FHSU Athletics
The Fort Hays State track and field teams notched 16 national qualifying marks and 15 event victories across three different states this weekend. The Tigers produced 11 national qualifying performances at the Loper Invite in Kearney, Neb., four at the ESU Relays in Emporia, Kan. and one at the Bryan Clay Invite in Azusa, Calif.
Up next for the Tigers is their lone home meet of the season, with FHSU set to host the Alex Francis Classic on Thursday (April 23) beginning at noon at the FHSU Track & Field Facility.
ESU Relays
Eight pole vaulters traveled to Emporia to compete at the ESU Relays on Thursday (April 16), with four surpassing the national qualifying threshold. Hunter Angove placed second with a top clearance of 17-3.5, sixth-best in Division II this season and tied for second-best at FHSU during the DII era.
Josiah Ball placed fourth in the event with a top clearance of 16-3.5 while Mason Younger was seventh with an outdoor PR of 15-11.75 to also hit the national qualifying mark.
Annabeth Baalmann was second in the women's pole vault after clearing the bar at 13-6.25, also sixth-best in the country this season.
Bryan Clay Invite
Five distance runners traveled to California for the Bryan Clay Invite Thursday through Saturday (April 16-18), with Emily Diercks McCullough posting a national qualifying time of 34:52.18 in the 10,000m run. That time currently ranks 17th in Division II this season.
Taylor Hoskinson ran the 800m in 2:15.53, good for fifth place on the FHSU DII era performance chart.
Farrin Mangelson completed the 5,000m run in 14:29.14, ranking him third at FHSU during the DII era.
Loper Invite
The remainder of the squad competed in Kearney, Neb. at the Loper Invite on Sunday (April 19), with the Tigers collecting 11 national qualifying performances and 15 first-place finishes on the day.
Katie Linenberger won the high jump competition after clearing the bar at 5-8 on her third and final attempt, ranking the freshman ninth in DII this season and sixth at FHSU since 1991.
Emma Slade surpassed the national qualifying threshold in both the discus and the hammer throw, winning the invitational section of the discus with a heave of 156-6 and placing second in the invitational section of the hammer with a top mark of 178-7.
Macy Nachtigal won the javelin throw with a national-qualifying toss of 142-4.
Annabeth Baalmann competed in the pole vault for a second time this weekend, winning the event with a top clearance of 13-1.
Amelia Foster swept the sprint races, finishing in first place in the 100m with a time of 11.94, first in the 200m with a time of 24.53 and first in the 400m with a time of 56.35. The performances rank ninth at FHSU in the 100m, seventh in the 200m and fourth in the 400m. She won a fourth race in the 4x100m relay when she teamed up with Ellie Harper, Hailey Brown and Donna Jackson to post a time of 46.88.
The women's squad ended the day with 10 event victories, rounded out by Reba Mader in the 400m hurdles (1:02.42) and Alonnah Gage in the triple jump (37-0.5).
For the men, Avrey Albright won the 400m with a national qualifying time of 47.42 while helping FHSU to a pair of relay victories. He teamed up with Kenny Fritsch, Nakari Morrical-Palmer and Drew Tolar to win the 4x100m relay with a national qualifying time of 40.51 and ran alongside Mayan Paz, Morrical-Palmer and Tolar in the 4x400m with a first-place time of 3:13.49, also quicker than the national qualifying mark.
Jackson Rumford finished in second place in the javelin throw with a season-best heave of 217-8, ranking the freshman 19th in Division II this season and fourth at FHSU during the DII era.
Jayden Michaelis was first across the line in the 400m hurdles, posting a national-qualifying time of 52.99.
Josiah Ball also competed in the pole vault for the second time in four days, placing first with a national-qualifying height of 16-3.25.