Quartet of Dutch athletes recognized by Iowa Conference

Central Dutch Athletics

PELLA — Four Central College athletes across three sports garnered Iowa Conference Performer of the Week honors after their efforts over the past weekend.

The men’s tennis double pairing of Garret Taylor (senior, Creston) and William Isiminger (freshman, North Aurora, Ill., West Aurora HS) shared the men’s tennis performer of the week title. Track and field throwers Ryan Kruse (senior, St. Clair, Minn.) and Gillian Streit (freshman, Manilla, Harlan HS) took the men’s and women’s field event athletes of the week awards, respectively.

In Saturday’s contests against Coe College and Buena Vista University, the tandem of Taylor and Isiminger went 2-0. They opened the day with an 8-4 win over the Central Region’s No. 13 pairing of Brady Anderson and Nate Ackert (Coe) and finished with an 8-5 win over John Foss and Aaron Plyum (Buena Vista). As a team, Central dumped Buena Vista 8-1 after losing to Coe by the same margin earlier in the day.

The first of three matches this week for the Dutch is at home on Thursday against Simpson College at 4 p.m.

Kruse launched his winning javelin throw 200 feet, 11 inches at the Central Invitational last Thursday, outdistancing the nearest competitor by 35 feet. In addition to his first-place finish in the javelin, Kruse was fifth in the discus throw (146-7). He currently sits No. 7 nationally in the javelin and No. 29 in the discus throw.

Competing in her first collegiate discus throw competition at the Central Invitational, Streit was the runner-up with a toss of 130 feet, 11 inches. The freshman is No. 15 nationally in the discus throw. Streit also finished in eighth in the shot put with a mark of 36-8.50

The Dutch track and field teams had a schedule change this weekend and will now be hosting the Weather Saver Invitational on Thursday beginning with field events at 2 p.m. and adding running events at 3 p.m.