COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - In the first outdoor meet of the season, the University of Northwestern Women's Track and Field team competed in the Optimistic Meet in Collegeville.
In a competitive field, the Eagles found success on the track and in the field with several NCAA DIII top 100 times and distances. Emery Maki (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) won the 5000 meter event in just over 19 minutes. She beat the rest of the pack by 11 seconds, as she recorded a time of 19:05.85.
Grace Moravchik (Mason, Wis./Ashland) placed 4th in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 68.42 seconds, which was fast enough to crack the NCAA's 42nd top time. Moravchik also participated in the Long Jump event and jumped a distance of 4.72 meters (15'6"). The sophomore's jump was 6th best of the meet.
Deanna Ammermann (Spirit Lake, Iowa/Spirit Lake) also broke into the NCAA top 86 with her time of 12.89 seconds, finishing 5th overall in the 100 meter dash. Ammermann raced in the 200 meter dash as well, and with a time of 27.09 seconds, she finished 4th.
Joining Ammermann in the 200 meter was Alvine Njounang (Virginia, Minn./Grand Rapids). Njounang placed 10th in the meet with a time of 27.87. She also raced in the 400 meter dash and turned in a time of 1:05.89. Faith Matvey (Meadowlands, Minn./Lakeview Christian Academy) raced with Njounang in the 400 and notched a time of 1:09.4. Matvey took her mark also in the 800 meter dash. She ran a time of 2:54.12, which was two seconds behind teammate Samary Acuna Arroliga (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley). Acuna Arroliga and Matvey finished in 22nd and 23rd. In 20th place, Kimberlyn Case (Sleepy Eye, Minn./Litchfield) ran a time of 2:46.62.
Leading the charge for Northwestern in the 800 was Meghan Corbett (Sartell, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral). Her time was the fastest she has ever run the event. Corbett was the first Eagle to cross the finish line in the 1500 meter run as well. She ran a time of 5:14.16 and finished 12th. Case, Olivia Usselman (Stillwater, Minn./Math and Science Academy), and Acuna Arroliga joined Corbett in the 1500, and placed 32nd, 34th, and 38th. They ran times of 5:44.08, 5:47.63, and 5:54.67, respectively.
Rounding out the meet in the field, Emily Ashton (Camas, Wash./St. Mary's Academy) started her third season with a bang. In the javelin throw, Ashton threw a distance of 34.28 meters (112'5") for a 6th place finish and a 48th best distance in all of Division III. She also participated in the discus event and placed 34th with a throw of 27.53 meters (90'4"). Grace Mangelsen also threw discus and notched a throw of 25.99 (85'3") meters in her first collegiate meet.
The Eagles will take the track next Saturday, April 5th, down the road at the Hamline Invitational starting at 10:00 AM.
