The collegiate track season is split into two separate seasons, the indoor and the outdoor. This is due to weather conditions as well as providing further opportunities for athletes to compete. Both seasons have similar but different events, with different distances of events to account for the indoor difference. Nonetheless, our V-Hawks found tremendous success in the many events in which they competed.
Early in the season, the V-Hawks competed in Minneapolis, being led by junior Ben Olson who marked a fifth-place finish in the 400m dash. Not long after, the V-Hawks traveled to Ripon college to compete in the Ripon Winter Open. Sophomore Avin Smith led the V-Hawks with the only first place finish, bringing home the gold in the 60m hurdle event.
After winter break, the V-Hawks got right back to work, competing in the Ole Opener at St. Olaf college on January 18. At this meet, Avin Smith let Viterbo again with a time of 8.77 giving him a third-place finish in 60m hurdles. This event marked the first time first-year Bryson Fischer competed for the V-Hawks. He tallied a fourth-place finish in pole vault with a height of 12’7”.
In their first Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) meet, the V-Hawks finished fifth of eight teams scoring a total of 33.5 points. Ben Olson and Avin Smith gained a lot of points for the team this meet. Olson placed second in the heptathlon while Smith placed third in his signature event, the 60m hurdles.
To wrap up the spring season, the V-Hawks competed in the NAIA Indoor Track and Field Championships in Gainesville, Florida. Two of our very own athletes earned All American honors in pole vault. Emma Johnson placed sixth, clearing a height of 12’5.5”, while Olivia Wingo followed up closely with an eighth-place finish at 12”1.5’. Also competing at nationals, Tori Gerber placed 11th in the 800m dash, with a time of 2:17.76, her own personal record. Finally, first-year Avery Poppe placed 30th in long jump with a mark of 17’2”.
The V-Hawks look to open their outdoor track and field March 27 at Washington University in St. Louis.
