Pioneers host UW-Platteville Invitational

Platteville, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin - Platteville hosted the UW-Platteville Invitational on Saturday, April 13. Teams in attendance included UW-Stout, UW-Whitewater, UW-Eau Claire, UW-La Crosse, UW-Oshkosh, UW-Stevens Point, UW-River Falls, UW-Parkside, Augustana, Luther, Hope, Lake Forest, Cornell, Edgewood, Dubuque, Wartburg, and Loras. 

The showcase concluding the invitational was the 5,000m races. The Pioneers' senior Katie Wardinski ran a lifetime best time of 17:39.02. Also running a lifetime best of 14:51.53 in the 5,000m was Zach Klokow. This was Klokow's first time running sub-15 minutes in the 5,000m. 

In the 200m dash, sophomores Gwen Orr and Haley Ott ran personal bests. Orr ran 25.93 seconds, breaking 26 seconds for the first time, and took fourth place in a field of 66 athletes. Ott ran 26.72 seconds to improve upon her time ran the past weekend. 

Kayla Schneider took seventh place in the 400m dash with a time of 1:00.91, an outdoor personal best time. Also running the 400m, Katheryn Holter ran 1:01.47 and Ott ran 1:02.43. John Huntley placed seventh in the men's 400m dash, finishing in 50.52 seconds. Running a personal best time, Davy Urke ran 51.09 seconds in the 400m. 

Placing third in the 800m, Johanna Meister ran 2:19.24 and Caitlyn Ifft ran 2:24.59. Zach Lee ran 1:53.89 in the men's 800m to take second place. Nolan Wallenkamp finished in fourth with a time of 1:55.67.

In the men's 1500m, Alex Wittmershaus placed seventh with a lifetime best of 4:13.20. 

Katie Schilling took third place in the women's 100m hurdles, running a time of 15.08 seconds. Junior Charlie Gifford won the men's 110m hurdles with a time of 14.56 seconds, establishing a personal best time.

Matt Hokanson took fourth in the 400m hurdles with a time of 55.47 seconds. Freshman Grady Rielly took seventh place with 57.38, running a personal best time. 

The women's 4x100m relay of Tina Bean, Ott, Chenoa Stuhr, and Orr ran 50.06. The men's 4x100m relay of Gifford, Zach Frei, Paul Rapp, and Alec Burcham took sixth place with 43.12 seconds. 

The men's 4x400m relay of Hokanson, Kyle Buechner, Burcham, and Rapp placed third with a time of 3:18.39. The women's 4x400m relay of Schneider, Schilling, Holter, and Meister ran 4:03.85 for seventh place in a field of 23 teams. 

In the high jump, Noah Steiner cleared 2.05m (6-8.75) to win the men's event. Bryce Bierman placed seventh with a jump of 1.90m (6-2.75).

Winning the women's pole vault, Brittany Ehlen cleared 3.60m (11-9.75). Ehlen's jump places her near the top 20 in the pole vault nationally. Cody Faust vaulted 4.25m (13-11.25) for eighth place. Teammate Greg Vogt, attempting with more misses, took 11th place with the same mark.

Bean contested the long jump and marked a season best jump of 5.00m (16-5). Drew Stanioch long jumped 6.23m (20-5.25). In the triple jump, senior Brian Spaeth took sixth place with 13.50m (44-3.5). Zaria Walker established a personal best jump in the triple jump, marking 10.44m (34-3). 

In women's discus, Rachel Beuthin threw 36.82m (120-10). Beuthin also threw in the hammer throw, marking 43.73m (143-6). Sophomore Murphy Bleymeyer threw 41.87m (137-40) in the hammer throw, a personal best mark. 

In the men's discus, freshman Ben Veverka placed third with a personal best mark of 48.17m (158-0). Alexander Walechka threw for fifth place with 46.96m (154-1). Cole Eastlick was ninth with 44.16m (144-10). Eastlick was 12th in the hammer throw, marking 48.26m (158-4) and Walechka threw a personal best of 44.54m (146-1). 

Jacob Rice settled in a ninth place in the javelin after throwing 45.61m (149-8). 

The Pioneers will travel next to Rock Island, Ill. to compete at Augustana College on Thursday, April 18 and Friday, April 19.