SUPERIOR, Wis. - The University of Northwestern Women's Track and Field team traveled to Superior to compete in the UMAC Indoor Track and Field Championship. In the two-day event, Emery Maki (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) started the Eagles off with a bang, winning the opening event of the meet.
DAY ONE:
Maki has been a consistent performer for Northwestern all season, and she continued her dominance in the mile, winning the race with a season-best time of 5:21.08. Maki entered the event ranked third in the conference; however, she has won this event at this meet every time she has run it. Today was no different as she became a three-time UMAC Champion in the Mile. She later turned in another season-best performance in the 400-meter dash, cutting over a second from her previous mark to finish in 1:01.70 and earn a third-place podium finish.
Joining Maki in the 400 was Lidia Castro (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville South). Castro also pushed herself to a season-best time, placing 10th in 1:05.03 after shaving a second off her previous mark.
All three Northwestern runners competing in the 60-meter prelims qualified for Saturday's final. Freshman Alaina Wojtowski (Oshkosh, Wis./Valley Christian) continued her impressive debut season by lowering her personal best yet again, clocking the second-fastest time of the meet. She won her heat in 8.04. Katie Shilts (Cameron, Wis./Cameron) and Emily Neumann (St. Agusta, Minn./Sauk Rapids) followed, placing fifth and eighth overall with times of 8.39 and 8.41, respectively. Neumann's 8.41 marked a new personal best by 0.1 seconds.
In the longest event of the day, Cheyanne Scalese (Lancaster, Minn./Lancaster Public), Caroline Stokes (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove), and Alicia Arredondo (Robbinsdale, Minn./Homeschool) represented UNW in the 5,000 meters. Scalese edged out Stokes by just 0.12 seconds to place fourth, turning in a time of 19:53.76, while Stokes followed closely with a 19:53.88 finish for a personal best performance. Arredondo also scored for the Eagles, placing eighth in 20:50.43.
Lily Hubbard (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) and Shilts competed in the field events. Hubbard opened the day with a top-10 finish in the high jump, earning two points with her clearance of 1.40m (4' 7") to place seventh. Shilts later competed in the long jump, finishing ninth with a mark of 4.76m (15' 7.5").
Northwestern competed in two relays to close out the first day of competition, finishing third and second. The Eagles ran the 4,000-meter distance medley relay for the first time this season, with Samary Acuna (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley), Jessica Redman (Beaver Dam, Wis./Beaver Dam), Kimberlyn Case (Sleepy Eye, Minn./Litchfield), and Natalie Van De Riet (Albertville, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville) placing third in 14:02.92. In the 4x200-meter relay, Wojtowski, Shilts, Neumann, and Castro secured a second-place finish with a time of 1:51.79, earning eight points. Their time came within two seconds of the program record.
After day one, the UNW women sit in fourth place with 42 points, just 7.5 points behind host University of Wisconsin–Superior in third. With eight events completed, the Eagles return Saturday for the final 11 events, beginning with the triple jump at 11:00 AM.
DAY TWO:
In the final day of the championships, Northwestern battled hard, broke two school records, and secured several podium finishes to ultimately place fourth overall. The Eagles held third for much of the morning before being overtaken in the final events.
The day began with the triple jump, where Hubbard and Shilts competed. In her first time ever participating in the event, Hubbard jumped a personal best of 9.29m (30'5.75") to qualify for finals and finish seventh overall. Shilts delivered an impressive performance of her own, also earning a personal record with her jump of 10.14m (33'3.25"), qualifying for finals, and placing third before quickly heading to the track for the 60-meter final.
The Eagles showcased their young talent in the 60-meter final, featuring three freshmen. Wojtowski led the charge, finishing second behind a veteran runner from Crown College while tying her personal best of 8.04 seconds. Her time ties the school record originally set by Sonya Bugbee in 1983 and later matched by Deanna (Trucksess) Ammermann in 2023. Shilts placed fifth with a personal-record 8.37, and Neumann finished eighth in 8.43, just shy of the personal best (8.41) she set the previous day.
An equally competitive 800-meter race followed, where Maki placed second with her fastest-ever indoor 800 time of 2:19.47. In doing so, she broke her own school record of 2:20.60 set last year. Maki has now finished second in the 800 meters at the conference indoor championship each year of her career.
The Eagles continued their strong showing in the 200-meter dash. Neumann opened with a personal-best time of 28.41, improving by more than half a second to place 13th. Shilts followed with a 28.08 in the fourth heat, trimming exactly half a second off her previous best to finish seventh. In the final heat, Wojtowski etched her name into the Northwestern record books with a time of 26.75, breaking the previous school record of 26.93 set by Deanna (Trucksess) Ammerman in 2024. The mark was a 1.1-second personal improvement and left her just 0.04 seconds shy of first place.
As the lone Northwestern pole vaulter, Acuna took eighth, clearing 2.25m (7' 4.5").
In the 3,000 meters, Scalese delivered another strong performance, placing seventh in 11:38.24, nearly 20 seconds faster than her previous best. Stokes followed in eighth with a time of 11:47.44.
The meet concluded with the 4x400 relay, where Maki, Castro, Case, and Redman combined for a season-best time of 4:22.33 to place third.
Other UNW Results at the Meet:
- Torah Barrett (Belle Plaine, Minn./Jordan) 13th in the Mile - 6:16.21
- Olivia Usselman (Stillwater, Minn./Math and Science Academy) 14th in the Mile - 6:24.57
- Redman 12th in the 800m - 2:38.90
- Mariah Klippenes (South Haven, Minn./Annandale) 15th in the 800m - 2:41.20
- Van De Riet 11th in the 3000m - 12:40.82
Northwestern finished the championship with 91 points, securing fourth place overall and closing out the indoor season on a strong note. Weather permitting, the Eagles will return to competition at the Optimistic Open on March 28 in Collegeville, Minnesota.
