huebner

By Journal

Sports Staff

MARQUETTE — Some great things came out of the Northern Michigan University track team’s third-place finish at the GLIAC Indoor Championships held last weekend at Grand Valley State in downstate Allendale.

Not only did the Wildcat women have their highest finish at this meet since the 2010-11 season, two Upper Peninsula natives ran times fast enough at the meet to earn bids to the NCAA Division II Indoor National Championships to be held at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas, on Friday and next Saturday.

NMU junior Shayla Huebner, a Marquette Senior High School graduate, finished the 800-meter run in 2 minutes, 11.53 seconds, her best time of the season and good enough for the nationals bid as the 24th-fastest time in the country.

In addition, Huebner was one of three Wildcats named to the All-Midwest Region team by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. The other two were junior Michelle Juergen and senior Ine Mylle.

Both awards were firsts for Huebner at NMU.

The other national meet qualifier is senior Kameron Burmeister of Menominee, who already had a certain bid in one of her specialties, the 5,000 run. But she still had her best time of the season at the GLIACs of 16:54.90, ranking her 12th in the country.

Juergen earned all-region distinction for a high jump that cleared 5-foot-6 at the conference meet, the second straight year she’s been named all-region in the indoor high jump and her third all-region honor overall.

Mylle became the first Wildcat to earn all-region honors in four straight seasons with her fourth indoor triple jump award. She has seven all-region honors between indoor and outdoor seasons, all triple jumps.

She had her best leap of the season at the GLIACs, too, with 38-10.25, 26th in the country.

Those athletes weren’t the only ones contributing to Northern’s 79-point total at the GLIACs.

The host Lakers ran away with the team title with 253 1/2 points, while Ashland was second with 117. NMU edged out Tiffin, which scored 73 1/2 and Wayne State, with 69, in the nine-team field.

On Saturday, the Wildcats’ distance medley relay team of Huebner, sophomore Holley Blowers, another MSHS grad, junior Paige Dutcher and senior Kieren Becker was runner-up in 12:01.23, good enough for a school record.

Another second-place finish, good for All-GLIAC honors, was Burmeister’s 5,000 run in 17:07.33. Sophomore teammate Katelyn Smith was sixth.

Juergen was fifth in the long jump with 18-1, good for third in NMU history.

On Sunday, Burmeister broke her own school record in the 3,000 in 9:47.99, good for third and another All-GLIAC award, while Smith was seventh.

Along with Huebner’s finish in the 800, the Wildcats had three other second-places Sunday.

The 4-by-400 relay of Huebner, Dutcher, sophomore Sydney McPeters and junior Lynsey Collins of Escanaba was second in 3:49.19, setting a school record. Juergen’s 5-6 high jump was also second, as was Mylle’s triple jump of 38-10.25.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.