Decent week for a DMR🎽
some quick DMR's in Topeka and Pittsburg State is really really good
Distance Medley Relay🤝Washburn Track
Up until last weekend, there hadn’t been many Kansas programs that had put together a DMR squad this season, but enough to fill the rankings. Last week at the Washburn Open in Topeka, eleven in-state men’s teams and ten women’s teams toed the line as they all raced the clock and aimed for a national qualifier.
To win the men’s race, it took a 10:02.30 from Oklahoma City to pull away from the field, as they won handily by fifteen seconds. The top Kansas finisher were the defending NAIA national champion Spires of St. Mary. Made up of the quartet of Liam Neidig, Mark Noel, Robert Huebert and Emad-Bashir-Mohammed, the team dropped a NAIA ‘B’ standard, and were just two seconds shy of an automatic berth to nationals. All four men ran incredibly strong legs, as Neidig ran 3:04 for his 1200m, followed by 50.7 from Noel on the 400m, aided by 1:58 from Huebert in the 800m, and capped off with a 4:23 from Bashir-Mohammed in the 1600m. The Spires will have another shot at ‘B’ standard this weekend at the KCAC Indoor Championships in Wichita.
Both Tabor (10:18.28) and Cloud County (10:19.14) were just back a few seconds behind the yellow and blue, and both their 1600m legs proved to be nearly lethal.
Tabor
1200 — Dillon Callaway (3:05)
400 — Brandon Geyer (2:00)
800 — Pierce Klaasen (51.2)
1600 — Alan Catana (4:20)
Cloud County
1200 — Raziel Patton (3:14)
400 — Daniel Siaffa (50.06)
800 — Quwayne Reid (1:57)
1600 — Siyabonga Mokgothu (4:16)
Emporia State, McPherson, Kansas Wesleyan and Hutchinson CC were the four other Kansas programs to dip under eleven minutes, posting times of 10:33.31, 10:35.62, 10:41.92 and 10:54.02. The field left fairly satisfied, as both St. Mary and Cloud County hit the NAIA and NJCAA standard, with McPherson shattering their previous school record.
The women’s DMR was just as exciting, as St. Mary led the way for in-state programs, and ran the third fastest time in the NAIA this season (12:16.09), which also happened to be under the ‘A’ standard by nine seconds. Maddy Walter-Sherrett led the way with a 3:42 for 1200m, followed by a 60.0 400m from Lexi Wardlow. Carlie Gregg ran 2:24 for 800m, with Riley Hiebert dropping a 5:08 1600m as the anchor. The ladies came six seconds shy of the school record that was set just a year ago, but I’m sure they’ll continue to knock on the door.
Tabor and Hutchinson CC were the next two Kansas programs, as the Bluejays ran 12:57.49 and the Blue Dragons came through in 13:05.36. That would be a new school record for Tabor, and the fourth-fastest time in school history for Hutch. Both McPherson and Neosho County broke their school records in the race as well, making it a successful trip for a lot of programs. St. Mary and Hutchinson punched their ticket to nationals as well.
What’s in the water in Pittsburg?🚰
In case you may have missed it, Pittsburg State is firing on all cylinders at the moment, and you better get out of the way. As of this week, the men are still the top team in Division II rankings, while the women sit in 5th. They are one of three programs to have both men and women ranked within the top five, but the only one of the three with a #1 ranking.
The Gorillas have been relevant for a while, but after winning the men’s outdoor title last May, they’re the talk of the town across the NCAA. On the men’s side, they have three national leaders, as Xavier Carmichael leads the way in the 60m, and Cordell Tinch is the nation’s best in both the 60mH and long jump. Joining Carmichael is Antoine Evans, who has the 6th fastest 60m in DII. In the 400m, Braylen Brewer, Sam Tudor and Nizar Alarahshun are the 3rd, 7th and 8th fastest 400m runners so far this season, which explains why the Pittsburg State 4x400m is the second fastest in the country. Joining Tinch in the 60mH are TJ Caldwell and Daylin Williams, ranked 2nd and 3rd in DII, making their hurdle trio the three fastest in the country. Hunter Jones is tied for 15th in the high jump, as Tinch and L.J. Kiner sit in 1st and 4th in the long jump, as Kiner also sits in 3rd in the triple jump. In the shot put, Konner Swenson and Cole Sample are 15th and 16th, with Hunter Jones and Doug Brown rounding out the many top performers with the 7th and 16th best performances in the Heptathlon. All-in-all, thirty-one athletes (and one relay) have hit the DII standard, and have done so across thirteen events. Keep in mind, Pittsburg State won the national title in the DMR in 2021, and are still awaiting the debut of sub-four miler Mason Strader this year. All I know is that this team is well-rounded in every aspect of track & field, and on top of that, they’re deep in nearly every event.
As for the women, they’ve got a lot of firepower of their own, and their talent is spread out across twelve different events. In the 800m, Kate Dawson sits in 14th, as Lara Murdock sits in 8th in the 5000m. In the 60mH, Audreanae Hagan sits behind just one person, as she has the second fastest mark in Division II. The duo of Erica Schamel and Allary Liberatore rank 3rd and 8th in the high jump, as the defending indoor national champion pole vaulter Kyla Davis currently sits 5th in the nation. Auna Childress has the second farthest mark in the triple jump this season, and Mattie Flanagan and Blakelee Winn round out Gorilla athletes within the top sixteen, as they are sitting in 9th and 12th as of right now. There are twenty-seven different athletes, and again, one relay that has hit the provisional mark so far, and similar to the men, the women have plenty of depth mixed with plenty of heavy hitters at the top.
I’m honestly awestruck at the talent that Kyle Rutledge and his staff have put together, and even more impressed in the ways that they’ve developed them into arguably the best program in the country. If you’re eager to see what this program does next, they’re hosting a slate of elite competition this weekend at the 8th Annual Indoor Gorilla Classic, with live results here.
If anyone knows any cheap ways besides driving that could get us to Virginia Beach, VA in March, don’t be shy!
I am Ironman (70.3)🏊♂️🏃🚴
This week was not a typical training week due to a couple of reasons.
My original date of my race was going to be September 9th, with my race taking place in Madison, WI. After some quick research by my dad and myself, I sadly realized that the Madison course is indeed one of the toughest courses in America, with athletes going on to say that they opted to walk their bike up the hills instead of riding to save their energy. Long story short, that was a hard no for me. Instead, I shifted plans to compete at a more beginner friendly course in Waco, TX, on October 15th. Instead of a hilly bike course and a rolling hill running route, I’ll get a flat bike course, but still a rolling hill route for the run, but that’s okay, I’ve run at Rim Rock. Additionally, the swim is in a river, so I’ll get to hopefully have the current to help push me along for 1.2 miles.
With my date being moved around, that affected my end date for training, so I had to switch plans and move a few things around. My first real week of training starts next week, which is fine by me because I’m lazy and have enjoyed my time relaxing before I fight back into fitness.
Overall, I’m excited but nervous for this, but I think this will be a great experience for me and it’s definitely going to push me way out of my comfort zone.
‘Till next week.🫡
Sunflower State Highlights🌻
Manhattan graduate Clara Mayfield announced she’ll be finishing up her eligibility at the University of Utah. To my knowledge, she is finishing up her track season at Carleton and will start her time at Utah this fall. This could be entirely false so don’t quote me on that. The five-time NCAA DIII All-American has continued to improve and see success while at Carleton, including five MIAC titles. She’ll be joining a Utah program that just recorded their highest ever NCAA finish last fall.
Shawnee Mission East senior and three-time 6A state champion Wyatt Haughton ran the Mile/1000m double at the ISU Classic in Ames, IA, where he ran 4:10.65 in the mile and 2:28.57 in the 1k. Haughton took down a plethora of collegiate competition as he’s set to defend both the 1600m and 800m state titles this spring.
Wichita State’s Adrian Diaz-Lopez ran 4:01.10 in the mile at the Husker Invitational in Lincoln, NE. Diaz-Lopez came just .02 seconds away from a fresh school record that was set by Adam Moore last year. He’s currently ranked 76th in DI in a season that has seen sixty men already break the four-minute barrier.
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