Virginia, Alma meets feature personal bests and MAC auto qualifiers
In a busy weekend for the Central Michigan track & field team, distance runners flew down to the College of William & Mary in Virginia while sprinters and field athletes took a short trip to Alma College.
The “Colonial Relays” in Virginia was a two-day event beginning Friday, but the outing was delayed by tornado warnings at about 8 p.m.
“It all calmed down after the (tornado) warning,” said head coach Mark Guthrie. “The student-athletes bounced back with a few really good times.”
The two days were riddled with personal bests across the board, many of which are MAC auto qualifiers for the Outdoor Championships.
The meet in Alma was successful as well. While the outdoor season is usually spent chasing good weather by heading south, this meet was just a 20 minute ride from CMU’s campus.
“We were lucky to have such great weather so close to home,” Guthrie said. “The competition was decent at best, but we found some things we can work on event by event to improve depth.”
Women’s results
In Virginia, senior Kelly Schubert kicked pff her outdoor season with a new personal best in the 5k with 16:48.88.
Junior Megan O’Neil continued a great night at the Colonial Relays, finishing second in the steeplechase with a 10:31.71. That time is likely a NCAA 1st round qualifier.
With a personal record of 2:10.27 in the 800, senior Kelsey Ross earned an automatic bid for the MAC Outdoor Championships.
Senior thrower Kylee Dobbelaere set a personal record in Alma in the hammer throw with 56.23, giving her first place.
The Chips dominated the 100, accounting for three of the top four finishes. Freshman Doofanter Nyamor took first with 12.47, sophomore Danielle Horton was second with 12.73, and freshman Aisha Jackson was fourth with 12.87.
The same three athletes owned the 200 as well, with Horton, Nyamor, and Jackson taking 1-2-3.
Men’s results
Junior Joseph Emmanuel and freshman Bransen Stimpfel were shy of two personal bests in the 5k in Virginia, finishing in 15:10.02 and 15:12.45.
Meanwhile, senior Silas DeKalita set a personal best in the 5k with 14:38.01.
Yet another MAC auto qualifier, freshman Luke Anderson finished fourth in the steeple with 9:13.12.
At the Alma meet, CMU won throwing events across the board. Junior Kevin Weiler won the shot put with 16.49, freshman Logan Targgart took the hammer throw with 55.22, and senior Dylan Banagis set a career-high in discus with 51.72.
Targgart also finished second in the discus, Weiler finished third, and freshman Roman Greco took fourth.
Senior Casey Voisin and sophomore Alec Omell finished neck-and-neck in the 1500, with Voisin taking first with 4:03.65 and Omell taking second with 4:04.52.
What's next
The Chippewas' next meet will be on April 8 out in Waco, TX at Baylor University. Guthrie said this will be the best competition they’ll see all season, even surpassing the MAC Championships.
“It’ll be 85 degrees and sunny, we’ve got to take advantage of that,” he said. “We spend that kind of money to fly 30 athletes down there, an average performance isn’t what we’re looking for. We’re looking to sure up what we have.”
