and Megan Beach capturing the shotput. Also, Bluffton received another standout performance from freshman Lauren Borga, who finished second in the 3200 meters with a time of 11:55.64.
Bluffton's men featured two event winners in the contest, but other notable performances as well, despite absences from four of the Beavers' top athletes. Individual titles in the meet went to freshmen Dan Rosebrock and Jeremy King. King cleared six feet to win the high jump, while Rosebrock captured the 800 meters with a strong finishing 400 meters.
Among the top individual performers for the Beavers was hurdler Troy Baumer, who placed second in the 110 meter hurdles, with a collegiate-best time of 15.64. Another Beaver to match a personal best was pole vaulter Fred Yoder, who cleared 13 feet, matching the top clearance of the meet.
In the throws, freshman Jeff Lehman claimed a second-place finish in the shotput, while senior Travis Lepley came within two feet of his personal best in the hammer throw, while finishing second at 114' 2.5".
This weekend, a portion of the Beavers' team will travel to Atlanta, GA, for the Emory DIII Invitational. The entire team will return to action the following weekend, March 29, at the Anderson Invitational.