Columbia, SC - The Grace Christian University track & field teams traveled down to South Carolina this past week to compete in the NCCAA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships, hosted at Columbia International University. The three-day meet featured the multi events (decathlon/heptathlon) on Wednesday-Thursday last week, with preliminary sprinting events, some field events, and the 10k on Thursday, with all other events on Friday.
The Tigers sent 7 athletes down to Nationals this year to compete in the decathlon, 3k steeplechase, 400m, 100m, pole vault, shot put, and the 4 x 400m relay.
Meet Highlights:
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Senior Kent Herring (Evart, MI) left a lasting legacy at Grace as a cross country and track athlete. In his final meet for the Tigers, Herring broke his own school record in the men's decathlon with 5 new personal records throughout the meet. He set new personal best marks in the 100m dash (12.28s), shot put (9.35m), high jump (1.56m), 110m high hurdles (19.71) and the 400m dash (54.65s). His time in the 400m would have broken his open 400m race school record, which is even more impressive when you realize he had competed in four different events right before running his 54.65s time. Herring finished the decathlon with 4,425 points and placed 9th in the nation for the event.
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The men's 4 x 400m relay team had to call upon their alternate runner to race after Austin Engel pulled a hamstring during pole vault warm ups. Senior Ben Bird (Allendale, MI) was not scheduled to compete at Nationals, but answered the call to step up for his team. As a result, the team of Kent Herring, Jude Vargo, Ian Hinkle, and Ben Bird ran the 3rd fastest relay time in school history (3:58.33) and finished 2nd in their race.
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Freshman Ian Hinkle (Grand Ledge, MI) ran a competitive 3k steeplechase for the Tigers, despite battling a cold and losing his voice throughout the week. Hinkle placed 15th nationally with a time of 11:02.52.
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Freshman Kaylee Morris (Mancelona, MI) found herself in a highly competitive field of 100m dash competitors and willed herself to a 21st place finish in a time of 13.97s. Morris has been nursing a nagging injury for most of the outdoor season and showed resiliency and heart in every race to continue to find success at each meet.
