Northwest Ohio Invite Features Variety of 'Berg Placers
Making a statement at the Northwest Ohio Invite, hosted by the University of Findlay in the Malcolm Athletic Center, was the Heidelberg men’s and women’s track and field team. The men and women combined to have 32 individual placers; along with its 4x400-meter relay team’s crossed the finish line among the first 10 teams.
The women accounted for 12 top-10 individual finishes led by Tomika Brown (Bellefontaine, Ohio / Bellefontaine) and Judy Bataille (Felicity, Ohio / Felicity-Franklin).
Brown got things started on the day, clearing 5’6 in the high jump to not only claim the championship, but provisionally-qualify for the 2009 NCAA Division III National Championships March 13-14 at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Ind. Brown narrowly missed an automatic qualifying mark and currently ranks third in the nation with her clearance at the invite today. On the track, Brown finished third in the 60-meter hurdles (9.45) and was fifth in the 300-meter dash (45.48).
Bataille followed Brown’s lead, and continued her streak of provisionally-qualifying times in the 60-meter dash. She crossed the finish line in a provisional time of 7.76 and also won the title on the day. Bataille provisionally qualified in the 60-meter dash for the third-straight outing on the year. She leads the nation with a time of 7.71 that she ran a week earlier. Bataille also won the 300-meter dash in a time of 42.90.
Adding depth in the 300-meter dash was Shanice McLellan (Lima, Ohio / Lima Senior), finishing third (44.11). McLellan added a fourth in the 60-meter hurdles (9.97) for two top-five finishes on the day.
Angela Zellner (Twinsburg, Ohio / Twinsburg) took home fourth place in the 400-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 1:02.81.
On the men’s side, Julius Higginbotham (Elyria, Ohio / Elyria) improved on his provisionally qualifying time in the 60-meter dash. Higginbotham crossed the finish line in 6.99, good enough for third in the finals. During prelims, he clocked a time of 6.94, which not only was a provisional mark, but set a new Heidelberg school record. Higginbotham also finished third in the 300-meter dash (37.49) and led the field athletes with a runner-up finish in the long jump (22’5.25”).
Terrence Horton (Pickerington, Ohio / Pickerington) claimed the men’s lone championship on the day, taking home the 300-meter dash title in 36.93. Horton returned to finish fourth in the 500-meter dash (1:08.45) and teamed up with Seth Robertson (Sunbury, Ohio / Newbury), Josh Bowmar (Marengo, Ohio / Highland) and Sean Hancock to take fifth in the 4x400-meter relay (3:30.98).
Backing Higginbotham in the field events was Joe Yoder (West Liberty, Ohio / West Liberty-Salem) and Mitch White in the high jump. Yoder took home second, clearing 6’3.50,” and White followed in third (5’11.50”).
Taking home runner-up honors in the 300-meter dash was Frank Krill (Edgerton, Ohio / Edgerton) (37.16), while Jamie Martin (Wooster, Ohio / Triway) (4:28.78) and Devin Butcher (Bowling Green, Ohio / Bowling Green) (4:31.54) finished third and fourth, respectively, in the mile run.
Rounding out the top-five finishers for the men was Zac Sendelbach’s (New London, Ohio / New London) fifth in the 300-meter dash in a time of 37.77.