Saturday, April 09, 2005

Valparaiso set four new school records over the weekend at the Miami Invitational in Oxford, Ohio.

As a team, the Crusaders finished in ninth place with 17 points while Ball State won the title with 144.5 points.

Holly Hagen (Hobart, Ind./Hobart H.S.) shattered her own school mark in the hammer throw on Friday night in the evening's only event. Her toss of 166'6" placed her third and was 11'4" better than her previous record set last season.

Emilie Marsicek (Spalding, Mich./Carney-Nadeau H.S.) bettered her own school mark in the shot put as well. Her toss of 43'10" was nearly nine inches better than the mark she produced last week. She finished seventh in the event.

Melanie Wilson (Saint Louis, Mo./Rosati-Kain H.S.) also set a pair of records on the day for the Crusaders. The freshman was eighth in the triple jump with a school best mark of 36'1 ½", 2 ½" better than Fran Browden's 1999 mark. She placed 13th in the long jump with a school record leap of 17 2 ¼" as well. The jump was 2 ¼" better than Karie Dahlgren's 1999 record. Wilson also sixth in the 100m hurdles, crossing the finish line in 15.29 seconds.

Jessica Cherrington (Roseberg, Ore./Umpqua Valley Christian H.S.) was fifth in the javelin with a toss of 124'2", while Marsicek placed tenth with a throw of 113'8".

Also on the track, Jobeth Schmiesing (Mankato, Minn./West H.S.) finished eighth in the 3,000m steeplechase with a time of 11:32.23 while Ashley Billstrom (Hales Corners, Wis./Whitnall H.S.) was two places behind with a time of 11:39.26. Rachel Nelson (Lee's Summit, Mo./Lee's Summit H.S.) was 12th in the 800m run with a time of 2:20.62 while Danielle Nunnelly (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso H.S>) led the way in the 5,000m run with a time of 18:28.69.

Valparaiso will return to action next Friday and Saturday in Terre Haute, Ind. at the Pacesetter Invitational. Friday's action begins at 3:30 p.m.