Spartans Claim Two Top-Five Team Finishes at Outdoor Track, Field HCAC Championship
Kody Smith
Manchester University’s track and field program concluded the 2018 Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship outdoor meet with two top five finishes on Friday and Saturday, April 27 and 28. The women’s team placed second in the conference, scoring 123 points. The second-place finish snapped a three-year first place finish at the conference championship for the Lady Spartans, but the black and gold battled valiantly to place in the top three in all of the HCAC. On the men’s side, the Spartans finished in fourth place as a team following a 74-point performance.
Head Throws Coach Kaylea Jachno and company provided plenty of spark that lit the fire under the 123-point team performance, thanks-in-large part to a history-making performance by senior Jacey Cauhorn. The native of Kendallville, Indiana secured the title in the discus throw, launching a distance of 42.57 meters. The impressive toss by Cauhorn is the second furthest recorded discus distance in the program’s history at Manchester. First year Bailey Sewell claimed fourth in the category, tossing the disc 37.43 meters.
In women’s shotput, junior Laina Boggs claimed second place overall, throwing a distance of 11.96 meters. A pair of Spartans broke the top five mark in the category as well, with Cauhorn placing fourth with a distance of 11.54 meters, and sophomore Katlyn Kennedy throwing a distance of 11.50 meters, good enough for a fifth place finish. Senior Kara Breuckman led a pack of three Spartans to a top five finish in the hammer throw, hurling the hammer 46.75 meters to finish in second place in the category. Sophomore Austin Jones slid into the fourth position with a toss of 45.49 meters, while Cauhorn claimed fifth after a 44.53 meter throw. Boggs and Breuckman finished third and fourth respectively in the javelin throw, throwing distances of 34.96 meters and 34.45 meters.
On the track, sophomore Hannah Wappes continued her 2018 dominance. The Columbia City native secured victories in the 800 (2:16.23) and the 1500 (4:46.96) meter runs. The 800 meter performance is now the second fastest recorded time in school history, and a personal best for the sophomore. Junior Dasia Beck missed a first place finish in the 100-meter run by just nine-hundredths of a second, as her time of 13.20 secured a second place finish.
The men’s team saw the junior duo of Harrison Hollis and Austin Coughlin place fourth and fifth in the 100-meter dash. Hollis recorded a time of 11.05 to claim fourth, while Coughlin rounded out the top five with an 11.14 second performance. First year Landon Balch put in the performance of a lifetime in the high jump, securing first place after a jump of 1.97 meters. This was MU’s first individual high jump victory since 2012. First year Nathan Weaver took home a second place individual finish in the 110-meter hurdles, hustling for a time of 16.44 seconds.
Just 0.1 meters separated sophomore Austin Roberts and the first place spot in the men’s long jump. Roberts launched himself to a distance of 6.72 meters, a distance that would place him in second place in the category.
Manchester University will conclude the 2018 Outdoor Track and Field season at Indiana University on Saturday, May 5. The home of the Hoosiers will host the Spartans for the Billy Hayes Invitational. Events are scheduled to kick off at 10 A.M.