Two Records Broken at Jim Duncan
William Penn University Athletics
Des Moines–Facing their toughest competition of the outdoor season, the William Penn track and field teams performed well with several top efforts at the Jim Duncan Invitational hosted by Drake Friday and Saturday.
Derek Seddon (So., Knoxville, Iowa, Physical Education) headlined for the Statesmen as he placed in the top five on three occasions. The sophomore was best in his best event, winning the discus by breaking his own school record with a toss of 162-1. He was also fifth in both the hammer throw (158-1) and shot put (46-0.5).
Tarah Alexander (Jr., Cedar, Iowa, Physical Education) also snapped a program mark, but hers was one that had stood for well over two decades. The junior finished 10th in the 800-meter run in a new program-best time of 2:18.64, breaking the old record set back in 1988.
Romel Marzette (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Sociology) matched Seddon as a multiple top-10 placer. He was eighth in the triple jump at 43-1.75 and 10th in the 100-meter dash in 11.24 seconds.
Fellow sprinter CJ Watts (Jr., Rockville, Md., Physical Education) was also 10th, doing so in the 400-meter dash in 49.33 seconds.
Kalob Gist (Jr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Business Management) gave WPU two successful shot putters, taking fourth in 46-8, while Jaylin Thomas (So., Baton Rouge, La., Biology) was ninth in the long jump at 21-5.5. The 4×400-meter relay squad finished seventh in 3:20.56.
Meaghan Foster (Jr., Centerville, Iowa, Physical Education) was actually the highest finisher for the women’s crew as she placed second in the shot put at 41-4.5. Just as the men did, the women had two shot putters in the top 10 as well with Kristin Lastovka (Jr., Brooklyn, Iowa, Business Management) and her mark of 36-2 good enough for fifth.
Emma Hoerr (Jr., Chillicothe, Ill., Physical Education) finished seventh in the discus at 119-0.
“There was a lot of quality competition here this weekend and I thought our athletes held their own,” Head Coach Allen Friesen said. “We had a lot of personal bests and set two new school records so it was a solid showing for us.”
Next Up: William Penn returns to Oskaloosa next Saturday to host the Statesmen Relays at Lacey Stadium.
