Midland Sets Two School Records in Strong Weekend Showing

ORANGE CITY, Iowa / KEARNEY, Neb. — Midland University competed at a pair of meets over the weekend, opening at the Red Raider Open in Orange City, Iowa, before turning in a record-breaking performance at the Loper Invitational in Kearney, Nebraska.

At the Red Raider Open, hosted by Northwestern, the Warriors were part of a 16-team field that included several Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) programs. Midland saw multiple strong performances in the heptathlon, led by Shyanne Pipkin. She placed second in the high jump (1.49 meters), third in the shot put (9.74 meters), eighth in the 100-meter hurdles (16.98 seconds), and eighth in the javelin (23.56 meters), while also adding a ninth-place finish in the long jump (4.31 meters).

In other field events, Krista Hardy cleared 1.57 meters to finish third in the high jump, while Meike Lahuis placed ninth at 1.47 meters. Lahuis also added a third-place finish in the 400-meter dash, crossing the line in 1:05.40.

"We started well, but as the conditions deteriorated, it was hard to get going," said head coach Daniel Gerber.

Midland followed with a strong showing at the Loper Invitational, hosted by Nebraska-Kearney, where the Warriors competed against eight regional programs and produced two school records.

The 4x100-meter relay team of Caelianna Risler, Tanja Zubrod, Aurora Griffin, and Amber van Beugen placed second with a time of 47.67, breaking a program record that had stood since 1986. In distance events, Maite Farin won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 12:19.71, setting a new school record, while Danika Leuenberger finished fourth in 13:39.07.

Vanessa Rice added a third-place finish in the triple jump (10.67 meters), and Sara Diew recorded a pair of fifth-place finishes in the discus (44.97 meters) and hammer throw (51.31 meters).

On the track, Midland had three top-10 finishers in the 100-meter dash, led by van Beugen in sixth (12.40), followed by Maria Sander in eighth (12.46) and Risler in 10th (12.56). Zubrod placed second in the 200-meter dash (24.69), while Griffin finished fifth (25.84).

The Warriors also claimed a win in the 4x400-meter relay, as Griffin, Zubrod, Sander, and Rianna Greene combined for a time of 4:05.98.

"We had two school records broken to start the meet, and that carried through the rest of the day," Gerber said. "Breaking the record in the 4x100 relay was especially cool to see, since that record was set in 1986."

Midland will next compete at the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, April 22-25, while select athletes will also travel to Lincoln, Nebraska, for the Prairie Wolf Outdoor Invite on April 23.