Wayne State thrower Michaela Dendinger posted a pair of first-place finishes in the weight throw and shot put that were NCAA provisional qualifying marks to lead the Wildcats at the SDSU Div. II Indoor Track and Field Invitational held Friday at the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex in Brookings, S.D.
Dendinger opened the event with a first-place mark in the shot put at 47 feet, 1 1/2 inches that ranks 10th in NCAA Div. II. She followed that with another first-place finish in the weight throw at 60-8 3/4 that ranks eighth in NCAA Div. II.
Shelby Roth tied for second in the high jump, clearing 4-11 3/4. Tessa Ives tied for sixth in the weight throw at 48-1 3/4, while while Shelby Poell finished sixth in the long jump at 15-10 1/4.
Top finishers in running events included Melissa Kroll taking 11th in the 600-meter run with a time of 1:46.22, while Wayne native Rachel Rauner was 15th in the 60-meter dash in 8.26.
In men’s action, Antoine Bardou set a new school record for the second straight week with a first-place finish in the mile run while junior Brady Metz posted a first-place effort in the triple jump.
Bardou, who set a new school record last week in the 1,000-meter run, broke the tape first in the mile run with a time of 4:12.48 to top the previous school record of 4:12.86 set by John Kern in the 2011 season.
The other first-place finish was from Metz in the triple jump with a top mark of 46-8 1/4. He also placed sixth in the long jump at 21-1 1/4.
Robert Sullivan was the No. 3 qualifier in the prelims of the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.44 seconds, but finished seventh in the finals. Alvyns Alcenrod was the No. 5 qualifier in the 60-meter dash at 7.03 seconds but came in eighth in the finals with a clocking of 7.17 seconds. Braxton Adams just missed the finals in the 60-meter dash, coming in ninth place overall in 7.11 seconds.
In the throws, Matt Nemec was fourth in the weight throw at 50-8 1/4 and Cade Kalkowski placed sixth at 49-1 3/4.
Other top finishers for the Wildcats included Habib Jallow taking fifth in the 400-meter dash (51.19), Josh Spenner was sixth in the pole vault at 14-10 and Nathan Pearson was 10th in the 800-meter run (2:00.73). The 1,600-meter relay team of Derek Lahm, Travis Eller, Clay Kramper and Habib Jallow came in fourth place with a time of 3:22.86.
Next action for Wayne State will be Friday and Saturday, Jan. 27-28 at the Minnesota State Open in Mankato, Minn.
