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N.D.(VCSUVikings.com) – Valley City State junior Megan Johnson set a new school record and punched her ticket to nationals on Friday as the Valley City State track & field team competed at the Dickinson State Blue Hawk Games.
Johnson recorded a leap of 5.57 meters (18 feet, 3.25 inches) in the women’s long jump, breaking the old VCSU record set by Danielle Olson (5.47 meters/17 feet, 11.5 inches) in 1998. Johnson’s mark also meets the NAIA National Qualifying ‘B’ Standard, earning her a spot at the NAIA National Championships in May.
Johnson is the third Viking to qualify for nationals, joining Seri Geisler (women’s shot put, javelin) and Mackenzie Huber (women’s shot put).
Johnson placed third in both the long jump and triple jump on Friday, finishing behind only a pair of jumpers from the University of Mary. Those were two of 13 Top 5 finishes the Vikings had on the day.
Mackenzie Huber brought home a meet championship in the women’s shot put with her best throw of 12.53 meters. It it Huber’s first individual title of the season.
Marilyn Quintero placed third in both the discus and hammer throw, and Keauna Hansen was second in the 400-meter dash. Also on the women’s side, Macy Dimler was second in the 400 hurdles and fifth in the 100 hurdles, and Kaitlyn Connor placed fourth in triple jump and fifth in long jump.
On the men’s side, Lenzel Koskela ran a career-best time of 50.39 seconds in the 400 meter dash, placing second by just six one-hundredths of a second. Dennis Gonzales took fourth place in the men’s 5000 meter run and the VCSU men’s 4×100 relay team placed third. Joshua Lawyer had a strong double with a sixth in shot put and seventh in discus.
“Another windy meet day and another showing of strong performances from this talented collection of student-athletes,” said VCSU head coach Chris Johnson. “Megan Johnson was a force to be reckoned with and certainly earned her trip to nationals along with a new school record. We’re excited to have three women qualified in four events for the meet thus far and hope to continue to add to our crew heading to Alabama in May. Overall, a lot to be proud of from this group of hard-working individuals.”
Up next: Valley City State will compete in the Lyle Hokanson Classic on Saturday, April 22 in Fargo.
Top 10 Performances
– Keauna Hansen (2nd – Women’s 400 M. Dash)
– Macy Dimler (5th – Women’s 100 M. Hurdles, 2nd – Women’s 400 M. Hurdles)
– Megan Johnson (3rd – Women’s Long Jump, 3rd – Women’s Triple Jump)
– Kaitlin Connor (5th – Women’s Long Jump, 4th – Women’s Triple Jump)
– Tabitha Miller (8th – Women’s Long Jump)
– Mackenzie Huber (1st – Women’s Shot Put)
– Marilyn Quintero (3rd – Women’s Discus Throw, 3rd – Women’s Hammer Throw)
– Isaiah Tivis (6th – Men’s 100 M. Dash, 6th – Men’s 200 M. Dash)
– Lenzel Koskela (2nd – Men’s 400 M. Dash)
– Niklas Ernst (7th – Men’s 400 M. Dash)
– Dennis Gonzalez (4th – Men’s 5000 M. Run)
– Men’s 4×100 M. Relay – 3rd
– Brady Morden – (9th – Men’s Long Jump)
– Joshua Lawyer (6th – Men’s Shot Put, 7th – Men’s Discus)
Collegiate Career/Yearly/Outdoor Season Bests
– Macy Dimler (Women’s 100 M. Hurdles – Collegiate Career Best)
– Megan Johnson (Women’s Long Jump – Collegiate Career Best, New Outdoor School Record, Women’s Triple Jump – Collegiate Career Best, #2 All Time Outdoors in School History)
– Kaitlin Connor (Women’s Long Jump – Collegiate Career Best, Women’s Triple Jump – Collegiate Career Best)
– Tabitha Miller (Women’s Long Jump – Collegiate Career Best)
– Brady Morden (Men’s 200 M. Dash – Collegiate Career Best, Men’s Long Jump – Collegiate Career Best)
– Lenzel Koskela (Men’s 400 M. Dash – Collegiate Career Best)
– Jaylon Sibley (Men’s Long Jump – Collegiate Career Best, Men’s Triple Jump – Collegiate Career Best)
– Joshua Lawyer (Men’s Shot Put – Collegiate Career Best)