Sophomore Stella DeWitt (Weston/Cardinal Stritch) won the long jump and the triple jump while junior Maggie Krause (Chagrin Falls/Kenston) captured the pole vault title to guide the Ohio Northern women's track and field team to a second-place finish at the annual Joe Banks Invitational, held Saturday inside the ONU Sports Center Fieldhouse.
Otterbein won the meet with 203 points, Ohio Northern was second with 177 points, and Hanover (Ind.) was third with 86 points.
DeWitt won the long jump with a leap of 5.47 meters (17' 11.50") and triple jump with a 10.41-meter (34' 02") bound.
Krause won the pole vault by clearing 3.86 meters (12' 08").
Junior Allison Stevens (Naperville, Ill./Central) was second in the pole vault and set a new career best, vaulting 3.66 meters (12' 00").
Pending results from around the country this weekend, Krause now ranks first in the country for Division III and Stevens vaulted into 11th nationally.
In the 200, junior Taylor Lavey (New Baltimore, Mich./Findlay) won the event in :26.52.
Freshman Kayla Silva (Westerville/South) won the 60 dash in 8.01 and was third in the long jump at 5.17 meters (16' 11.50").
The quartet of freshmen Courtney Smith (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin), Renee Lange (St. Henry), Emily Norden (Carey), and senior Sydney McCluer (Columbus Grove) won the 4x200 relay in 1:48.49.
In the 500, senior Avery Ewing (Kokomo, Ind./Eastern) won in 1:19.32, and senior Taylor Fisher (Wapakoneta) was third in 1:23.83.
Northern placed second in the 4x400 relay as Lavey, Ewing, junior Melinda McIntosh (Farmersville/Valley View), and Norden crossed in 4:10.66.
Ohio Northern will compete again Saturday at the All-Ohio Championships in Westerville.
Team Standings
1. Otterbein 203, 2. Ohio Northern 173, 3. Hanover (Ind.) 86, 4. Heidelberg 69, 5. Ohio Christian 52, 6. Capital 35, 7. Bluffton 23
ONU men claim 3 event titles
By Blake Moore
ADA - The Ohio Northern men's track and field program claimed three individual event titles Saturday en route to a second-place team finish at the 2019 Joe Banks Invitational inside the ONU Sports Center Fieldhouse.
The Polar Bears (5-1 Overall) finished the meet with 154 points and only trailed team champion Otterbein in the final standings. Meanwhile, ONU defeated Bluffton, Capital, Hanover (Ind.), Heidelberg, and Ohio Christian in the seven-team field.
On the track, Sam Krabacher (Hamilton/Badin) earned his third individual event title this season, leading a first-through-fourth finish for the Polar Bears in the 1,000-meter run in 2:42.45. Freshman Patrick Baker (Massillon/Jackson), junior Kyle Neff (Sagamore Hills/Walsh Jesuit), and freshman Alan Dravenstott (Medina) trailed Krabacher closely to the line to take second, third, and fourth, respectively.
Senior All-American Ian McVey (Stow/Munroe Falls) claimed the one-mile run title in a meet-record 4:15.13. With his efforts Saturday, McVey set the top time on the OAC performance list and recorded a new personal-best mark in the event.
Additionally, freshman pole vault specialist Luke Shellhaas (Greenville/Versailles) claimed the remaining individual event title with a career-best 4.45-meter (14' 7.25") clearance Saturday morning.
Meanwhile, sophomore Owen Lloyd (Colfax, Ind./Clinton Prairie) and freshman Nate Dean (Euclid/Villa Angela Saint Joseph) recorded runner-up honors in the 60-meter hurdles (8.68) and 400-meter dash (52.99), respectively.
Juniors Noah McKee (Powell/Olentangy Liberty), Zachary Vaughn (Niles/McKinley), and Jordan Smith (Grand Rapids, Mich./Christian) and sophomore Colin McCullough (Galion) registered a second-place effort in the 4x200-meter relay in 1:35.87, only trailing Hanover's quartet by one second.
In the field, sophomore Matt Bradshaw (Cleveland/Norton) picked up the remaining second-place finish in the weight throw. He would toss the 30-pound weight 15.17 meters (49' 9.25") on his first throw Saturday afternoon.
The Polar Bears will return to action next weekend when they travel to Otterbein for the All-Ohio Championships on Saturday, February 9.
Team Standings
1. Otterbein 183, 2. Ohio Northern 154, 3. Hanover 102, 4. Heidelberg 88, 5. Bluffton 62, 6. Capital 52, 7. Ohio Christian 24
