Miller, Knowles II Take Crowns at Central Invite

Pella–The Statesmen men’s track and field team picked up a couple of event titles Saturday as it battled at the Central Dutch Invitational.

Andrew Miller (Jr., Le Claire, Iowa, Exercise Science) and Nicholas Knowles II (Fr., Nassau, Bahamas, Business Management) both earned gold, while more than a handful of their teammates also managed top-half finishes at the Invitational.

Miller won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a time of 9:37.96, while Knowles II topped the triple jump field at 46-5.25. Knowles II was 15th in the long jump (21-3.5) as well.

Gavin Huff (Jr., Mascoutah, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) also performed well in the steeplechase, ending up sixth in a time of 10:28.74, while Xzavion West (Sr., Guthrie, Ky., Psychology) was William Penn’s final top-10 placer. The senior finished eighth in the shot put at 52-8.75.

Sutton Shively (So., Bloomfield, Iowa, Mechanical Engineering) just missed the top 10 in the 5,000-meter run, hitting the line in 11th in a time of 16:08.70.

Travaughn Robbins-Hall (So., Lauderhill, Fla., Software Engineering) guided the remaining Statesmen who were in the top half, finishing 38th in the 100-meter dash (11.11 seconds). Sean Gomez (Fr., Denver, Iowa, Exercise Science) placed 39th in the 800-meter run (2:06.58), and Usir McClellan (Fr., St. Petersburg, Fla., Information Technology) was 55th in the 200-meter dash (22.96).

“This was a pretty solid day, all things considering,” Head Coach Victoria Vinokur said. “We had a handful of athletes just off the ‘B’ standard in their events, while a few individuals recorded PRs. Most importantly, everyone is continuing to learn and grow from their events.”

Next Up: William Penn travels to Fayette, Mo. next Thursday and Friday to compete in the Central Methodist Invitational.