Hannah Fredericks ran the final leg of the Distance Medley Relay that broke the 15-year-old NAIA record by one second Saturday at the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships held in Gainesville, Fla.
Hannah Fredericks ran the final leg of the Distance Medley Relay that broke the 15-year-old NAIA record by one second Saturday at the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships held in Gainesville, Fla.

Women's Track and Field Andrew Cross

Final day of Indoor Championships yield more titles and records for TMU

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The last day of the NAIA Indoor Track and Field Championships capped off a successful trip for The Master's University track and field teams in Gainesville, Fla. The women's distance medley relay (DMR) team set an NAIA record in their win and Hunter Angove took the victory in the pole vault. 

The women's DMR team of Ellen Palmgren, Olivia Nantz, Suzie Johnson and Hannah Fredericks, took the lead from the gun and never looked back. Their time of 11:38 broke the 15-year-old NAIA record by one second, despite running the whole race with virtually no competition. 

"Our theme verse for this trip has been 2 Corinthians 5:9 which says, 'So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him,'" Fredericks said. "This trip has been a sweet blessing from the Lord, and we know that this victory came from Him. The value of the podium is in the message that we proclaim from it and Christ deserves all the glory!"

Fredericks also finished runner-up in the 3000m, which was only an hour before the DMR final. Emma Nelson and Alyssa Lovett also achieved All-American awards with their sixth-place and eighth-place finishes, respectively. Both ran personal bests in the final.

Hunter Angove and Caleb Pouliot did not disappoint in the pole vault, as the Mustangs came in ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in the NAIA. Pouliot, dealing with a back injury, finished third (4.95m), earning another All-American.

Despite being knocked out of the competition, Pouliot encouraged Angove to a jump of 5.25, which gave him the win. The pole vaulters alone earned the Mustangs a total of 16 points. 

Connor Ybarra followed up his impressive 3000m prelim with a sixth place in the final and his first track and field All-American. Ybarra's effort of 8:20 was just .5 seconds off his own school record.

Hunter Roy grabbed All-American in the 800m with his eighth-place finish of 1:52. Roy put together four strong 800m races over the weekend including one in the men's DMR final.

The DMR squad of Cedar Collins, Colin Loveland, Roy and Nate Day also earned All-American, extending TMU's All-American streak in that event to three straight years. Their mark of 10:00 was the second best in school history and placed them seventh in a loaded final.

The Mustangs have a quick turnaround as they compete next Saturday at the Oxy Spring Break Distance Carnival in Occidental, Calif.