Isabel Pheifer—Staff Writer

The Dordt University Track and Field team took the Dordt Open track meet by storm last Saturday.

In both the men’s and women’s teams, success was evident in almost every event. 

On the field, junior Grant Brouwer won the men’s high jump with a leap of six feet and four inches while senior Cori De Jong jumped four feet and ten and one-quarter inches—earning her second place. 

In this event’s footsteps, the pole vault followed suit with a top-two finisher for both the men and women.

 “Pole vault is a unique and crazy sport. I am thrilled that I keep improving and look forward to the rest of the season.” Luke Bousema, a junior field athlete, said.

 Luke soared to thirteen feet and eleven and one-half inches and was crowned the champion in the men’s pole vault, also earning a new personal record. As for the women, Hannah Rowe jumped nine feet and six and one-quarter inches, scoring her second place.

On the track, Dordt proved excellent in the long-distance races. They took control of the men’s mile, earning places three through nine in the race. For the 3000-meter run, they landed a second-place finisher in both the women’s and men’s events: Taylor Anema, a junior, ran 10:32.60 for the women and Davis Tebben ran 8:47.97 for the men.

Bethany Ten Haken, a junior, earned herself two mid-distance places: one in the 1,000 meters and the other in the 600 meters. 

“I felt pretty good about my races,” Ten Haken said. “It was my first time running the 1,000, so it was something different for me. I started out a little slow and got boxed in, but that’s something to work on for next time. Overall, I am pretty happy with how it turned out.”

Dordt enjoyed significant success in the 800 meters with multiple top-ten finishers in both the men’s and women’s races. Mika Kooistra, Annika Rick, and Anmarie Stuit placed 2, 3, and 4 respectively for the women. On the men’s side, Avery Den Herder, Ben Schmidt, Joey Schoonhoven, and Jonathan Veldman all finished inside the top-ten. 

Although no fans were allowed to spectate the meet, the Dordt University Rec Center still filled with noise and anticipation as the events took place and each team roared with excitement as their teammates ran past. In the absence of fans, the team spirit portrayed by each school filled the void and it was a joy to witness.

The Dordt University Defenders Track and Field team will compete next at Mount Marty University on Saturday, January 30.