DES MOINES— The women's 4x400-meter relay team was the only event champion for Central College at the prestigious Jim Duncan Invitational Friday.
Hosted on the famous blue oval at Drake Stadium, the Jim Duncan Invitational serves as a precursor to the Drake Relays which are two weeks away and gives athletes from many of Iowa's small colleges and universities a chance to compete alongside NCAA Division I and II schools from the area.
Dropping another half of a second off their season-best time, the women's 4x400-meter relay team of
Lizzy Van Utrecht (freshman, Ottumwa, Eddville-Blakesburg-Fremont HS), Ava Parkins (freshman, Monmouth, Ill., Burlington Notre Dame [Iowa] HS). Emily McMartin (sophomore, Pella) and
Abbi Roerdink (senior, Tiffin, Ohio, Hopewell-Loudon HS) bested multiple Division I teams to win in 3 minutes, 53.05 seconds.
"It was exciting to see them walk away Jim Duncan champs," coach
Brandon Sturman said. "We're getting better every week and that's all we can ask."
Roerdink also moved up to No. 4 all-time in the 400-meter dash, placing fourth in 55.93 seconds.
"We sat down after indoor nationals to talk about her goals," Sturman said. "One of them is to break the outdoor school record and she got a good head start on that day. The training and race plans we've had have worked out in her favor."
Kale Purcell (junior, Holton, Kan.) had another new outdoor personal best mark of 46 feet, 11.5 inches to take second in the men's triple jump. He's now No. 4 at Central in the event.
"It's a good momentum builder for him," Sturman said. "Hopefully we can build off of it."
Freshman
Kale Hobart (Mason City) finished third in the 400-meter hurdles in 54.04 seconds and is now No. 8 on Central's top-10 list for the event.
"We're excited about him," Sturman said. "He's a super talented athlete. (Assistant coach)
Aaron Fuller has done a good job developing in the multi and in the 400 hurdles."
Mary Gustason (sophomore, Marion, Linn-Mar HS) led off the third-place women's 4x100-meter relay team that also featured Roerdink, McMartin and Parkins in a time of 48.42 seconds.
Men's pole vaulter
Jaxon Thompson (senior, Marion, Linn-Mar HS) finished fourth with a clearance of 14-5.25 and knocked coach
Aaron Fuller of the top-10 list in the process.
The men's 4x400-meter relay team
of Jrake Van Hemert (sophomore, Pella), Noah Erickson (senior, Mount Vernon), JD Elefson (sophomore, Ankeny, North Polk HS) and Kaleb Brand (senior, Mount Vernon) was third in 3:18.98.
Connor Miklos (senior, Lockport, Ill., Providence Catholic HS), Jackson Moats (senior, Bettendorf, Pleasant Valley HS), Elefson and Erickson were fourth in the 4x100-meter relay in 42.77 seconds.
Other top-five finishers on the men's side for Central included
Brand (third, 49.19 seconds) and Erickson (fifth, 50.29 seconds) in the 400-meter dash and
Randy Jimenez (junior, Liberty Center, Southeast Warren HS) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (third, 9:31.650.
Abby Gruver (senior, Lynnville, Lynnville-Sully HS) moved up on Central's top-10 list in the 400-meter hurdles list after finishing sixth in 1:04.91. She's No. 22 nationally in the event.
"I'm super excited about how she's started the season and how she continues to improve each week," Sturman said.
A slew of women's distance runners added top-five marks. In the 5,000-meters,
Kira Hooper (junior, Henderson, N.C., Citrus Valley HS) was fourth (18:12.61) and
Lindsey Davidson (senior, Northwood, Northwood-Kensett HS) was fifth (18:14.20).
Layken Bytnar (senior, Bettendorf) was fourth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (11:58.56) and
Leah Bontrager (sophomore, Wellman, Hillcrest Academy) was fourth (12:04.06). In the 800 meters,
Alyssa Mayhew (senior, North Aurora, Ill., West Aurora HS) was fifth (2:18.63) and
Sara Goodenbour (junior, Cedar Falls) was also fifth in the 1500 meters (4:57.54). Pole vaulter
Amber Vroman (junior, Seneca, Ill.) was also fifth overall after clearing 10-10.
Central is scheduled to send athletes to meets at Augustana College (Ill.), Doane University (Neb.) and the University of Kansas next week.
