Track team runs toward California sun Monday

After a couple weeks and some hard practices, Chadron State’s track and field team is ready to get more marks in, but with the blizzard covering most of the surrounding area, the meet scheduled for today is canceled.

However, last meet five athletes provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships and claimed first place in their respective events. Cody Hunt, senior of Lingle, Wyo., threw the shot put a distance of 57 feet and nine inches in his first throw of the season. Charith Kapukotuwa, junior of Chilaw, Sri Lanka, came in behind Hunt by four feet in the shot put, and also got second in the discus and hammer throw.

The sprinters also had a good day when returning athlete Karl McFarlane, junior of Montego Bay, Jamaica, helped the 400 meter relay team capture first place with a time of 43.92 seconds. He also finished second in the triple jump with a length of 44 feet 10 and three fourths inches. Lamar Newman also won the long jump with a leap of 22 feet, nine inches, and finished third in the triple jump. Teammate Barrett Browne, freshman of Sidney, came in behind Newman in the long jump with a bound of 21 feet, nine and half inches.

On the women’s side, the throwers brought in a lot of points. Alyssa Norton, junior of Rushville, led the way when she won the discus with a throw of 152 feet, one inch, and also finished second in shot put. Mel Herl, freshman of Eaton, Colo., won the shot put throwing two inches farther than teammate Norton. Cyndi Thomas, junior of Omaha, came in second in the hammer throw with a distances of 149 feet, six inches.

Michaela Odenbaugh, sophomore of Platteville, Colo., won the 400 hurdles with a time of one minute, seven seconds. Kaelie Jelden, senior of Eaton, Colo., won the pole vault with a height of 11 feet, six and three fourths inches. She was pleased with the mark but knows she has room for improvement.

“I thought it was a good starting point for the outdoor season, but I want to hit that 12-foot mark and be able to go to Nationals,” Jelden said.

Erin Krause, junior of Akron, Colo., came in second to Jelden with a clear ten feet vault. Rebecca Volf placed well in her first steeplechase run with a time of 12 minutes and 48 seconds.

Head Coach Ryan Baily said he is excited for the meets coming up in California.

“”There will be competition from all over the country, which is a great opportunity for our athletes,” Baily said Wednesday. “I am sad that the athletes that aren’t traveling with us to California wont get another meet in, but we are trying to get one rescheduled for them.”

There will be 45 athletes traveling the 20 hour distance to the four different meets held in four different towns throughout California. The first meet takes place on Wednesday, Apr. 17 in Walnut, Calif. On Thursday, Los Angeles hosts another meet at the California State University campus. Then on Friday there are two meets scheduled, one in Azusa, Calif., and one in Norwalk, Calif., giving the athletes plenty of opportunity and time for improvement.

“We are definitely excited to get in some good weather,” Baily said.