By: Connor Gulick, Head Cross Country Coach
The Beavers made the short trip over to Ohio Northern for the Mike Becraft Invitational which saw day 1 take place right here on campus for the javelin and hammer throw on a tale of two days with weather.
On a sunny and hot Friday, the throws crew led off the day with senior Coen North (Denver, Col./North) taking runner up in javelin with a toss of 57.59 which was a new season best and places him 37th in the nation. He wrapped up just in time to hit the stage for his starring role in Little Women! Freshman Thomas Sharper (Sumter, SC) had a toss of 19.86 meters. On Saturday, the crew had to battle wet conditions at Ada, but that didn't stop the PR's from flowing as freshman Tony Smith (Toledo/Sylvania Southview) popped off a huge PR in the discus with a toss of 34.25 meters which was over a meter better then his previous mark.
In the jumps, senior Nolan Mills (Louisville, KY/Meade County) took advantage of his opportunities as he popped off a PR in long jump with a leap of 6.11 meters which qualified him for the HCAC Championships.
In the sprints, senior Niegel Payne (Detroit, Mich./River Rouge) PR'd in both the 100 and 200 with times of 11.99 and 23.96. Mills followed suit with PR's in the 200 and 400 with times of 24.79 and 55.74. Fellow senior Andre Price (Akron/Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) also PR'd in the 200 with a time of 25.64. Sophomores Devin Homan (Dayton/Stebbins) and Delainta Crawford (Douglasville, Ga./Lithia Springs) both had PR's in the 400 with times of 52.38 and 53.64, respectively. Crawford added a PR in the 200 with a time of 23.77.
Moving on to the distance events, junior Micah Dodson (Wooster/Central Christian) had a season-best in the 1500 with a time of 5:08.04. Senior Jarrod Roudebush (Coshocton) led the 800 crew with a time of 2:12.25.
On the women's side, sophomore Sara Smith (Mansfield/Madison Comprehensive) finished runner-up in the 1500 with a time of 5:03.81. Freshman Katie Garrison (Caledonia/River Valley) finished with a PR time of 6:29.08
Leading the Beavers in the sprints, junior Sharon Keefer (Plain City/Jonathan Alder) had a PR of 29.16 in the 200 and narrowly missed her PR in the 400 with a time of 1:06.18.
In the jumps, junior Amelia Adams (Celina) had a season best in both pole vault, clearing a height of 2.86 meters, and long jump with a mark of 4.77 meters
In the throws, senior Ella Myers (McClure/Patrick Henry) had her most consistent day on Friday in the javelin with a toss of 24.94 meters. Freshman Alana Alexander-Davis (Sandusky) PR'd in the discus with a mark of 23.01 meters.
The Beavers now gear up for the HCAC Championships next weekend (April 25-26) hosted by Transylvania University.
-BEAVERS-
