In the heat of last weekend’s highly anticipated break in the weather, the Houghton Highlanders track and field team competed in its third outdoor meet of the season. The meet, hosted by Westminster College in New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, began Friday with the men’s and women’s hammer throw at Carnegie Mellon University in the heart of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The women’s throws team, comprised of Maggie Mcdonald ’18, Melissa Bell ’17, and Micah Cronin ’17 all threw personal bests in the competition.
Particularly noteworthy is Bell’s throw of 33.14 meters, making her the possessor of the second farthest personal-best hammer throw in women’s Highlander history, according to assistant track and field coach David Richards. Right behind Bell was Mcdonald’s furthest throw of the day, measured at 32.61 meters. Day two at the throwing circles took place at Westminster College, where Bell also achieved a personal best in the javelin.
Meanwhile at the track, Joanna Friesen ‘17 finished the steeplechase in first place, qualifying to compete in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) national championship. Nikki Fink ’18 also qualified for NCCAA nationals in the 60 meter hurdles, in which she finished sixth place. Nikki Garns ‘18 sprinted the 100 meter dash to also earn the right to compete at NCCAA nationals.
Zdravko Bogdanoski ‘19 came in fifth in the high jump, leaping 1.89 meters. While he just barely missed matching the Highlander men’s high jump record, Bogdanoski did meet NCCAA national qualifying marks. To round out the national-qualifying group was Cory McCarty ‘17, who finished sixth in the 800 meter run with a season best time.
According to a Houghton Highlanders press release, other personal bests recorded at the Westminster Invitational are as follows: Dan Becker ‘17 and Derek Brooker ‘16 in the long jump, Dan Schulz ’17 in the 1500 meter run, Aaron Eisenhardt ’17, Jed Simpson ‘19 and Luke Deboer ‘16 in the 800 meter run and Cody McCarty in the 200 meter run. On the women’s side, Lydia Brown ‘19 sprinted a personal best in the 200 meter run, while in the 800 meter run Hannah Harrison ‘19, Karah Ashley ‘18, and Olivia Donato ‘19 all ran to personal best times.