Warriors Compete Across Four States in Busy Weekend

FREMONT, Neb. – Midland University had a busy weekend on the track and in the field, with athletes competing at four different meets in four states: the Friends Spring Invitational in Wichita, Kansas; the Concordia Outdoor Invite in Seward, Nebraska; the USD Early Bird in Vermillion, South Dakota; and the Triton Invitational in San Diego, California. The Warriors put together strong performances across all events, securing multiple top-10 finishes, a national qualifying mark, and a historic 1500m time.

At the Friends Spring Invitational in Wichita, Kansas, the Warriors had standout results in the sprints and jumps. Kenya Ford finished 4th in the 200m with a time of 22.42, while Jameson Painter took 9th in the same event at 23.14. Chris Medlock placed 6th in the 400m with a time of 51.15, and Evan Shepard finished 10th in the 110m hurdles with a time of 15.48. In the jumps, Robert Atwater had an exceptional day, winning the long jump with a leap of 7.59m, hitting the NAIA 'A' standard. Atwater also placed 2nd in the pole vault with a clearance of 4.65m and 4th in the triple jump at 14.10m. Garrett Guindon finished 7th in the triple jump with a mark of 13.92m, while Kenya Ford placed 8th in the same event with a jump of 13.59m. In the high jump, Hudson McCafferty and Jonah Martinez both cleared 1.80m, tying for 8th place.

At the Concordia Outdoor Invite in Seward, Nebraska, Midland's throwers made a strong impact. Jase Voorhees finished 4th in the discus with a throw of 42.89m and 10th in the javelin with a mark of 43.83m. Josiah Meyer placed 7th in the javelin with a throw of 47.66m, and Nate Osness finished 7th in the shot put with a mark of 13.33m.

In Vermillion, South Dakota, at the USD Early Bird, the Warriors had notable performances in the distance events. Lucas Hjortkjaer ran a 3:55.80 to place 7th in the 1500m. Kenicious Limo recorded a 3rd-place finish in the 10,000m with a time of 31:32.38, while Jonathan Mahoney (8th – 33:11.70) and Felix Grave (10th – 35:48.11) also competed in the event.

Finally, at the Triton Invitational in San Diego, California, Henri Stoeckermann made history in the 1500m, running a 3:55.19 to place 9th. His time ranks as the 5th-fastest in Midland program history. Stoeckermann was in San Diego to accept the A.O. Duer Award at the NAIA National Convention.

Midland will see its team come together next week at the South Dakota Challenge. The one-day meet is scheduled for Saturday, April 12 in Vermillion, S.D.