By: Tami Groff, sports information assistant
ADA, Ohio - The Bluffton Track and Field team made the short trip to Ada for the Larry Cole Invite at Ohio Northern University on Friday, Jan. 25.
There were some stellar performances on the women's side. Senior Bailie Barrington (Waynesfield/Waynesfield-Goshen) broke the school record in the 1000-meter run with a time of 3:16. She ended up 8th in the field. Another record was broken by freshman Caitlyn Renner (Cairo/Bath) in the long jump. Renner jumped 5.07 meters which put her 3rd in the competition. This distance has her 1st amongst HCAC long-jump competitors.
The sprints, jumps, hurdles, and pole vault groups had a solid day with season bests and personal records. Sophomore Brandon James (Waynesfield/Waynesfield-Goshen) set a personal record in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 9.04 which placed him in the finals. James is currently 5th in the HCAC. Renner also competed in the 60-meter hurdles, qualifying for the finals. Freshmen Madalynn Schifer (Bucyrus/Bucyrus) and Stacey Chirewa (Harare, Zimbabwe/Chisipile) ran personal records in the 60-meter dash.
Sophomore Dalton Taynor (Troy/Miami East) ran a season best in the 60-meter dash. In the 200-meter dash, Senior Ciana Hostetler (Sugarcreek/Garaway) and Taynor both ran season bests. Freshman Taijah Lewis and senior Christian Parker (Urbana/West Liberty) also ran PR's in the 200-meter dash. Senior Justin Kauffman (Smithville) had another great performance with a personal record in the pole vault (4.35 meters). Kauffman finished 5th in the field which has him 2nd amongst HCAC pole vaulters, and is tied for 4th amongst all Division 3 pole vaulters in Ohio.
The distance side also had quality performances. Senior Connor Gulick (St. Louisville/Utica) had an impressive but tactical race in the mile. Gulick ended up with a personal record of 4:36 which put him in 5th place at the meet and also makes him 7th amongst all HCAC milers. The women's 3000-meter run had a speedy start and an intense finish. Seniors Alexis Cash (Gaines, MI/Lake Fenton) and Arie Cox (Ontario/Ontario) had impressive season bests with times of 11:00 and 11:58, respectively. Cash came in 4th and she is currently 4th amongst the HCAC 3000-meter runners.
And to cap it off, the throws group had an impressive evening. In the men's shot-put, freshmen Michael Lindhorst (Lindsey/Woodmore) and Henry Wright (Wooster/Wooster) had personal records. Senior John Jones (Cincinnati/Walnut Hills) had another impressive performance in the weight throw. He threw a personal record of 15.89 meters and he feels there is much more to come. He finished 3rd in the event, 2nd amongst HCAC throwers, and he is tied for 3rd amongst Division 3 competitors in Ohio.
Coach Jachno had this to say about her team and coaching staff. "You can see the team is developing depth across the board. We had a huge lifetime best in the men's pole vault, and I love that. Two school records went down in both the women's long jump and 1000m. Coach Wells and Briggs are doing a great job with all of our freshmen and returners. They're having personal bests across the board.
Referencing the 4x200 and 4X400 relay teams, Coach Jachno talked about putting together the 'A' teams. "The good thing about the races was that you could see our depth. I'm very excited about that! The effort is always excellent, and you could see that the team was there to do battle."
"Now we start the last week of our pre-competition training block and head to ONU for round two," quipped Coach Jachno. "We are excited for what's to come!"
The Beavers will head back to ONU in Ada on Saturday, Feb. 1, for the Joe Banks Invitational. Come out and support the Beavers, starting at 11 a.m!
-BEAVERS-
