Allendale, Michigan - The women's track & field team had to play switcheroo with the schedule makers as Aquinas flip-flopped dates to compete yesterday instead of on Saturday. The impending forecast for tomorrow afternoon had the host Lakers make the switch and allowed the student-athletes an opportunity to compete with next to perfect conditions. The Saints saw many personal and seasonal bests and saw one more national qualifying mark get established.
Kaydence Richardson would play the lead role for the Saints on Thursday afternoon. The sophomore from Eaton Rapids would hit the automatic qualifier in the hammer throw and move up to #4 on the Saints All-Time List. Kaydence's toss of 167' 2" placed her 5th in the meet and moved her ahead of Aquinas greats, Rachel Bartels and Lindsey Karpowicz. She also would place fifth in the shot put with a distance of 39' 9.75".
Rebecca Beltran also had a big day for the Aquinas throwers as she hit seasonal bests in both the discus (129' 10") and the shot put (38' 8.75).
Kaylee Diamond would win the high jump (5' 7") and place second in long jump (18' 2.25), while
Shaily Baynes won the pole vault competition with a height of 11' 8".
On the track the Saints were led by a trio of strong efforts in the women's 800 meters.
Lauren Wooer (2:16.31),
Cadence Schultz (2:21.56), and
Ella Koons (2:22.36) all posted seasonal bests, while
Anna Fedewa (18:29.11) and
Mallory Bowker (18:54.10) would post lifetime bests in the 5000 meters.
Nyandeng Anyang would also establish a career best as she finished in 16.29 in the 100 meter hurdles.
Aquinas will return to action next week as the Saints will compete at the WHAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships hosted by Indiana Tech in Fort Wayne.
