Seven school records broken for men’s and women’s track and field teams at MIAA Field Day

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Seven school records were broken, and the Olivet College men's and women's track & field teams finished sixth and seventh at the 2017 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Field Day, hosted by Calvin College. The men's team had 59 total points, while the women had 41 points.

FOR THE MEN

• The 59 points scored is the third-most in school history at the MIAA Field Day. The top two point totals are 74 in 1983 and 73 in 1982.
• Senior Connor Bauserman won MIAA title in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 3:56.21. The win lands him a spot on the 2017 All-MIAA team.
• Junior Bruce Baker placed third in the 5,000-meter run with a time of 15:40.44.
• Junior Mitchell Smith notched a third-place finish in the discus with a 137 feet, 10 inch toss for the Comets' top performance in the field events.
• Smith and sophomore Kory Slaby finished 5-6 in the hammer throw. Smith's throw of 145 feet, 5 inches broke the school record, while Slaby had a season-best throw of 139 feet.
• Freshman Noah Bailey was sixth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 50.93 seconds. He also had the seventh-best mark in the triple jump at 41 feet, 10-1/2 inches.
• Both Comet relays placed sixth. The 4x100-meter relay team of Slaby, freshman Seth Foster, junior Miquel Marin and sophomore Nicholas Yeck had a time of 46.84 seconds. The 4x400-meter relay team of Bailey, Bauserman, Marin and senior Blake Wilson finished in 3:34.50.

FOR THE WOMEN

• Junior Michaela Kaliniak finished third in the pole vault, clearing the bar at a school-record mark of 10 feet, 6 inches.
• Junior Isabelle Leon broke the school record in the 800-meter run with a fourth-place time of 2:20.51.
• Sophomore Kimberly Barber lowered her school record in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes. She placed fourth in the 200 at 26.21 seconds and fifth in the 100 at 12.76 seconds. Barber also scored seventh-place points in the triple jump with a 33 feet, 11-1/4 inches.
• Senior Brianna Wiles scored eighth-place points in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:02.90.
• Junior Nicole Zerfas ran the 3,000-meter steeplechase for the first time, and completed the race in a school-record time of 12:31.05.
• The 4x400-meter relay team of Barber, Leon, Zerfas and Wiles set a school record with a fourth-place time of 4:10.34.
• The 4x100-meter relay team of Barber, Wiles, Leon and Kaliniak posted a time of 52.56 seconds to finish in sixth-place

QUOTE FROM OLIVET HEAD COACH KAREN LUTZKE

• "Overall, we had a very solid meet with a lot of outstanding performances. I am happy that we were able to set seven new school records." 

UP NEXT

• Bauserman will likely run in a couple last-chance meets in hopes of improving his time in the 800-meter run for the opportunity to qualify for the 2017 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which will take place May 25-27 at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.