by Dena Meiste
The Hope College women's indoor track and field team concluded regular-season action with a second-place finish at the MIAA Jamboree, hosted by Trine University. Nearly 20 season-best performances were recorded as the Flying Dutch show they are peaking just in time for the MIAA Championship next month.
Hope placed second overall with 143.5 points, finishing ahead of Albion (116), Olivet (38.5), and Calvin (37). Jamboree host Trine topped the team standings with 201 points.
Grace Behrens (Mishawaka, Indiana/Trinity School At Greenlawn) earned high-point honors for the Dutch, placing second in both the 200 and 400 meters while taking third in the 60 meters. Additionally, she anchored the 4x400 relay squad to a first-place result.
Behrens, pictured, won her heat and placed second overall in the 400 meters with a season-best time of 1:00.34 – just a quarter second out of the top spot. Behrens also had a photo finish in the 200 meters, clocking another season-best time, 26.80, to finish runner up to Amy Campbell's (Albion) time of 26.47.
The sophomore ran a season-best in the 60 meters, recording an 8.15 in the prelims before taking third in the finals behind a time of 8.21.
Three Hope runners placed in the top-five of the 800 meters, led by Jessica Schamanek (Rochester, Michigan/Stoney Creek) with a second-place result of 2:33.29. Julia Wilson (Lancaster, Pennsylvania/Lancaster Mennonite) and Emily Unger (Montague, Michigan/Montague) followed in fourth (2:38.15) and fifth (2:40.59) place, respectively.
The underclassmen relay squad comprised of Madeline Moore (Hillsdale, Michigan Hillsdale), Claire Benedict (Ada, Michigan/Forest Hills Eastern), Julie Timperman (Lafayette, Indiana/Faith Christian) and Behrens paced the field in the 4x400 meter relay, placing first in a time of 4:15.60 to end the meet.
In the field events, Bethany Colbrunn (Zeeland, Michigan/Zeeland East) took third in the pole vault. The freshman cleared a height of 2.80 meters, shattering her previous college-best mark of 2.51 meters from the GVSU Snowdown Showdown.
Hannah Bredeweg (Benton Harbor, Michigan/Stevensville-Lakeshore), extended her season-best distance in the triple jump, stretching the tape to 9.62 meters to place fourth overall. The senior also cleared a height of 1.37 meters to take third in the high jump.
Taylor Novotny (Batavia, Illinois/Batavia) led the Flying Dutch with her best triple jump performance of the season, placing third behind a mark of 9.80 meters.
The MIAA Jamboree was the final regular-season meet for the Flying Dutch in preparation for the MIAA Indoor Championships, which will be hosted inside Calvin's Huizinga Tennis and Track Center on Friday, March 5.
