Grand Rapids, MI - The Grace Christian University track & field teams had a solid night on Friday at Aquinas College for the "John Flaminio Classic". The Tigers faced off against host Aquinas College, as well as Siena Heights, Cleary University, and Southwestern Michigan Community College and rose to the occasion.

Leading up to the meet last week, the coaching staff focused on reminding their athletes that meets should be thought of as a celebration of all the work they put in throughout the week and are an opportunity to prove that they belong against the best competition. The team was clearly listening and stepped up big on Friday night. 

Continuing an exciting season, freshman Aidan Gansert (Fort Wayne, IN) yet again broke his own school record, eclipsing the 12m mark (12.06m), and inching tantalizingly closer to the NCCAA automatic qualifying distance of 12.80m. Gansert is currently ranked 17th in the nation for shot put with Friday's 5th place overall effort. 

Junior Ben Bird (Allendale, MI) had a huge race in the men's mile, finishing in 3rd place for his race after running in a tight pack with the leaders for the entire distance.  Although the race itself did not dictate a new personal best time for Bird, he ran a smart and competitive race where he truly fought for the victory, ultimately getting out sprinted in the final lap. 

Senior Kent Herring, in preparation for the heptathlon at the NCCAA indoor national championships next month, competed in three events on Friday - high jump, the 60m hurdles, and long jump. High jump and the hurdles are events of improvement for Herring so he chose this opportunity to seek increased confidence. His resulting time of 11.04 seconds in the 60m hurdles was a lifetime personal record and places him second all-time in school history for the event. Herring then went on to set a new indoor personal record in long jump of 5.45m, which also ties his best mark in outdoor track last season. Ultimately, Herring placed 4th overall in long jump and 3rd overall in hurdles on Friday. 

Nationally, Herring is currently ranked 4th in the country for the men's heptathlon. 

On the women's side, senior Jocelyn Mann (Buchanan, MI) set a new performance record in shot put with a toss of 7.25m, placing her 3rd all-time indoor for Grace.  She also scored her first ever collegiate point with her effort at Friday's competition. 

Current Grace Track & Field Athletes Ranked in the Top 50 Nationally:

• 60m hurdles - Kent Herring (22nd)

• 400m - Kent Herring (31st)

• Mile - Kristina Brandenburg (40th)

• 3k - Sarena Overbeek (25th), Ben Bird (43rd)

• High Jump - Kent Herring (22nd)

• Long Jump - Kent Herring (39th)

• Shot Put - Aidan Gansert (17th), Kent Herring (50th)

• Heptathlon - Kent Herring (4th)

Next up for the track & field squads is the "Wide Track Classic" at Hillsdale College on Saturday (Jan. 27). With only two more regular season indoor meets prior to the NCCAA indoor national championships on February 9-10, the Tigers will be looking to continue the growth they've seen so far this season against tough competition and bigger schools in the coming weeks.