The Valparaiso University track & field teams competed in both the Eastern Illinois Big Blue Meet and the Benedictine Invitational on Friday. Senior Will Maidment (Woodstock, Ill./Woodstock) won the high jump at Benedictine to pace the Valpo men, while Lauren Mikolajczak (Bloomingdale, Ill./Montini Catholic) climbed to second in program history in the hammer throw for the women. In addition, Dominic Paoletti (Monroe, Mich./Monroe St. Mary) moved up in the program record book in the outdoor 5,000-meter run and T.J. Weinzimmer (Northbrook, Ill./Glenbrook North) cracked the all-time Top-5 in the outdoor triple jump on a day filled with personal bests for Valpo student-athletes.

How It Happened - Benedictine

• Maidment took home a victory in the high jump posting a height of 1.95m (6-4.75). Teammates Billy Morinville and David Engstrom (Buffalo Grove, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson) helped Valpo own three of the top-six spots in that event by placing fourth and sixth, respectively.
• Mikolajczak led the women by throwing for a distance of 54.20m (177-10) in the hammer event to place second overall. In the process, she delivered the second-best hammer throw in program history behind Sarah Drozdowski’s 2015 record of 187-9. Mikolaczak climbed to second in program history with her new PR, usurping Holly Hagen’s 2005 mark of 177-0. Michelle Pierce (Indianapolis, Ind./Heritage Christian) added a sixth-place finish in the event with a distance of 43.05m.
• Weinzimmer finished third in the triple jump, covering a distance of 13.95m (45-9.25). That mark outdid Steve Schubert’s 45-9 from 2010 and 2011 for a spot in Valpo’s outdoor all-time Top 5. After the outdoor PR on Saturday, Weinzimmer now owns a spot in the program record book for both indoor and outdoor triple jump.
• Eddie Juszczak (Lowell, Ind./Lowell) placed second in the hammer throw with a distance of 50.48m (165-7), setting a PR. Teammate Alek Trafton (Lockport, Ill./Lockport) recorded a distance of 49.58 to finish fourth overall.
• Trafton also recorded a third-place finish in the discus throwing for a distance of 41.36m (135-8) to lead a pair of top-5 finishers for Valpo with Juszczak coming in fourth at 40.94 (134-4).
• Fifth-year senior Emanuel Daggett (Chicago, Ill./Gavit) placed fourth overall in the 400m clocking a 49.56, an outdoor PR in that event. He also had an outdoor best in the 200m, leading the team with a seventh-place finish at 22.54.
• Jared Humphrey (Hobart,Ind./Andrean) had a fourth-place finish in the 400 hurdles at 58.13, establishing a personal best.  
• Hayley Krulik (Crown Point, Ind./Crown Point) added a top-10 finish in the discus with a seventh-place finish, throwing 35.91m. Freshman Devyn Miller (Mishawaka, Ind./Mishawaka) threw for 35.07m to place eighth overall as Valpo had two in the Top 10 and three in the top 11 in the discus event.
• Tyler Howard (Schenectady, N.Y./Guilderland) sprinted the 400m in 1:02.12 to place eighth in the event.
• Peyton Weber’s (Germantown, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran) long jump distance of 4.73m (15-6.25) was good enough to place 10^th overall, notching a top-10 finish as a rookie.
• The men finished fourth overall at the event with 70 points.

How It Happened – Big Blue

• Paoletti had the highest finish for the men in the 5000m run as the senior clocked a 14:43.40. He advanced to third in program history, passing Dave Brady’s 1972 time of 14:47.1. The new PR for Paoletti was Valpo’s best time in that event since 2003.
• Ignacio Veloz Bonilla (San Juan, P.R.) recorded a fifth-place finish in the 1500m run crossing the finish line in 3:58.08.
• Brady Southern (Fishers, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern) finished eighth in the 3000m steeple with a time of 10:53.39. Mormin Mirza (South Bend, Ind./South Bend Adams) followed with a ninth-place finish, clocking a 12:15.79.
• Claire Kovarik (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove) finished second in the 3000m steeple, clocking a 13:57.73.

Up Next 

Valpo will return to action on Friday, April 16 as both the men’s and women’s teams will compete in the Gibson Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind.