Three individual victories led Valparaiso to a fourth-place finish at the Chicagoland Championships Friday evening in Romeoville, Ill.

The Crusaders dominated the 3,000m run, as three Valpo runners finished in the top five. Danielle Nunnelly (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso H.S.) led the pack, winning the race in a time of 9:47.50, the second-fastest mark in Crusader history.

Laura Rolf (Rochester, Mich./Lutheran Northwest H.S.) finished in the runner-up position, crossing the line in 10:24.15, while Renae Swift (Valparaiso, Ind./Valparaiso H.S.) notched a fifth-place finish with a time of 10:53.59.

Ashley Billstrom (Hales Corners, Wis./Whitnall H.S.) brought home top honors in the mile run, breaking the tape in 5:14.83. Amanda Body (Harlan, Ky./Harlan H.S.) registered the other Crusader win, capturing the triple jump with a leap of 17'9 ½", the second-best effort all-time at Valpo.

Body also finished third in the triple jump, leaping 36'7 ¾", edging out teammate Melanie Wilson (Saint Louis, Mo./Rosati-Kain H.S.), whose jump of 36'2 ¼" was good for fourth place.

Wilson added a third-place finish in the 200m dash, crossing the line in 26.57, while Maggie Zellner (Downers Grove, Ill./Benet Academy) notched two top-fives. She placed fourth in the 200m dash with a time of 26.71 seconds, and followed with a fifth place, running the 55m hurdles in 8.86 seconds.

The Crusaders tallied 76 points on the evening, good for fourth out of the 15 participating teams. Northern Illinois took home top team honors with 154 points.

Valparaiso returns to the track Sunday, February 26 in Bloomington, Ill. on the first day of action at the Mid-Continent Conference Indoor Championships.