February 18, 2012
By: Jordan Hill, sports information assistant
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The men’s and women’s track and field teams concluded a breakthrough indoor season at the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2012. The women finished in 7th place while the men came in 10th. Host Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology won on the men’s side and Hanover College won the women’s title.
With only seven women competing for the Beavers, each athlete scored in the championship for a total of 40 points, just two points behind 6th place. Leading the Bluffton women on the track was the distance medley relay team of sophomore Brandi Dominique (Wauseon), sophomore Kayla Mullenhour (Delphos/Jefferson), junior Alison Janzen (Whitewater, Kan./Remington) and junior Maddie Moore (Linn Grove, Ind./South Adams). The relay team set a new HCAC Championship meet record and a new Bluffton school record by finishing in a time of 12:54.78, eight seconds ahead of the second place team from Hanover.
In addition to the relay, the same four athletes made major contributions in their individual events. Moore and Janzen were an impressive duo in the 5,000-meter run as they finished with lifetime bests of 19:27.74 for 6th place and 19:30.71 for 7th place, respectively. Dominique ran 2:30.55 to place 7th in the 800-meter run. Mullenhour ran a lifetime best in the 60-meter dash with a time of 8.66. The 4x400-meter relay team of Mullenhour, Janzen, Dominique, and freshman Jenna Strauss (Bridgeport) placed 6th with a time of 4:37.30.
Leading the women in the field events was senior Megan Neal (Arlington) who placed first in the weight throw with a toss of 47-09 feet, which is a new HCAC Championship meet record. Neal also placed 4th in the shot put with a toss of 33-10 feet. Strauss sported a lifetime best in the long jump with a leap of 15-06.25 feet to place 5th overall. Sophomore Julie Court (Galion) took 8th in the shot put with a toss of 31-08 feet and also had a personal best in the weight throw with a toss of 35-08.75 feet.
Leading the men’s team was freshman Travaun Reaves (Berkley, Mich./Berkley) with a 5th place finish in the high jump (6-00 foot). Also scoring for the men’s team was senior Bryan Heckathorn (Hartville/Lake), who threw 42-00.05 feet in the shot put for 8th place. The men’s distance medley relay team of junior Chris Arnold (Fort Wayne, Ind./Canterbury), freshman Josh Mattoon (Rawson/Cory-Rawson), junior Jeremy Kidder (New Carlisle/Tecumseh) and freshman Ryan Schadewald (Lima/Bath) placed 8th with a time of 11:53.42. Mattoon also tied for eighth place in the high jump with a clearance of 5-08 feet.
School records and personal records also highlighted the championship for the men. Senior Andy Chaffee (Clarkston, Mich./Clarkston) set a new school record and a lifetime best in the men’s 5,000-meter run with a time of 16:36.56. Junior Jeremy Kidder (New Carlisle/Tecumseh) ran a personal record in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:12.82. Freshman Rob Cook (Convoy/Crestview) threw a lifetime best in weight throw with a toss of 44-06.75 feet. Arnold ran a lifetime best in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 18:12.90. Freshman Jeff Parker (Bristol, Ind./Northridge) and Heckathorn both tallied lifetime bests in the weight throw with tosses of 39-10.50 feet and 39-03.75 feet, respectively.
Throughout the 2012 indoor track and field season, the men's and women’s teams have broken three meet records, 15 school records and 75 personal records. Now that the indoor season has concluded, the track and field teams will prepare for another breakthrough campaign in their outdoor season which is set to begin on March 17, 2012, at the University of Cincinnati.
-BEAVERS-
