Down in warmer weather and in better conditions in High Point, North Carolina this weekend, the Hillsdale College women's track and field team displayed their strength with a strong showing at the VertKlasse Meeting.
The meet, hosted by Division I High Point University, welcomed in over 1,700 athletes, and the Chargers rode the strong field to five new NCAA DII provisional qualifying marks in the team's second meet of the outdoor season.
Leading the way for the Chargers was junior javelin thrower Eden Little, who won the title in the javelin against a solid field with a throw of 43.47 meters, less than a meter off her personal best and the 12th best throw at the NCAA DII level so far this season.
She wasn't the only thrower to stand out against NCAA DI competition this weekend. Senior Nikita Maines also threw a NCAA DII provisional qualifying mark of 14.03 meters, the current ninth best throw at the NCAA DII level, to place fifth in the shot put, just ahead of sophomore teammate Averi Parker who took eighth with a throw of 13.65 meters.
In the hammer throw, junior Katie Weldy shattered her previous personal best by nearly five meters with a throw of 55.14 meters, the ninth best throw in NCAA DII to date, to take seventh against a strong field, with Parker finishing 12th with a throw of 51.28 meters, and Little placing 20th with a personal best throw of 46.62 meters. Parker also placed ninth in the discus with a throw of 43.08 meters, and MacKenzie Morrison placed 11th with a throw of 41.11 meters.
Also in the field, sophomore Kaylee Jackson achieved the first outdoor provisional mark of her career by clearing 3.77 meters in the pole vault, good for third in the B flight of the pole vault event.
On the track for the Chargers, the story was junior Shura Ermakov, who ran her best-ever mark in the 400m hurdles in her first outdoor meet of 2023 to place fourth overall in 1:01.10. That mark currently ranks third nationally at the NCAA DII level in the event. Ermakov also ran a personal best of 14.99 to finish ninth in the B heats of the 100m hurdles as well.
Along with Ermakov, freshman Eleanor Minning ran personal bests in both the 100m dash (12.35) and 200m dash (25.80) in the B heats as well for the Chargers, while fellow freshman Francesca Federici also ran a personal best in the 400m dash (1:00.66) in the B heats.
In championship heat races, junior Dakota Stamm took eighth overall in the 400m dash in a time of 56.69, and sophomore Reese Dragovich placed sixth overall in the 800m run in a time of 2:16.67. Sophomore Nicole Marshall also took 16th in the 800m run (2:19.17), and junior Louisa Klaserner placed 11th in the 100m hurdles (14.38).
Sophomore Reagan Dahlquist placed fourth in the high jump (1.63 meters) and Emily Gerdin placed 16th in the triple jump (11.44 meters) as well for the Chargers.
Hillsdale will travel to another big meet this coming weekend as the Chargers head to Champaign, Illinois for the Fighting Illini Challenge on Saturday, April 8.
Photo Courtesy of Logan Howard, Cedarville Athletics