SUPERIOR, Wis. - The University of Northwestern Women's Track and Field team went up to Superior, Wisconsin for the UMAC Indoor Championships, starting Friday afternoon. After the first day, the Eagles saw every athlete qualify in the preliminary races and four first place finishes in finals.
DAY 1:
Starting in the high jump final, Naomi Wallace (Pipestone, Minn./Pipestone Area) landed on the podium with a second-place finish in her first collegiate season after clearing a height of 1.47 meters (4'9.75"). Wallace also competed in the long jump. She leapt a distance of 4.22 meters (13'10.25") and finished 11th. Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) also had three jumps in the event. Moravchik entered the event leading the UMAC by about half a foot, and solidified her place atop the conference in the event as the only athlete to break the 5 meter mark. She finished with a distance of 5.14 meters (16'10.5"), taking home the win. The sophomore also took the track in the 60 meter hurdle prelim. She finished 3rd to qualify for the finals on Saturday. Moravchik, last year's UMAC Rookie of Year, notched another first place finish in the 400 meter dash. She turned in a time of 1:02.11. Joining her in the 400 was Meghan Corbett (Sartell, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral). Corbett finished 5th overall crossing the finish line in 1:05.18.
On the track, the Eagles had two teams participate in relays. The first was the distance medley. Kimberlyn Case (Sleepy Eye, Minn./Litchfield), Faith Matvey (Meadowlands, Minn./Lakeview Christian Academy), Samary Acuna Arroliga (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley), and Olivia Usselman (Stillwater, Minn./Math and Science Academy) teamed together for a third place finish in 14:38.91. In the 4x200 meter relay, Alvine Njounang (Virginia, Minn./Grand Rapids), Wallace, Deanna Ammermann (Spirit Lake, Iowa/Spirit Lake), and Emery Maki (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) beat MLC in a tight race to the finish, where only 0.9 seconds separated the final runners. Northwestern held on to the first place finish and a season best time of 1:53.03.
Before the relay, Njounang and Ammermann competed in the 60 meter preliminary race. Ammermann placed first in preparation for the final on Saturday. She clocked a 8.16 second finish. In 6th position, Njounang ran a career best time of 8.52 as she also qualified for finals.
In the second race of the day, Maki started her successful day with an individual victory in the mile. The reigning UMAC Women's Track Athlete of the week has been on another level this season, and Maki stayed on pace with her season as she crossed the finish line at 5:17.44.
The Eagles had two runners in the 5000 meter race. Isabelle Yuhanna (Ham Lake, Minn./North Lakes Academy) increased her personal best time by 3 seconds, which pushed her to a second place finish. Yuhanna's new best time is 18:53.83. Also in the event, Alicia Arredondo (Robbinsdale, Minn./Homeschool) finished top-10 and turned in a personal best as well with 21:54.59.Day 2:
DAY 2:
Going into day two at the UMAC Championship, the University of Northwestern Women's track and field team led the rest of the UMAC by three points. After five competitive events, the Eagles finished in second place in the conference with a score of 136, just two points behind the first place team. Patrick Fitzgerald, in his first season, led Northwestern to seven 1st place finishes and eight top three finishes during the Championship meet.
The first running event of the day was the 60 meter hurdles. Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) placed third overall with a time of 10.03 seconds. Later in the meet, Moravchik took her mark in the 200 meter race. She secured a second place finish after crossing the finish line in 27.67.
Joining Moravchik in the 200 meter dash was Ammermann. The senior continued her legacy as she won the event for the 3rd year in a row. Ammermann also competed in the 60 meter, another event in which she has dominated throughout her career. After two gun malfunctions, the race came down to a photo finish for the top two spots. Ammermann placed 2nd with a time of 8.27, only 0.04 seconds behind the first place finisher.
Also racing in the 60 meters and the 200 meters was the sophomore, Njounang. She brought home a 5th place finish in each event with times of 8.55 seconds and 28.5 seconds, respectively.
The 800 meter race took place between the 60 meter dash and the 200 meter dash. For this event, the Eagles had six runners compete. Setting three personal records were Acuna Arroliga, Usselman, and Matvey. They all turned in times within two seconds of each other. Acuna Arroliga recorded a time of 2:43.29 with Usselman following 0.01 second behind her. Matvey finished with a time of 2:45.97. Joining the pack, Case clocked a time of 2:42.93. In the final heat of the 800, Corbett and Maki took the track. Maki led most of the race and finished 2nd overall, stopping the clock at 2:24.92. Following closely behind, finishing 5th, Corbett finished in 2:29.43.
In the longest race of the day, Yuhanna and Caroline Ringsmuth (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove) took the track for the 3000 meter race. Both runners finished in the top 10, also with career best times in the event. Ringsmuth was 9th overall with a time of 11:27.16, smashing her previous best by nearly 20 seconds. Yuhanna made the podium with her second place finish with a time of 10:56.02.
To close out the UMAC Championships, the Eagles lined up for the final event of the day, the 4x400 meter relay. The team consisting of Ammermann, Njounang, Maki, and Moravchik held the top time in this race coming into this weekend. After three hand-offs, Northwestern crossed the finish line first for the second year in a row. The 4x400 champions finished the event in 4:16.08.
After finishing the indoor season, the Women's team will begin the outdoor season at the Hamline Invitational on April 5, starting at 10 AM.
