SPEARFISH, S.D. — February 24, 2017 — With senior standouts
Mel Herl and
Stachia Reuwsaat leading the way, the Chadron State College track and field teams got off to a strong start Friday at the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships hosted by Black Hills State.
Herl set both the conference and the Donald Young Center records in the 20-pound weight throw while winning the day's first completed event. Her mark of 71.80 meters, or 71 feet, 6 ¼ inches, is less than four inches shy of her career best, which ranked second in NCAA Division II entering this weekend.
Herl said she was "pretty pleased" with her throw, but indicated she won't be satisfied with anything less than winning the event at the National Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Alabama, in two weeks. She also will be seeking to win the shot put today (Saturday) during the second half of the conference meet.
Three of Herl's teammates also placed in the weight throw. Ashton Hanson was second at 59-2 ½, Kerri Ruff was fourth at 55-4 ½ and
Danielle Weyer was sixth at 50-3 ½. All three marks were career-bests.
The weight throw gave the CSC women 26 points, almost exactly half the 52.5 points they earned Friday to take the lead in the team standings through the completion of five events.
Led by Reuswaat, the long jump was another strong event for the Lady Eagles. The senior from Rapid City won her second consecutive RMAC long jump championship with a season-best leap of 6.29 meters, or 20-6 ½, and another Young Center record.
Her winning jump a year ago, when the conference meet was in Chadron, measured 20-9. She then won the National Indoor title at 20-4 ½ and was the runner-up last May at the National Outdoor Championships with a mark of 21-2 ½.
Two more CSC women also placed in the RMAC long jump. Maddie Brashears was fourth at 17-11 ¾ and
Chasidy Horton was seventh at 17-2 ¾. In addition, Horton finished fourth in the pentathlon and
Haley Gallagher tied for fourth in the pole vault with a career-best 11-1 ½.
Besides her the long jump victory Friday, Reuwsaat also won the preliminaries of the 60-meter dash in 7.43 seconds for another Young Center record and also improved her Chadron State record by 7 hundredths of a second.
Another senior from Rapid City,
Tessa Gorsuch also had the fastest time of 8.60 seconds in the preliminaries of the 60-meter hurdles. In addition, Gorsuch qualified for the finals of the 60-meter dash. Other CSC women qualifying for the sprint finals were
Alisha Heelan, who had the third fastest time of 58.48 seconds in the 400, and Cassie Johnson, who claimed the No. 8 slot in both the 200 and 400.
On the men's side, the weight throw proved to be a strong event, earning 20 points for the Eagles. Although Trevor Jensen of Colorado Mesa took first place, CSC's
Jesse Bleidt was second (57-10 ¾),
Cory Martens third (56-8),
Blake Jacobs fourth (54-4) and
Frantzlee LaCrete eight (52-10 ½).
No other Chadron State men earned points during the first day of competition, but three qualified for today's finals, led by
Andre Woodson, who shared the fastest time of 6.88 seconds in the 60 meters and also ran the 200 in 22.43 to rank fifth in those prelims.
In addition,
Justin Leman was fifth in the high hurdle preliminaries and
Javan Lanier was eighth in the 60 dash. Leman was also fifth through five events in the heptathlon, which will be completed the first thing Saturday morning.
The Eagles' final results on Friday:
Women's Events
20-pound weight throw—1,
Mel Herl, 71-6 ¼ (RMAC and Donald Young Center record); 2,
Ashlyn Hanson, 59-2 ¼; 4,
Keri Ruff, 55-41/2; 6,
Danielle Weyer, 50-3 1/3.
Long jump—1,
Stachia Reuwsaat, 20-6 ½ (arena record); 4, Maddie Brashears, 17-11 ¾; 7,
Chasidy Horton, 17-2 ¾.
Pole vault—4,
Haley Gallagher, 11-1 ½
Pentathlon—4,
Chasidy Horton, 3,147 points.
Men's Events
35-pound weight throw—2,
Jesse Bleidt, 57-10 ¾; 3,
Cory Martens, 56-8; 4,
Blake Jacobs, 56-4; 8,
Frantzlee LaCrete, 52-10 ½.8
