NORTHFIELD, Minn. - This weekend Bethany sent the men's and women's track and field team to compete in the Carleton Relays at Carleton College. With near perfect weather, the team had another near perfect day competing on both the track and the field.
 
Making a name for herself this weekend, Freshman Mariah Berthiaume had a huge day. Starting off in the Javelin, Mariah set a personal record with a throw of 87-2 (26.58m). This throw was 5.5m further than her throw the previous week. "Seeing her improve this much after one week of technique work, just shows how much potential this kid has," stated Head Coach Michael Dunn. Mariah next competed in the 4x100m relay, where she helped her team run the 4th fastest time in school history (comprised of a team of two sophomores and two freshman)! Mariah finished her day off with the 400m dash, where she found herself running another personal record (69.40). This 400m time places her 9th on the all-time list. "We are starting to see Mariah really become a mid-distance/sprinter and with a bit more practice she will begin to surprise herself in the longer sprinting events!"
 
Sophomore Kayla Norris put forth a fantastic effort today. Racing in the 400m dash, Kayla ran her first ever sub 70 second 400m dash (68.54). This time was good enough to put her number eight on the all-time list. "I am so proud of Kayla for being so patient with her training. It can get frustrating when not seeing results and this weekend she was able to prove to herself that she is improving greatly."
 
In the distance events, Katie Farquhar had a huge personal record in the 12.5 lap 5000m run (21:31.13). This time puts her third on the all-time list. "Katie stayed focused throughout the entirety of the race and really looked comfortable with her pace. She is starting to believe in her potential and that can be a scary thing for her competitors, as I know she has only scratched the surface of what is to come with her future in distance running."
 
On the men's side, freshman Donald Henderson Jr.. had multiple stellar performances. With his day starting in the 4x100m relay, Henderson Jr. led the team of Noah Larson, Brett LaBore, and Luke Hahn to a school record. "This team had a great session of handoffson Friday and it paid off today on the track, they truly looked flawless." Donald finished his day off in the 200m where he set a school record with a run of 23.68. "Donald pushes himself to some incredible accomplishments and if we can be more efficient with his mechanics and starts, he will be capable of running with nearly anyone."
 
Freshman Tristan Kroll competed in two difficult track events and previously to today he had never competed in either. Tristan started his day competing in the 1500m race. Here, he paced himself very well and was able to win his section. By running the 11th fastest time in school history (4:35.82), Tristan proves that mid-distance and distance are two things he can be very good at. "Tristan could not have run a smarter race today, he sat on the shoulder of his competitors until the last lap and blew by him with a lot left. I am looking forward to seeing Tristan build off of this race." Tristan finished his day running the 400m Hurdles for the first time in his life (69.78). "To compete in both the 1500m and the 400m Hurdles in the same day, it requires a lot of endurance and speed. Tristan has proved that with a little more work he can do both."
 
The performances across the board this weekend may be the best this team has ever seen in the history of the program. Stefan Prince ran his first ever open 800m and in doing so, the 3rd fastest 800m time in school history (2:02.43). Anna Lieske set a school record in the Pole Vault (8-2.5), after taking two weeks off in the event. Josh Jablon threw a school record mark of 135-8 (41.36) in the hammer throw. Lindsey Stewart, also threw a school record in the hammer throw, measuring 117-8 (35.86m). Lydia Hildebrandt continued to impress on the track, running a school record 400m with a time of 61.13 (breaking the previous record by over 2 seconds). The list goes on with student-athletes personal records and I couldn't be more proud of this team.
 
The Bethany men's track and field team will compete at Macalester on Thursday, April 28th and the women's team will compete at Gustavus Adolphus on Saturday, April 30th. Bethany will also send down six men and four women to Simpson to compete on Friday, April 29th. Finally, for the first time in school history Bethany will be having athletes compete at the prestigious Drake Relays. Two Sprint Medley Relays (one men's and one women's) qualified earlier this season and will represent the school on Saturday, April 30th.