7-time winners on indoor track: Walker, Harper lead Wildcats at Whitewater invite
Northern Michigan University track and field star Crystal Walker poses with some of her numerous awards she has won in recent seasons with the Wildcats’ team. (Photo illustration courtesy NMU)
Seven Northern Michigan University runners, numbered 2 through 8 on their jerseys in this lineup, ready for the start of a race during the Karl Schlender Invitational held in Whitewater, Wis., on Saturday. (Photo courtesy NMU)
Northern Michigan University track and field star Crystal Walker poses with some of her numerous awards she has won in recent seasons with the Wildcats’ team. (Photo illustration courtesy NMU)
Seven Northern Michigan University runners, numbered 2 through 8 on their jerseys in this lineup, ready for the start of a race during the Karl Schlender Invitational held in Whitewater, Wis., on Saturday. (Photo courtesy NMU)
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WHITEWATER, Wis. -- The women's track and field team at Northern Michigan University won seven events, including multiple ones by a pair of athletes, at the Karl Schlender Invitational hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater on Saturday.
Team scores weren't kept, but the Wildcats' Crystal Walker won two individual events while teammate Beverly Harper took an individual event and ran on a victorious relay.
This was the first of six consecutive weekends of indoor meets for the NMU team, with a trip to Saginaw Valley State upcoming on Friday and Saturday for the Jet's Pizza Invitational.
At Whitewater, Walker won the 60-meter hurdles in 9.05 seconds, just ahead of runner-up and teammate Lily Phillips in 9.29.
Walker also led a Northern contingent doing well in the long jump, which she won with a leap of 5.38 meters (17 feet, 7 3/4 inches) as the Wildcats' Natasha Nowakowski was third with 4.81 meters (15-9 3/8) and Mikayla de Souza fifth with 4.75 meters (15-7).
Harper won the 600 in 1 minute, 38.13 seconds, listed as her personal best, while she also ran with the 4-by-400 relay victors, too, in 4:11.30, joining Ishpeming product Lola Korpi, Paige Anderson and Marquette graduate Maija Maki-Warne.
Northern won another relay, too, the 4-by-200, in 1:46.00 with Negaunee grad Macyn DellAngelo, Marquette product Baux Truckey, Lily Phillips and Kanya Campbell.
NMU's Lamar Gordon won the mile in 5:03.62 as three teammates were also in the top 10 -- Ella DeBruyn was third in 5:09.64, Ashley Choponis fourth in 5:13.49 and Sophia Potter seventh in 5:15.90.
Lana Mac won the 800 in 2:22.75 while Korpi was third in 2:25.34 and Brooke Lemos eighth in 2:36.31.
Truckey was also second in the 60 dash in 7.90 seconds and DellAngelo eighth in 8.29, while the Wildcats had an interesting set of finishes in the 3,000 -- every spot from second through eighth -- with Madi Szymanski runner-up in 10:26.53, Potter third in 10:33.08, DeBruyn fourth in 10:41.33 and Anya VanSweden fifth in 10:43.46. Teammate Dani Van Lente was sixth, Celia Wallace seventh and Madalyn Agren eighth.
In field events, Manistique product Danielle Lund was third in the shot put with a heave of 11.92 meters (39-1 1/4) and Alizabeth Little fifth with 11.71 meters (38-5).
In the pole vault, Alyssa Tumminaro was fourth after clearing 3.05 meters (10-0) and Alayna Vandegriff seventh with 2.90 meters (9-6 1/8).
In the triple jump, Vandegriff was fifth with a leap of 10.39 meters (34-1 1/4), with Allison Schinke eighth with 10.24 meters (33-7 1/8) and Gabi Lainhart 10th with 9.66 meters (31-8 1/2).
And in the high jump, Eva Zonca and Elizabeth Simpson tied for eighth after clearing 1.46 meters (4-9 1/2).
Story contents based on Northern Michigan University Sports Information press release reviewing the meet. Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee's email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.