Complete Results

ALLENDALE, Mich. – The Grand Valley State track & field teams came away with a season opening victory at the Laker Early Bird on Friday (Dec. 5) at the Kelly Family Sports Center. Three Lakers hit NCAA provisionary qualifying marks in the 60m hurdles, the 200m dash, the long jump, and the weight throw.
 
Sean Wells hit two provisional marks in the Early Bird, and came very close to setting a school record. In the 60 meter hurdles, Wells ran a time of 8.04 to place first, and also finished first in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.88. His time in the dash was just .03 seconds off the Grand Valley State record set by Torri Tillman in 2013.
 
Michaela Lewis was the next Laker athlete to hit a provisional qualifier in the long jump, hitting a mark of 5.59 meters (18' 4.25") to place first in the event, while Daniel Thornton's mark of 19.94 meters (65' 5.00") in the weight throw was enough to reach a provisional qualifier mark and to place first in the event.
 
The women's team ran particularly well on the afternoon, taking first or placing in the top five in 11 events. Angela Ritter had a particularly strong performance in her first meet as a Laker, winning the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.65, while also placing third in the 200-meter dash (24.99) and helping the 4x400 meter team to a third-place finish. Kalena Franklin also recorded a first place finish, taking the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.43. The high finishes were more than enough to give the Lakers the victory, as the host team scored 146 points to outscore the next-highest finisher, Lewis.
 
On the men's side, GVSU placed in the top five in six events. The Laker men performed especially well in the 400-meter dash, placing three of their runners in the top five. Brent Brock placed second with a time of 49.02, and the senior was followed by TJ Burnett in third (49.35), and Daniel Pung in fifth (49.60). Grand Valley State used these finishes to come away with 129 points, edging out Lewis by 14 points to claim the victory.
 
Grand Valley State is back in action on January 9 when they host the GVSU Bob Eubanks Open at the Kelly Family Sports Center.