University of Northern Iowa
Husker Spring Invitational
UNI Claims High Regional Rankings At Husker Invite
4/8/2017 7:26:00 PM | Track and Field
FINAL RESULTS
LINCOLN, Neb. – The University of Northern Iowa track and field program competed at the Husker Spring Invitational today, setting multiple personal-bests that landed the Panthers in the top-50 in the NCAA West Region.
UNI got things started in the field events with Hope Koerperich scoring a personal-best in the discus throw. She went 165-8.00 for fifth place overall, second all-time at UNI and to rank No. 26 in the West region and No. 1 in the Missouri Valley Conference coming into the weekend.
Isaac Holtz followed suit on the men's side, posting UNI's second top-50 regional ranking in the discus. The Monticello, Iowa, native placed second overall with a season-best toss of 177-7.00, pushing him up to No. 18 in the NCAA West and keeping him ranked at the top of the conference.
In the jumps, Kassidy Sharp scored an outdoor personal-best in the high jump, finishing third in the event with a height of 5-7.25 that ranks her No. 35 in the West. Senior Charles Brown had a strong outing in the long jump for the Panther men, notching a personal-best leap of 23-11.00 to put him second in the Valley and in the top-40 in the West.
Moving onto the track, the Panthers hurdlers shined with Cole Phillips getting started in the 110 meter hurdles. The sophomore from Mount Pleasant, Iowa, ran a season-best time of 14.37, ranking him No. 24 in the West and in the top-five in the Valley heading into this weekend.
In the long hurdles, both Lauren Frederick and Jacob Smith put in improvements, with Smith earning a spot in the top-30 in the NCAA West. Frederick recorded a career-best time of 1:03.59 for third in the women's race while Smith finished fourth for the men with a PR time of 52.52 to put him second in the MVC and No. 25 in the West region.
Brett McCalla earned a personal-best in the men's 400 meter dash, running a time of 48.05 for fourth overall and second in the Valley. Maddie Irmen represented well on the women's side, also placing fourth in the quarter mile with a season-best time of 56.22.
The middle-distance runners for the Panthers continued to put in top efforts with UNI claiming four top-five finishes. For the women, Lyndsie Schinkel finished with an outdoor PR of 2:11.53 in the 800 meters for second place with Lindsey Kite finishing right behind her in a season-best time of 2:13.29.
Jordan Pingel pushed past the competition in the men's 800 meters, placing second overall with a new season-best of 1:50.19 to put him in the top-20 in the NCAA West and second in the MVC. Luke Johnston also grabbed a top-40 time in the West region in the men's 800, running a time of 1:51.56 to place fifth overall.
The Panthers also claimed three personal-bests and top-three finishes in the 1,500 meters. Tiffany Christensen ran a time of 4:41.24 for second place overall while Hannah Truniger came across the finish line in 4:43.99 for third. On the men's side, C.J. May ran a life-time best of 3:54.80 to place second in the men's race.
Truniger also had a strong showing in the women' 3,000 meters, winning the event with a huge PR. The true freshman ran a time of 9:56.49 for the win, ranking second all-time at UNI.
The Panthers wrapped up the day with season-best times in the 4X400 meter relays. The men's team of Bryce Newcomb, McCalla, Hunter Lavaellee and Smith ran a time of 3:16.35 for third overall and to rank second in the Valley while the women's team of Maddie Bell, Jasmine Blue, Irmen and Jolissa Kriegel put in a time of 3:48.84 for fourth place and to rank in the top-five in the MVC.
UNI returns to action next weekend when they split its time between three meets. Select Panthers will be competing at the Mt. Sac Relays (Torrance, Calif.) and the Tom Botts Invitational (Columbia, Mo.) April 14-15 along with the Beach Invitational (Long Beach, Calif.) on April 15.
Players Mentioned
