RESULTS
ALMA, Mich – A strong one-two punch helped lift the Calvin men's indoor track and field team into an early lead in the team standings of the MIAA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Competing in the first MIAA combined events competition, junior
Zach Van Baren (Hudsonville, Mich./Covenant Christian HS) claimed a league title in the heptathlon Tuesday afternoon at Alma College while junior teammate
Bob Horton (Rockford, Mich./Rockford HS) was fourth.
Van Baren amassed a school-record 4,878 points in the seven-event competition while Horton was fourth with a career-high 4,123 point total.
The pair of top-eight finishes gives Calvin an early total of 15 points, two ahead of rival Hope in the team standings. The heptathlon event is part of the final MIAA Indoor Track and Field Championships meet with the bulk of the competition set for next Friday and Saturday at Trine University.
Van Baren's point total surpassed the previous school record of 4,770 points set by Erik Holstege in 2015. It also places him 13
th on the NCAA III Indoor performance list.
He entered the day with 2,897 points. Van Baren took second in the 60 meter hurdles with a time of 8.62 that earned him 832 points. He then cleared a height of 12-3 ½ in the pole vault (2
nd place) for an additional 549 points. He closed the day by running a time of 3:06.73 in the 1000 meter dash to earn 600 additional points.
Horton was in seventh heading into the day but had a strong finish to move up three places in the final standings. He was fourth in the 60 meter meter hurdles (8.76) for 800 points, 10
th in the pole vault (8-8 ¼) for 275 points and second in the 1000 meter run (2:54.38) for 720 points.
Sophomore
Rhys Bedford (Delton, Mich./Delton Kellogg HS) just missed scoring for the Knights, placing ninth with a final score of 3,636 points. He picked up 820 points with a time of 8.67 in the 60 meter hurdles that placed him third in the race. He also garnered 453 points with a time of 3:23.46 in the 1000 meter run.
Freshman
Kaiden Boyce (Petoskey, Mich./Petoskey HS) took 12
th in the final standings with 3,397 points. He picked up 679 points in the 60 meter hurdles (9.31), 189 points in the pole vault (7-4 ½) and 521 points in the 1000 meter run (3:15.38).
MIAA TEAM SCORES THROUGH PENTATHLON
Calvin 15
Hope 13
Adrian 6
Trine 3
Alma 2
