Mankato, Minn. --- As the NSIC Conference Championships wrapped up, the Minnesota State women's track and field team found themselves situated in third-place.
Senior Anna Veroeven (North Mankato, Minn.) set the tone early in the triple jump. Despite finishing in second, Veroeven set a new personal-record at 39'10". Not only was this her best, but also passed Katelin Rains' 2008 mark to act as the new school-record. Fellow senior Jenni Vanttinen (Helsinki, Finland) also recorded a personal-best in her fifth-place finish at 37'10".
Sophomore Brieanna Puckett (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) led the Mavericks in the running events en route to her being named the top points-getter on the women's side. Puckett finished second in the 60-meter dash at 7.63, and followed that with another second-place posting in the 200-meters at 25.15. Sid'Reshia Floyd (New Hope, Minn.) and Karlona Gregory (Minneapolis, Minn.) finished the 60-meters in third and eighth, respectively.
For the second day in a row, Brooke Foreman (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) turned in a career day for the 60-meter hurdles crossing the line in fourth at 8.85. Vanttinen finished right behind in fifth at 9.03. Sophomore Taylor Naatz (Watertown, Wis.) scored a couple team points in the 400-meters finishing seventh with a time of 58.66.
Yet another sophomore, Taylor Glover (Spencer, Iowa), hit another personal-best in the 600-meters finishing second with a time of 1:35.06. Teammate Megan Allen (Grand Rapids, Minn.) came in fifth at 1:37.27. Maddi Sjelin (St. Michael, Minn.) garnered a fourth-place medal in the 800-meters with a final posting of 2:16.15. Senior Halee Peterson placed in her last indoor meet with a time of 3:02.16 in the 1000-meters.
The 4x400 relay team, consisting of Vanttinen, Glover, Bonnie Pickford (Wever, Iowa) and Naatz scored a fourth-place finish with a final time of 3:53.65.
As a team, Minnesota State finished the championships in third-place posting a combined total of 101 points. The University of Mary secured the team title with 142 points.
Full championship results may be viewed HERE.
Two weeks remain to determine who will all travel to Birmingham, Ala. to participate in the NCAA Division II National Championships. For those who do not qualify, this marks the end of the indoor season and begins preparation for the ensuing outdoor season, which is set to commence March 27th, in Emporia, Kan.
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