The University of Findlay men's and women's track and field team was scattered on Saturday, April 23, sending athletes to three different meets. The Oilers were in Columbus, Ohio for the Jesse Owens Classic, Ada, Ohio for the Mike Becraft Invite, and Allendale, Michigan for the Al Owens Classic.
Jesse Owens Classic | Columbus, Ohio
In the women's 100m dash, senior Michaela Butler had a solid day, finishing second in her prelim with a time of 11.89, qualifying her for the finals in the event. Later in the day, she finished seventh in the 100m finals, clocking in at 11.84 seconds, an NCAA DII provisional qualifying time and her fastest 100m time of her career.
In the men's 100m dash, junior Josh Verhoff qualified for the finals with a prelim time of 10.68, the fastest time of his career. In the finals, Verhoff took eighth with a 10.69.
Findlay's women's 4x100m relay team met the NCAA provisional mark as freshman Nicole Fishpaw, freshman Taylor Ivory, freshman Jordan Taylor, and senior Michaela Butler took sixth in the race with a time of 46.71, the fastest of the season for the Oilers.
Competing in the men's discus throw was senior Max Prenger, sophomore Hunter Tresnan-Rieghard, and senior Austin Combs. Prenger took seventh with a throw of 49.11 (161'01") while Tresnan-Rieghard was seventh (48.94m – 160'07") and Combs was tenth (45.87m – 150'06").
Junior Paige Emnett took sixth in the women's shot put with a season-best throw of 14.28m (46'10.25"), an NCAA provisional in the event. Right behind was freshman Trista Fintel who was seventh with a throw of 13.79m (45'03.00").
Freshman Payton Shakur was fourth in the men's high jump, hitting the DII provisional on the mark, clearing 2.05m (6'08.75") on his first attempt. That jump was the best of his outdoor career.
Also meeting an NCAA provisional was junior Simone Green in the women's triple jump. Her third attempt was her best, reaching 11.95m (39'02.50"), the best of her outdoor career and just four inches shy of the program record.
Al Owens Classic | Allendale, Mich.
Junior Gabe Makin had the best performance of the season in men's pole vault, clearing a height of 5.09m (16'8.25") on his first attempt to take first place in the event. That was Makin's top performance of the season and met the NCAA provisional in the event. Sophomore Alex Mutchler was runner-up, clearing a height of 4.79m (15'8.5").
In women's pole vault, Findlay senior Savannah Amato was the Oilers' top finisher, clearing a height of 4.27m (14'0") to finish runner-up. Amato's jump increases her own program record and moves her up the all-time Division II list. After clearing 4.25m last week, Amato still owns the top jump in Division II this season and ranks eighth all-time in Division II history. Her jump ranks 17th in the country, regardless of division. Also competing in the event was junior Morgan England who took third with a jump of 4.07m (13'4.25").
Mike Becraft Invite | Ada, Ohio
The Oilers took the top four spots in the women's 400m run. Hayley Robinett won the race with a time of 59.63 while Kate Ellis was second with a 1:00.17, Maya Hamsher was third with a 1:02.09, and Cassidy Baran was fourth with a 1:02.15.
Another first place finish came in the men's 800m run where Joe Sadowski took top spot with a 1:57.91.
In women's pole vault, Hannah Roy took third with a height if 3.40m (11'1.75"). Later in the triple jump, freshman Morgan Allman was a fourth place finisher with a mark of 10.07m (33'0.5").
Freshman Chris Cooper finished fourth in the men's 110m hurdles with a time of 15.56.
The Oilers had a strong showing in the women's 100m hurdles. Sophomore Kenedi Hayden took first place with a time of 15.25 while sophomore Adriana Jutte was fourth with a 15.61. Later in the 400m hurdles, Hayden won again, crossing the line in 1:06.73.
Hannah Rybicki was a third place finisher in the 100m dash, crossing the finish line in a time of 12.37. Freshman Cassie Warner was fifth with a 12.71. Rybicki also ran in the 200m where she set a meet record with a time of 25.37.
In the women's 5k, Meghan Donoher was the top finisher, posting a time of 19:11.67.
Freshman Ava Beam took runner-up in the 3000m steeplechase, finishing the race in 12:21.33.
Sophomore Gabriel Foster was a runner-up finisher in the men's 1500m run, crossing the line in 3:54.32. That time surpassed the previous facility and meet records.
Freshman Drew Lemaster took fourth in the men's 400m run, finishing in 50.15.
