By: Tami Groff, sports information assistant
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The Bluffton University Track and Field Team traveled to Rose Hulman to compete in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Indoor Championship. There was a lot of grit and determination in every single Beaver that competed on Saturday, Feb. 22.
On top of the podium stood senior Justin Kauffman (Smithville) and sophomore Brandon James (Waynesfield/Waynesfield Goshen). Kauffman finished his last indoor conference meet with a bang. He took 1st in the pole vault, tying his personal record of 4.35. James dominated the triple jump with a 1st place finish, throwing up a huge personal record of 13.35 meters. Both men scored 10 points each for the Beavers.
Not to be outdone was senior John Jones (Cincinnati/Walnut Hills) in the weight throw. Each week his form has gotten better and he proved he was a force to be reckoned with. Jones came in 2nd with a big personal record of 16.4 meters. James came in 2nd for the long jump event and he also jumped a personal record of 6.49 meters. The women also had a nice showing on the podium. Freshman Caitlyn Renner (Cairo/Bath) brought the heat in the long jump, coming in 2nd with a jump of 5.07 meters. Renner was named the HCAC Indoor Freshman of the Year, along with Madison Huelskamp of Earlham. The women's 4x200 meter team, which consisted of all freshman – Madalynn Schifer (Bucyrus), Taijah Lewis (East Pointe, MI/Clintondale), Renner and Nina McGinn (Marion/Harding), took 2nd place with a time of 1:49. The last 2nd place finish of the evening for the Beavers went to Lewis in the 200-meter dash. She ran a personal record of 27.07 seconds. All these athletes scored eight points per event.
The last podium spots went to a pair of individual athletes and two relays. First up was junior Stephanie Fox (Pickerington/Central) who competed in the shot put. She launched the shot out to 10.88 meters which gave her a 3rd place finish. Next up was the men's distance medley relay, which consisted of senior Dakota Frost (Edgerton/Hicksville), freshman Morgan Adams (Dublin/Coffman), senior Connor Gulick (St. Louisville/Utica), and freshman Britton Boyle (Middletown/Madison). This group ran a time of 11:03, good for 3rd place. Another individual 3rd place finisher was McGinn in the 60-meter dash. She qualified with a time of 8.19 seconds which was a personal record. And finally, the men's 4x200 meter relay, which consisted of senior Christian Parker (Urbana/West Liberty), sophomore Dalton Taynor (Troy/Miami East), James and junior Omar Warlick (East Pointe, MI/Clintondale). These men came from behind in the first heat en route to a 3rd place finish with a time of 1:34. These athletes scored six points for each 3rd place finish.
Three athletes just missed being on the podium with a 4th place finish. Senior Alexis Cash (Gaines, MI/Lake Fenton) put her heart and soul into both of her races since it was her last indoor conference meet. Cash competed in the 5k, finishing with a time of 18:53 which is just eight seconds from her school record. She also competed in the 3k and with an aggressive finish just missed her school record by less than a second with a time of 10:53. Renner also just missed top three honors in the 60 hurdles. Cash finished with a personal record of 9.64 seconds. And last but not least, senior Bailie Barrington (Waynesfield/Waynesfield Goshen) worked hard for her 4th place finish in the mile. Barrington went out tactically, hoping to get a top three finish. She finished with a time of 5:38. All three women scored five points for each event.
Coming in with a 5th place finish was junior Remi Bower (Deshler/Patrick Henry). Bower competed in the high jump with a final jump of 1.53 meters. Barrington also ran the 800-meter race. Barrington finished with a time of 2:31. Bower and Barrington each added four points to Bluffton's total.
One individual and two teams came in 7th for the Beavers. Fox also competed in the weight throw with an impressive throw of 13.73 meters, which was a personal record. The women's distance medley relay came in 7th with a time of 15:07. This relay consisted of freshman Justine Lesniewski (Mantua/Crestwood) and Stacy Chirewa (Harare, Zimbabwe/Chisipite), senior Ciana Hostetler (Sugarcreek/Garaway), and sophomore Hope Nixon (Johnstown/Johnstown-Monroe). With some injuries for the 4x400 meter race, the men had to grind to finish 7th with a time of 3:48. This team consisted of Parker, Taynor, sophomore William Bakeman (Clinton Twp., MI/Clintondale) and Gulick. These 7th place finishers scored two points for each event.
Last but not least are the individuals who placed 8th. Lewis competed in the high jump with a leap of 1.43 meters. Warlick had to grind through the finals of the 60-meter dash with a prelim time of 7.19 which is a personal record. Schifer also competed in the 60-meter dash. She qualified for the finals with a personal record of 8.5 to finish in 8th place. All three individuals scored a point for the team.
There were some notable performances that did not result in any points. Chirewa ran a personal record in the 60-meter dash. Bakeman ran a season best in the 400-meter dash. Schifer notched a personal record in the 200-meter dash. Freshman Noelle Nuttle (Hicksville) put up a personal record in the pole vault. Sophomore Austin Hernandez (Marion/Ridgedale) ran a personal record in the mile. Senior Arie Cox (Ontario) ran a season best in the 3000-meter race along with freshman Max Chandler (Liberty Township/Lakota East) and Boyle who netted personal bests. Chandler also ran a 23 second personal record in the 5000-meter race. Freshman Henry Wright (Wooster) and Dakotah Bunn (Millbury/Lake) threw a personal record in the shot put while freshman Wyatt Walker (Farmland, Ind./Monroe Central Jr./Sr) busted out a personal record in the weight throw.
The men's team finished 5th with a score of 51 points, behind Rose-Hulman, Earlham, Hanover and Manchester. The women's team finished in 4th place with a score of 69 points, trailing Hanover, Rose-Hulman and Manchester despite fielding a team of just 12 women!
"This conference meet was so much fun to watch. Everyone came to compete and it showed when we had so many athletes on the podium. And there were so many more athletes who came in 4th – 8th place than in past seasons. There are a couple athletes who will be competing at last chance meets over the upcoming weekends to qualify for nationals. The entire coaching staff is excited to see what the outdoor season brings," Coach Jachno stated following the great effort displayed by both the men and women.
The athletes who are not competing in last chance events will have a couple of weeks to recover before the outdoor season kicks off in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, on Thursday, March 19.
-BEAVERS-