ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – In their final tune up before the upcoming Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Indoor Track and Field Championships, the Yellowjacket women's track and field team competed at the Gene Glader Classic, hosted by Bethel University.
The field was small, but strong, and the Yellowjackets showed well, placing fourth with a total of 57 points.
Host Bethel won the meet, accumulating 257 points.
Tea Boerner (Owatonna, Minn./Owatonna Senior) led the way for the Yellowjackets Saturday, posting the win in the mile with a time of 5:43.74. The time established a new personal record for Boerner. Hers was the only first place finish for the Yellowjackets Saturday.
Summer Hesseldahl (International Falls, Minn./Falls) had a top-four finish in the 60-meter hurdles, finishing with a personal record time of 10.19 seconds.
In the field events
Emma Johnson (Centuria, Wis./Unity) continued the strong start to her freshman season, placing second in the shot put with a mark of 11.78 meters, establishing a new personal record. Johnson also brought home a sixth-place finish in the weight throw with a heave of 14.37 meters.
Kenzy Kreuzer (Stoddard, Wis./De Soto) established a new personal record in the pole vault, clearing the bar at a height of 2.31 meters, which placed her fifth.
Cora Schmitz (Luck, Wis./Unity) was right behind Kreuzer, placing sixth with a mark of 2.16 meters.
Meet Notes
- In addition to Bethel and UW-Superior, Crown, Minnesota Morris, North Central, Northwestern, Concordia St. Paul and the St. Cloud State University Run Club also competed.
- Janae Widiker (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) and Myla Volk (Wabeno, Wis./Wabeno) finished third and fourth, respectively, in the high jump. Widiker cleared a height of 1.37 meters, while Volk had a jump of 1.32 meters.
- Volk also had a season best in the long jump with a mark of 4.33 meters.
- The 4-x-200-meter relay team, consisting of Allison Alessi (Shakopee, Minn./Prior Lake), Maddelyn Swanson (Solon Springs, Wis./Solon Springs), Schmitz and Hesseldahl placed fourth with a time of 1:57.67.
- Sydney Cox (/) had a pair of personal records Saturday, reaching new marks in the shot put (8.97 meters) and weight throw (9.43 meters).
- Other top-ten finishes came from Alessi (eighth in the 60-meter dash), Kreuzer (sixth in the 60-meter hurdles), Taylor DeCook (Arlington Heights, Ill./Prospect) (ninth in the 400 meters), Aubrey Peterson (Kasson, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville) (ninth in the mile) and Cieyana Carter (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Champlin Park) (eighth in the long jump).
- The Yellowjackets set 10 personal records and posted six season bests.
Friday Action
Four Yellowjackets traveled to Minnesota State University Mankato Friday to compete at the Maverick Invite, an event with a field loaded with strong teams from around the region in both NCAA Division II and Division III.
The strongest showing for the Yellowjackets came in the mile, where three runners placed in the top ten. Leading the way was Stephens, who won the race with a time of 5:19.77.
Halle Barker (Superior, Wis./Superior Senior) finished third in the race, coming in with a time of 5:25.87.
Cora Hudella (North Branch, Minn./North Branch Area) placed seventh with a time of 5:33.16. All three finishes established new personal records. For Stephens, her strong performance now puts her atop the UMAC leaderboard.
In the weight throw, Johnson hit a mark of 13.65 meters, placing her 17th.
Next up for the Yellowjackets is the UMAC Indoor Championships, which UW-Superior will host, Feb. 23-24. The events will begin Friday afternoon at the Lydia Thering Fieldhouse.
