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ALLENDALE/GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Calvin men's track and field team competed in two events on Friday, with two runners breaking Calvin indoor records at the GVSU Big Meet at Grand Valley State University, while a larger group competed at the WHAC vs. MIAA Challenge hosted by Aquinas College.

GVSU Big Meet (Results)

At GVSU, Brandan Knepper (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Mechanicsburg) broke a new Calvin record in the 5000 meters with a time of 14:13.74. That time broke the previous mark of 14:20.38 set by Nick Kramer in 2012, and was good for the eighth-best time in NCAA Division III this indoor season. The time also placed Knepper seventh at the meet in the fastest heat against strong competition from across different levels of NCAA and NAIA.

Thaine Nederveld (Columbus, Ohio/Columbus Alternative) broke his own school indoor record in the 3000 meters with a time of 8:17.61, besting his previous mark of 8:20.09 set earlier this season. Nederveld's finished 14th at the event, and placed him 23rd among NCAA Division III runners this season.

In the morning events, William Hofmann (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich./Grosse Pointe North) finished strong in his 5000 meters heat to take first place with a time of 14:46.94, with Luke Witvliet (Grandville, Mich./Grandille Christian) taking 12th in that heat in a time of 14:54.21.

WHAC vs. MIAA Challenge (Results) 

A large group of Calvin athletes participated in the WHAC vs. MIAA Challenge on Friday night hosted by Aquinas College, with a number of top 10 finishes taking place across the running and field events. 

Connor Lubberts (Jenison, Mich./Jenison) was the top finisher for Calvin on the track with a third place finish in the 400 meters in a time of 52.71. Carter Hammond (Caledonia, Mich./Caledonia) followed him in ninth place in that event in a time of 54.44.

Hayden Verhill (Pittsburgh, Pa./Trinity Christian) finished eighth in the one mile (4:40.87), while Andrew Huyser (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) took ninth in the 800 meters (2:10.49). Verhill and Huyser also joined teammates Caleb Stout (Grand Rapids, Mich./The Potters School) and Colin Jambekar (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich./Grosse Pointe North) in the 4 x 400 meter relay, where they took seventh in a time of 3:49.86.

In the field events, Isaac Jonker (Denver, Colo./Denver Christian) took third in the weight throw with a top throw of 16.62 meters, while Misael Martinez Vasquez (Chicago Hope Academy) finished seventh (14.32 meters). Martinez Vasquez also took sixth in the shot put (13.53 meters), with James Viel (Holland, Mich./Holland Christian) taking eighth (13.40) in that event.

John White (Midland, Mich./Midland) finished seventh in the long jump (6.32 meters), while Wilson Goodpaster (Hamilton, Mich./Hamilton) took seventh in the pole vault (3.65 meters).

Calvin finished the day with 26 total points to finish eighth in the team competition.

COACH'S COMMENT: "It was a big day for us both on the track and the field," Calvin head track and field coach Adam Haldorson said. "At the GVSU big meets we had two school records broken and a couple marks ranking Calvin athletes in the top 10 nationally. Brandan Knepper broke the school record for the indoor 5000m by 7 seconds with his 14:13.74 performance, that also currently ranks him as the #8 athlete in NCAA Div.III! Shortly after Thaine Nederveld broke his own school record by 3 seconds in the men's 3000m finishing with a 8:17.61. For the women Siena Ruiter-Diaz shot up to #22 nationally in the 5000m and Jenna Allman moved up to #8 nationally in the 3000m with the great time of 9:45.17.
 
"At the WHAC vs. MIAA meet hosted by Aquinas we saw some big performances as well! Katelyn DeJonge retook the MIAA lead in the women's triple jump with a 10.39m. Karen Behket on her top 5 MIAA marks in the Shot Put and Weight Throw. All in all, it was a really good day for the Calvin Track and Field team. We should have some more fun tomorrow with both a Men's and Women's DMR teams at GVSU."  

NEXT UP: Calvin track and field will return to action tomorrow (Saturday, February 11) for day two of the GVSU Big Meet starting at 10:00 AM.