Waldorf to Host Conference Track Meet
By Austin Siegal
Waldorf University will be hosting the North Star Athletic Conference track meet on May 13 and 14. This will be the first time Waldorf has hosted the event in quite some time.
The meet will give athletes competing one last chance to meet the national benchmark and qualify for the National Association for Interscholastic Athletics (NAIA) national championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama at Mickey Miller Blackwell Stadium on March 26 through the 28.
The Waldorf track team has quite a few hopefuls who will be vying for the conference championship. Hannah Perry, sophomore from Houston Texas, will be looking to crack the mark for the 400 meter dash. She became the first woman in Waldorf History to break the 60 second mark in the race with a time of 59.51 seconds.
Freshman Alazey Mishleau also will look to improve her personal best mark in the high jump of 5 feet and 5 inches. Both Hannah Perry and Alazey Mishleau were a part of the relay team for the 400 along with Quintenique Wilkinson, senior out of Freeport, Bahamas, and Cathrine Clark Ashford who all combined with a time of 4 minutes and 15 seconds which was good enough to crush the previous school record.
In the 800 meter relay, the Waldorf women will look to qualify as a team as well. The group made up of Naomi Alvarez, senior out of Rosemount, Minnesota, Cecilia Hemsworth, junior out of Mount Pleasant, Iowa, Mindy Barchenger, junior out of Bismarck, North Dakota, and Clara Roderick, senior out of Visalia, California all combined to break the school record.
The ladies managed to shave four whole seconds off of the previous school record that had stood for two years with a time of 11 minutes and 38 seconds.
As for the field events, the Waldorf men and women throwers have a very promising outlook heading into the conference tournament. On the men’s side of things, Wade Baker leads the way with almost every single throwers record in his name.
Wade baker, sophomore out of Washington, broke his own school record on the hammer throw with a throw of 141 feet and 6 inches. Two other Waldorf throwers, Cale Frett, junior out of Durant, Iowa, and Hunter Rushford, junior out of Wyoming, Iowa, each had personal best throws in the hammer throw with Frett throwing 121 feet and 7 inches and Rushford throwing 110 feet and 10 inches.
“I am excited to see what us throwers and the team as a whole can accomplish,” said Rushford. “We all push each other every day in practice to try to get the opportunity to go to nationals and continue on the success of the team from 1 year ago.”
The start times for the events have not yet been placed as the meet is still a few weeks out but it can be rest assured that the warriors will be ready.