Over 300 collegiate competitors were in action representing 10 programs along with several unattached athletes and alumni of Wayne State College who made history with the first-ever meet inside the Wildcat Dome.
Showcasing the only 300-meter indoor track and field surface in the state of Nebraska, the WSC Wildcat Indoor Open welcomed teams of Chadron State, Benedictine (Kan.), Northwestern, Morningside, Midland and Southeast Community College as well as partial squads from Sioux Falls (pole vaults and throws), Dakota State and Mount Marty on Saturday.
Head WSC track and field coach Marlon Brink said the Wildcats have been practicing in the Wildcat Dome for just over a month and are getting accustomed to the new facilities.
“So, it’s nice to have a home track advantage which we haven’t had because we’re usually on the road traveling,” said Brink. “So, to be able to have a home meet they really appreciate that. They got a lot of fans, friends and family that are coming to watch them today (Saturday) so they’re really excited about it. It’s just a great environment for track & field this morning (Saturday morning).”
Following the first round of field events, teams were excited to compete inside the Wildcat Dome, coaches were liking the facilities and top performances were being showcased.
The Wayne State College women were led by a trio of event winners. Sophomore Kailee Kellum in the long jump with a winning mark of 17′ 9″; freshman Zoey Holmes scored an event victory crossing the line first in the 400-meter dash in 59.01 seconds as sophomore Callie Kirchner closed the day with a first-place finish in the 1,000-meter run at 3:06.59.
Wildcat men team members were led by three new school records, two NCAA provisional marks and six event wins. Stanton freshman Mitchell Hupp impressed again in the sprints, taking first in the 60-meter dash in 6.86 seconds followed by a new school record and NCAA provisional mark later in the day in the 200-meter dash crossing the tape in 21.61 seconds to break the previous school record of 21.94 set by Clay Kramper in 2018.
The other new school record and NCAA provisional mark came from Nigerian freshman Emmanuel Badejo in the 400-meter dash with a winning time of 47.85 seconds, shattering the previous school record of 49.44 set by Andy Jansen in the 2011 season.
Other event wins were recorded by Quentin Dreyer in the one-mile run at 4:16.43, freshman Ethan Walters won the 600-meter run with a time of 1:22.81 and sophomore Elliott Nottlemann won the high jump clearing 6′ 2″.
The other new school record came from Norfolk junior Daylin Mallory in the shot put, taking second at 53′ 1 ¾” to break the previous school record of 53′ ¼” set by Daniel Elge last season.
Coach Brink added this was the first of many events to be held inside the Wildcat Dome.
“We’ve got the high school meets coming up here this spring, we also have the youth little kids track meet that’s going to be in here,” said Brink. “So it’s kind of giving us a chance to get a sense of the flow of how the people move around for events and stuff like that. It’s going to help us down the road there too to kind of fine tune it and make it even a better event for future meets.”
Other WSC women’s results came from runner-up finishes by freshman Reagan Murphy in the 60-meter hurdles (9.10), Alyssa Folds in the 60-meter dash (8.06) and Jozlyn Barnes in the 800-meter run (2:29.26).
Junior thrower Olivia Schwarzrock recorded a pair of third-place finishes in the weight throw (56′ 2 ½”) and the shot put at 43′ 3 ¾”. Other third place finishes came from Lindsey Kneifl in the long jump (16′ 11 ¼”), Jerika Bakenhus in the high jump (5′ 3″) and Folds in the 200-meter dash (26.65).
In the shot put, senior McKenna Markle was seventh (39′ 2 ¼”) with freshman Chloe Anderson taking eighth at 38′ 8 ¼”. The weight throw saw Reilly Young finish fifth at 52′ 10 ¾”, Hailey Baker sixth at 51′ 7 ¼” with freshman McKinley Grover seventh at 51′ 5 ½”.
Senior Taylor Thorp was fourth in the 600-meter run (1:51.21) and 1,000-meter run (2:36.65) while Olivia Williams took fourth in the 60-meter hurdles (10.01).
Fifth-place finishes came from Kaylea Bruxvoort in the 200-meter dash (27.01) and Jaryn Warecjka in the long jump (16′ ½”).
In the one-mile run, freshman Allie Czapla was fourth (5:29.00), Meghan Cunningham fifth at 5:43.38, Kaitlyn Bloomenrader sixth in a time of 5:49.06 and Madi McKie eighth at 5:53.65.
The 3,000-meter run saw Sydney Escritt finish fifth at 11:07.58 and Madeline Kunz seventh at 11:20.57.
Anna Coffee took sixth in the high jump clearing 5′ 1″ with Lindsey Kneifl eighth in the 60-meter dash finals at 8.30 seconds.
The Wildcat 4 x 400 meter relay team of Holmes, Kaylea Bruxvoort, Kaitlyn Bloomenrader and Murphy came in second place at 4:01.90.
Other Wayne State College men’s top performers were posted by runner-up finishes from Alex Leuenberger in the 400-meter dash (50.20) and Akron Jostand in the 1,000-meter run at 2:36.65.
Third-place finishes were posted by senior Andrew Wyllie in the 800-meter run (1:58.87), Wyatt Nissen in the 200-meter dash (22.08) and Nottlemann in the long jump at 22′ 1 ¾”.
In the 400-meter dash, freshman Alex Razee was third in 50.43 seconds followed by Mitchell Rudie in eighth at 51.78.
Four Wildcats placed in the weight throw with Jaxson Ninete fifth (56′ 9 1/2″), Daniel Elge was sixth at 56′ 8 ¾”, J’Dyn Bullion seventh (52′ 2 ½”) and freshman Braden McGill eighth at 49′ 5 ¼”.
In the shot put, Elge took third (51′ 11″), Ninete seventh at 47′ 9 ¾” and Samuel Zazueta eighth (46′ 11″).
Senior Alex Brandt was fourth in the pole vault clearing 11′ 5 ¾” with Jarrett McQueen sixth at 11′ 5 ¾”.
The 3,000-meter run saw sophomore Brady Franzen finish fifth at 9:08.45 and senior Brandon Mitzel finished sixth in 9:14.86.
Other top finishers for the ‘Cats included freshman Luke Klabenes sixth in the 60-meter dash (7.13), Gannon Walsh sixth in the one-mile run (4:48.25) and Alex Brandt seventh in the 60-meter hurdles (9.15).
The 4 x 400-meter relay quartet of Razee, Madsen, Rudie and Badejo finished first in a time of 3:22.19.
The Wildcat Dome offers the only 300-meter indoor track in the state of Nebraska. Coach Brink mentioned some adjustments were needed to be made for the athletes and coaches as far as splits compared to a 200-meter track.
“But it’s a great facility and once they get going I think we’re going to see some really fast times here,” Brink mentioned. “That’s really what it’s about is trying to get good marks, good performances and good competition.”
The Wayne State College women’s and men’s indoor track & field team will next compete in Brookings, South Dakota back-to-back weekends starting with the SDSU Classic Friday, Feb. 14 – Saturday, Feb. 15.
WSC will also take part in the SDSU Last Chance Invite on Friday, Feb. 21 with the NISC Indoor Championships slated for Feb. 28 – March 1. To qualify for the indoor championships, athletes must be in the top 30 of their event.
