MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Friday afternoon, the UNW Women's track and field team took on opponents from Divisions I, II, and III in the Snowshoe Open at the University of Minnesota. In addition to two more broken school records, the team tallied seven new personal records throughout the meet.
Starting off with the last event of the day, the UNW 4x400 relay team took home a third place finish, a new school record, and a top-100 time in all of Division III. The team, composed of
Deanna Ammermann (Spirit Lake, Iowa/Spirit Lake),
Emery Maki (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing),
Alvine Njounang (Virginia, Minn./Grand Rapids), and
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland), dropped 4.43 seconds off the previous record, which was set two weeks ago at the NCCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships by three of the four runners on this team. Their new record of 4:11.38 also keeps them clearly atop the UMAC in this event by almost 17 seconds.
The second leg in the 4x4, Maki not only helped her team to another school record, but also broke the school record in the 800 meter race. Maki owned this record coming into the meet after breaking it last season with a time of 2:23.25. Today, the junior burned nearly 3 seconds off her record to maintain the fastest time in program history. This marks the third meet in a row that she has broken a UNW All-Time record.
Maki's performance was tough to follow; however, four additional Eagles broke their personal best times in the 800 as well.
Meghan Corbett (Sartell, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral) placed 21st with a time of 2:29.21 in her first time running this event.
Kimberlyn Case (Sleepy Eye, Minn./Litchfield),
Samary Acuna Arroliga (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley), and
Faith Matvey (Meadowlands, Minn./Lakeview Christian Academy) crossed the finish line one after the other with times of 2:41.30, 2:43.47, and 2:49.24, respectively in 25th, 26th and 27th place overall.
In the 1 mile,
Olivia Usselman (Stillwater, Minn./Math and Science Academy) set a new career best time of 6:06.14. This is just the second time the freshman has competed in this race. Usselman has since shaved off 16 seconds from the first time she ran it.
Isabelle Yuhanna (Ham Lake, Minn./North Lakes Academy) took the track in the 3000 meter race and dropped below the 11 minute mark for the first time in her career. Yuhanna's prior time in this event was 11:07.37, but after a strong performance today, she turned in a time of 10.56.85. Her new PR is only 9 seconds away from the UNW record.
The only field competitor for the Eagles was
Naomi Wallace (Pipestone, Minn./Pipestone Area). Wallace finished last week with 2 personal records, which she also broke during this meet. She faced off in both the long jump and high jump. In long jump, she increased her distance by around 0.25 meters each attempt. Her final leap landed at 4.59 meters (15'00"), which easily surpassed her best jump from last week. Wallace also participated in the high jump, finishing 10th after clearing a height of 1.5 meters (4'11").
After an impressive meet, the Eagles have one evening to recover before taking the track tomorrow, February 22, at the Gene Glader Classic up the road at Bethel University.
