LINCOLN, Neb. – The University of Iowa track and field team recorded 11 personal-best marks on the final day of the Husker Invitational on Saturday. The event was held at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on the campus of the University of Nebraska. No team scores were kept at the event.
Kaleb VanCleave took the men’s 600 meters title. The junior clocked a personal-best time of 1:19.59. Sophomore Neil Flattery followed close behind, finishing third with a time of 1:20.25. Junior Brennan Davey (10th; 1:22.52) also competed in the event. Alexis Hernandez ran to a sixth-place finish in the women’s 600 meters with a personal-best time of 1:33.97.
Freshman Katharina Trost ran into the Iowa record book. Trost grabbed a second-place finish in the women’s 800 meters special. Her time of 2:07.38 ranks fourth all-time at Iowa. Sophomore Kaitlyn Nelson also competed in the event. Nelson finished seventh with a time of 2:14.02. Nathan Prom finished sixth in the men’s 800 meters special when he crossed the line in 1:53.61.
Sophomore Michael Hart clocked a personal-best time of 4:12.64 to finish second in the men’s mile. Caleb Wilfong followed close behind. The sophomore recorded a personal-best time of 4:14.40. Freshmen Tess Wilberding (5:13.73) and Jordyn Sindt (5:17.71) finished 13th and 15th, respectively, in the women’s event.
“Overall, I think we made progress this weekend,” said director of track and field Larry Wieczorek. “We had some very good highlights in the toughest meet of the season. We had people competing really well against national competition.”
Will Teubel and MonTayla Holder grabbed third-place finishes in the 600 meters special. Holder crossed the line in a personal-best time of 1:30.22. That time ranks third all-time at Iowa. Teubel also recorded a personal-best. His time of 1:19.16 ranks ninth all-time at Iowa.
The men’s 1,600-meter relay team earned a third-place finish. The quartet of VanCleave, sophomore James Harrington, Teubel, and senior Ethan Holmes recorded a season-best time of 3:11.73. The women’s team of Hernandez, freshmen Elexis Guster and Mahnee Watts, and sophomore MonTayla Holder clocked a time of 3:43.56 to finish fourth.
Harrington ran to a fourth-place finish in the men’s 200 meters. The sophomore crossed the line in a personal-best time of 21.21. That time ranks fourth all-time at Iowa. Sophomore Lake Kwaza finished ninth in the women’s 200 meters with a personal-best time of 24:28.
Freshman Brittany Brown recorded a fifth-place finish in the women’s 60 meters. Brown crossed the line in 7.43. Senior Tevin-Cee Mincy finished sixth in the men’s 60 meters when he recorded a time of 6.81.
Gabe Hull earned a fifth-place finish in the men’s shot put. The sophomore recorded a mark of 58-4 ¾ (17.80m). Senior Drew Clark finished 11th in the event with a mark of 55-1 (16.79m).
Sophomore Klyvens Delaunay grabbed a fifth-place finish in the men’s triple jump. Delaunay posted a mark of 48-10 ¼ (14.89m). Sophomore Kerry Dean Jr. finished 10th in the event with a mark of 46-2 (14.07m).
Tayo Oladele-Ajose finished fifth in the women’s high jump. The freshman cleared a height of 5-5 (1.56m).
Seniors Zinnia Miller and Carisa Leacock competed in the women’s triple jump. Miller finished sixth with a mark of 39-8 ½ (12.10m), while Leacock posted a mark of 38-9 ¾ (11.83m) to finish 10th.
Sophomore Cindy Saliba recorded a personal-best time of 10:15.72 in the women’s 3,000 meters. Her time earned her a ninth-place finish. Freshman Carolyn Newhouse earned a 15th-place finish in the event with a time of 10:29.88.
Ben Witt clocked a personal-best time of 8:31.97 in the 3,000 meters. The junior’s time earned him a 10th-place finish.
“It was a meet of intermittent highlights as we continue to pursue a total team performance,” said head track and field coach Layne Anderson. “We have a short turn around this week as we prepare for Arkansas and Iowa State next week.”
The Hawkeyes will split competitors between the Cyclone Classic in Ames, Iowa, and the Tyson Invitational in Fayetteville, Ark., on Feb. 14-15.
