A victorious 4x400-meter relay capped a successful haul of gold medals for the Hope College women’s track & field team at the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Field Day.
The Flying Dutch won five events at the annual league championship at Olivet en route to a runner-up finish in the team standings. Hope totaled 178.5 points — second only to Calvin’s 268.5.
Senior Jane Pearson of Lake City, Michigan (Northern Michigan Christian HS), sophomore Rachael Webb of Grand Rapids, Michigan (Grandville HS), senior Emma Ropski of Park Ridge, Illinois (Maine Township HS) and sophomore Rachel Satkiewicz of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (Seaholm HS) teamed for a first-place 4x400 relay time of 3 minutes, 58.07 seconds.
Satkiewicz became the seventh Flying Dutch runner to be MIAA champ in the 400 meters. She posted a time of 57.55 seconds.
Webb clocked a winning time in the 800 meters of 2:14.84. She is the ninth different Flying Dutch runner to earn a MIAA title in the event. Hope has won the event a total of 12 times.
Senior Erin Herrmann of Wheaton, Illinois (Wheaton-Warrenville North HS) ran away with the 3,000-meter steeplechase title repeat. She recorded a MIAA-record time of 10:44.31 that was a minute faster than the nearest competitor. Herrmann is the only Hope runner to win the event.
Pearson heaved a winning javelin toss of 38.57 meters (126-6) for a title repeat. It is the ninth a Hope female athlete has won the event.
Sophomore Sarah Murphy of Ada Michigan (Forest Hills Northern HS) became Hope College’s third league champion in the event in pole vault by clearing 3.20 meters (10 feet, 6 inches). Murphy followed Emily VanderMeer (2008) and Jennifer VanderMeer (2007) as league champions from the Flying Dutch.
Sophomore Alison Rich of Haslett, Michigan (Haslett HS) finished MIAA runner-up in the high jump after clearing 1.56 meters (5-1). Senior Jane Pearson of Lake City, Michigan (Northern Michigan Christian HS) tied for seventh at 1.45 meters (4-9).
Satkiewicz came in second in the 200 meters by clocking a time of 26.44 seconds. Pearson was eighth at 27.03.
Sophomore Haley Fischman of Grand Ledge, Michigan (Lansing Catholic Central HS) came in third in the discus at 34.31 meters (112-6).
Hope finished third and fourth in the 10,000 meters: senior Emily Joosse of Chillicothe, Ohio (Zane Trace HS) in third at 38.27.80 and Emily Hamilton fourth at 38:34.91.
Junior Sierra Schultz of Kellogg, Iowa (Grinnell Community HS) placed third in the 400 hurdles at 1:05.55 and was followed by Rich in fourth at 1:07.78 and freshman Allison VanderStoep of Holland, Michigan (West Ottawa HS) in eighth at 1:10.46.
Senior Julia Stock of Norton Shores, Michigan (Grand Haven HS) and freshman Avery Lowe of North Muskegon, Michigan (North Muskegon HS) went 3-4 in the 5,000 meters with runs of 18:28.65 and 18:41.99.
Three others placed in the javelin for the Flying Dutch: sophomore Shannon Crawford of Bettendorf, Iowa (Pleasant Valley HS) in fourth at 32.51 meters (106-6), Rich in fifth at 29.54 (96-10) and Schultz in seventh at 27.31 (89-6).
Hope came in fourth in the 4x100 relay. Sophomore Rachel Anderson of Muskegon, Michigan (Mona Shores HS), Satkiewicz, Schultz and Pearson had a time of 50.37 seconds.
Ropski took fourth in the 800 at 2:19.67.
Two placed in the 100-meter hurdle final: Rich in fifth at 15.97 and Pearson in seventh at 16.64.
Pearson posted a fifth-place long jump of 5.22 meters (17-1) and a fifth-place shot put of 11.12 meters (36-6).
Three placed in the 1,500: sophomore Ashley Warner of Spring Lake, Michigan (Spring Lake HS) in sixth at 4:55.22, freshman Sarah Neumar of Ann Arbor, Michigan (Huron HS) in seventh at 4:56.45 and sophomore Marianne Lohrstorfer of Indianapolis, Indiana (North Central HS) in eighth at 4:58.06.
Freshman Jessica Korte of Washington, Michigan (Cairo American HS) was seventh in the 400 at 1:02.70.
Sophomore Alejandra Gomez Limon of Rochester, Michigan (Notre Dame Prep) placed seventh in the hammer throw at 39.27 meters (128-9).
Anderson finished eighth in the 100 meters with a run of 13.13.