Statesmen Post High Marks During Busy Weekend
William Penn University Athletics
by Wade Steinlage
Cedar Falls/Pella–The William Penn track and field teams continued their indoor seasons this week with two more solid outings.
On Friday, WPU competed in the Jack Jennett Open hosted by Northern Iowa, and on Saturday, the navy and gold went down Highway 163 to compete in the Central Dutch Athletics Classic.
Jack Jennett
National qualifiers Tristen Elmore (So., Ovied, Fla., Physical Education) and Derek Robinson (Sr., Jenks, Okla., Communications) guided the Statesmen as both placed in the top 10 twice.
Elmore was WPU’s lone event champion, taking the long jump title at 22-9. He was also 10th in the 200-meter dash in 22.93 seconds.
Robinson matched him by finishing fourth in the weight throw at 53-10.5 and eighth in the shot put at 46-6.25.
Like Robinson, Brenden Foster (So., Rock Hill, S.C.) took home fourth in a competition as well, doing so in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.65 seconds. Mofiyinfoluwa Alade (Fr., Hoffman Estates, Ill.) was next in fifth place in the high jump at 6-2.75, while Seth Davis (So., Farmerville, Texas) was sixth in the long jump at 21-2.5.
Shelbie Williams (So., Hedrick, Iowa, Elementary Education) carried the proverbial torch for the women as she was fourth in the shot put at 41-1. Asia Laudermilch(So., Oskaloosa, Iowa, Physical Education) topped the track athletes with a seventh-place effort in the 60-meter dash in 8.07 seconds, while Elayna VanArsdale (So., Bensalem, Pa., Secondary Education) finished 10th in the weight throw at 46-3.25.
Central
In a considerably smaller meet, most every WPU individual was in the top 10, if the event even had that many athletes.
Laudermilch was William Penn’s star with a near record-breaking performance in the long jump, an event she had yet to try in college prior to Saturday.
The sophomore won the long jump with a distance of 16-10.75, just 0.75 inches from matching the school record. Laudermilch was also second in the 60 in 8.07.
Williams won gold at Central as well, taking the shot put title at 39-1.75. Runner-up placings went to Van Arsdale in the weight throw (46-5.5) and Alexzandrea Woudenberg (Fr., Ottumwa, Iowa) in the 200 (28.29).
Heaven Buckner (Fr., St. Louis, Mo., Business Management), who was third in the 600-meter run (1:56.54), and Imani Welch (Jr., St. Louis, Mo., Sports and Management Recreation), who was fifth in the 200 (28.90), also experienced success at the meet.
Freshmen Davis and Alade paced the men with crowns. Davis, who was also fourth in the 200 (24.09), earned the long jump win at 20-2.25, while Alade was first in the high jump at 6-6.
Robinson came up just a bit shy of titles, taking second in the shot put at 46-1.25 and third in the weight throw at 52-5.25.
Foster was a runner-up as well, earning the silver in the 60 hurdles in 8.74, while Dajon Shaw (Highland Park, Mich., Exercise Science) claimed bronze with a 60 time of 7.21. Shaw was also fifth in the 200 (24.11).
Fourth-place finishes came from Michael Hubbard (Jr., Gary, Ind., Exercise Science) in the 60 (7.26) and Treavon Ware (Fr., Washington, D.C., History) in the 800-meter run (2:10.43).
Sage Ehresman (So., Sully, Iowa, Exercise Science) joined Robinson as a high placer in the shot put, taking fifth at 43-0.5.
“We had some very good performances over our two days of competing and I am proud of what our team accomplished,” Head Coach Allen Friesen said. “I want to send a thank you out to all alumni, faculty, staff, and students who came out to support the team. I know it inspired our athletes.”
Next Up: William Penn travels to Des Moines next Thursday to compete in the Grand View Field Invitational.
