by Dena Meiste
As the outdoor season winds down, members of the Hope College men's and women's track and field teams competed at both North Central College's Dr. Keeler Invitational and the Toledo University Rocket Invitational this weekend.
These 'last chance' meets give athletes the opportunity to lower their season-best times in their signature events and move up on the region performance list, improving their chances of qualifying for the NCAA Division III Championships.
Hannah Kenny (Grand Haven, Michigan / Grand Haven), pictured right, made the biggest jump of the weekend, moving from the top-15 in the Great Lakes Region 1,500-meter performance list and into sixth place. The senior clocked a career-best time of 4 minutes, 37.41 seconds to place third at North Central.
On the men's side, Nick Hoffman (Holland, Michigan / Holland), pictured right, placed second overall with a near-season-best time of 3:50.04. Hoffman still sits in second place in the region behind a time of 3:49.48.
At the 1,500-meter race in Toledo, Jacinda Cole (Holland, Michigan / West Ottawa) clocked a 4:45.48 to place sixth overall. Though that time didn't move her up in the region standings, the senior still sits in a solid fifth place, just ahead of Kenny.
Other competitors this weekend included Amanda Lines, Grace Behrens, Helen Dodge and Kimmie Drake, who all ran in at least one individual race and together in the 4x100 relay.
Behrens (Mishawaka, Indiana / Trinity School At Greenlawn) earned eighth place in the 400 meters with a time of 59.55, while Lines (Naples, Florida / First Baptist Academy) also garnered an eighth-place finish with a 200-meter time of 26.02.
Lines paced the Flying Dutch in the 100-meters as well, clocking a 12.67. Dodge (Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan / Grosse Pointe South) and Drake (Katy, Texas / Seven Lakes) followed with times of 12.84 and 13.20, respectively.
Dodge, Lines, Drake, and Behrens completed their collective lap around the track in a time of 49.79.
Daniel Campbell (Brighton, Michigan / Brighton) represented the Flying Dutchmen in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and turned in a time of 9:51.73.
Hope now looks ahead to the final last chance meet of the season, returning to North Central College on May 19-20 for the Gregory Invitational.
