ALLENDALE, Mich. - The Grand Valley State men's and women's track and field team competed at the Mike Lints Alumni Meet and the Michigan Invitational on Saturday, Jan. 22 with the pole vault women's team finishing first, second, and third in their first meet of the season. Elli Kimes led the women's team clearing a height of 3.96, followed by Carly Livingston and Colleen Campbell finishing second and third with a height of 3.71m. 
Mike Lints Alumni Meet - Results
Michigan Invitational - Results 

"We had some great performances today, especially for those who opened up their season today," said head coach Jerry Baltes. "Coach Lou's pole vault crew opened up with some great bars. We are looking forward to seeing more clearances from our vault crew in the coming weeks." 

The men's pole vault team was lead by James Nutt placing first clearing a height of 4.63m. Max Rauch set a personal-best in the men's pole vault clearing 4.63m finishing second for the Lakers, Wyatt Alwine fourth with a personal-best height of 4.48m.  The success in the field did not stop there, as Judith Essemiah had a season-best throw of 19.86m in the women's weight throw. Essemiah's throw is currently the second best in all of Division II and first amongst the GLIAC. Alaina Omonode placed second with a NCAA DII provisional mark distance of 17.59m. 

"Coach Conly and our throwers continue to stay on a positive trajectory," said Coach Baltes. "We will focus on making steady progress each week and look to build on our previous performances here on out." 

Myles Kerner finished first in the men's weight throw with a distance of 19.34m. Kerner also placed second in shot put, putting an indoor personal-best distance of 18.05m. Shane Bryne and Jacob Urban competed in the weight throw along with Kerner and finished third and fourth, respectively. Byrne threw a personal-best distance of 18.86m finishing third, followed by Urban in fourth with his first provisional mark of the season 18.50m, a personal-best distance.  Mackenzie Bohrer took the crown in the women's shot put putting a  personal-best distance of 14.43m and finished first for the second time this season. 

Women's high jump made their mark on the season with Jenna Doyle and Sydney Cangilla. Doyle finished first with a season-best height of 1.61m, followed by Cangilla in second with a personal-best height of 1.61m. Although both women cleared 1.61m, Doyle took first by clearing 1.56m on her first attempt, Cangilla cleared 1.56m on her third attempt. 

On the track, Allie Ludge finished first in the women's mile with a time of 4:50.45. Taryn Chapko finished closely behind in second with a time of 4:51.12.  Ludge's time is currently the fifth fastest time in Division II, Chapko's time is sixth. Jonathon Groendyk crossed the line first in the men's mile with a personal-best time of 4:08.36. Marcos Garcia finished second (4:08.60) and Scott Spaanstra fifth with a personal-best time of 4:10.56. 

In Ann Arbor, Mich., the men's 4x400m relay team, Jackson Blanchard, Caelon Harkey, Brandon Miller, and Myles Rhodes, continued their domination on the season finishing first with a time of 3:14.99. Blanchard also competed in the 400m finishing second with a time of 48.97, and fifth in the men's 60m hurdles with a time of 8.20. Makiyah Smallwood placed third in the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.07.

"The trip to Ann Arbor was about getting outside of our comfort zone of competing at home in preparation for the championships," said Assisant Coach Reynaldo Radlin. " This group competed hard and took a step in the right direction. I look forward to using this experience and momentum towards the second half of our regular season." 

Also competing in the 400m, Harkey finished third with a time of 49.15 and Rhodes fifth (49.47). Brandon Miller finished second in the 200m with a time of 21.76. 

The Lakers return to the track on Friday, Jan. 28, hosting the Bill Clinger Classic at the Kelly Family Sports Center in Allendale, Mich.