McCastle Qualifies for Nationals in Return
William Penn University Athletics
Pella–The William Penn men’s track and field team got a lot stronger and deeper Saturday as Cornelius McCastle (Sr., McKinney, Texas, Industrial Technology) made an impressive return to action Saturday at the Central Invitational.
The Statesmen men were fourth out of five teams with 68 points, while Simpson took the trophy with 236 points. On the women’s side, WPU was third out of four teams; host Central was first with 206 points.
McCastle, who made his first appearance since suffering an injury last spring, joined an ever-growing list of national qualifiers. The senior did not miss a beat, winning the high jump competition with an “A” standard mark of 6-9.
Derek Seddon (Sr., Knoxville, Iowa, Physical Education) is already a qualifier in the hammer throw and had another big toss Saturday, placing first at 173-1. The senior was also second in the shot put at 50-3.25.
Zack Johnson (Jr., Decatur, Ill., Mechanical Engineering) went under the two-minute barrier for the first time ever in the 800-meter run, taking third in a time of 1:59.20. Derek Robinson (Jr., Jenks, Okla., Communications) took fourth in the shot put at 46-11, while Alyjah Cooper (Fr., Little Elm, Texas, Biology) topped the sprinting crew, finishing ninth in the 200-meter dash in 23.15 seconds.
Asia Laudermilch (Fr., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Physical Education) headlined the women’s efforts, winning both the 100 and 200 with times of 12.86 and 26.00 seconds, respectively.
Becky Cleppe (Fr., St. Petersburg, Fla., Physical Education) matched Laudermilch with a javelin title at 98-4; the freshman was also third in the hammer (129-3).
Runner-up efforts were recorded by Taylor Richardson (So., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Undecided) in the long jump (15-8.75), Guadalupe Gonzalez (Jr., Houston, Texas, Exercise Science) in the 3,000-meter run (11:08.96), and Elayna VanArsdale (Fr., Bensalem, Pa., Secondary Education) in the discus (117-1). The 4×100-meter relay squad picked up silver as well in 50.91 seconds.
VanArsdale’s day was far from over, though, as she also placed third in the shot put at 33-3 and fourth in the hammer at 125-6.
D’Jannay Patterson (Fr., Fairfield, Iowa, Physical Education) was another top-five sprinter as well, claiming the bronze in the 100 at 13.62.
“Despite having a small group at today’s meet, they all put their best foot forward and performed well,” Head Coach Allen Friesen said.
Next Up: William Penn travels to Indianola next Thursday and Friday to compete in the Simpson Kip Janvrin Open.
