DSU Track Propels Forward to End of Indoor Season

The Dakota State University track teams had a solid performance at their last regular season meet. The men’s and women’s teams competed in the South Dakota State Classic indoor track and field meet this Friday and Saturday. Multiple athletes had personal record times at the meet, and DSU had three more athletes qualify for the NAIA National Meet.

Cameron Harding, Joshua Snook, and Braden Curnow all qualified for the NAIA Indoor National Meet. Cameron Harming qualified in the 1000-meter run and placed 2nd with a time of 2:31.07. Joshua Snook qualified in the 400-meter dash and placed 9th with a time of 49.19 seconds. Braden Curnow qualified in the 1-mile run and placed 15th with a time of 4:19.31. The previous day, Curnow placed 2nd in the 5000-meter run with a time of 14:41.57. Curnow had already qualified in the 5000-meter run, but this time helped him to retake his school record from teammate Maxwell Cruse who has also qualified for nationals in the race.

The men’s team had several personal records at the meet as well. On Friday, Tyler Kennedy placed 18^thwith a personal record time of 15:39.50 in the 5000-meter run. Grant Vizzini had a personal record time of 16:33.10 in the same race to place 38^th. On Saturday, Grant Vizzini had another personal record time of 4:41.51 seconds to place 49^th in the 1-mile run. Nick Bruggeman placed 55^th with a personal record time of 4:44.24.

The 800-meter race was also good to the Trojans. The men’s team hit three personal record times in the race. Bruggeman placed 56^th running 2:07.88 seconds, Robert Mayberry placed 57^th running 2:08.77 seconds, and Austin Winter placed 58^th running 2:11.22 seconds.

Senior Tyler Moulton’s throw this weekend was his personal best at 16.11 meters. Photo by Karen Giles.

The throwers had a couple of personal records set as well. Tyler Moulton threw 16.11 meters for a personal record throw and a 9^th place finish in the weight throw. This throw also put him second-best in the DSU record book. James McClain had two personal bests today: in the weight throw, he tossed 11.72 meters to place 32^nd, and threw 12.43 meters in the shot put to place 33rd.

The women’s team had a great weekend too, with several personal records and solid performance. The distance girls kicked off the meet on Friday with a great performance. Jada Anderson placed 17^th in the 3000-meter run with a personal best time of 11:01.73. Also having personal best times in the race was Christianna Green with a time of 11:19.36 to finish 23^rd and Juliette Rios had a time of 12:56.37 to place 35^th. Success continued on the second day as well. Jenni Giles had a great race in the 400-meter dash to finish 15^th with a personal best time of 60.83 seconds. This time puts her fifth in the DSU women’s indoor record book.

The throwers found success as well. Tyra Payne had a personal best throw of 9.69 meters in the shot put to place 34^th. Her teammates also hit personal records in the weight throw. Britni Plucker tossed her all-time best with a throw of 11.79 meters and Skyler Pattison did the same with a throw of 10.91 meters.

Sophomore Christianna Green, pictured, would place 35th at this meet. Photo by Karen Giles.

Christianna Green had another great day on Saturday. She hit another personal record in the 1-mile race with a time of 5:42.88 to place 35^th. Haley Erickson also had a personal record time of 6:53.03 to finish 53^rd in the race.

It’s evident that the men and women continue to improve this indoor season. They are hoping to top their performances next week when they return to the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex for the North Star Athletic Conference championship meet. The meet is a one-day affair and scheduled to start at 10 a.m. on Saturday.

The men’s team will look to defend their indoor conference title from last season. In doing so, they are hoping to have a few more athletes qualify for the upcoming national meet—the conference meet is the last chance to do so. The women’s team will look to improve on a third-place finish from last years conference meet. Last year they scored the most points in school history at the North Star conference meet. They are hoping to top that score this year and push for a higher team finish. The women’s team is also looking to qualify a few more athletes in the national meet.

It’s clear to see that the Trojan track teams are on the rise. It will be exciting to see what more they can accomplish in their upcoming conference and national meets. As always, good luck and go Trojans!