Ben Hall led the charge for Montreat College at this week's Mountaineer Track & Field Invitation at Appalachian State University. Hall ran his second fastest 5K as a Cavalier by clocking 16:10.77 at 3,333ft of elevation; due to the elevation Hall's time is adjusted to 15:59.43. Hall finished in 3rd place overall.
"This was a nice fitness test for Ben," said Larios of his junior runner from Polk County High School. "We're focused on the marathon for the outdoor championships, so I wasn't too sure of what to expect. I believe he's pretty close to his best racing shape. I think this indoor 5K bodes well for him for this spring."
Another standout performance came from freshman Olivia Mills. Mills ran her first ever Indoor Mile competition and finished in 7th out of 17 finishers with a time of 5:42.52.
"Olivia was boxed in early in the race… it looked like she wanted to go a little faster from the start. She was able to take the lead around the third lap. She finished second in her heat. I though it was a great learning experience for her," added Larios.
Other Cavalier performers were William Parker in the long jump. He leaped 18' 6.5" in the long jump while running 41.97 in the 300m dash. His roommate, Will Musto ran a 10:15.91 in the 3k after running the 1000m in 2:55.21. Noah Hall competed in his first collegiate track meet by running the 600m in 1:30.30. Also running the 3k was sophomore Jared Nielsen; he earned a 10:01.77 and a 9th place finish.
Also competing for the women's team was Elyse Gildernew and newcomer Kim Hibbitt. Gildernew and Hibbitt competed in the women's 800m run and posted a 2:51.24 and 2:54.28, respectively.
The Cavaliers will continue to train before heading to Lees-McRae on March 13th for their first outdoor competition.
Christmas came early this winter break for two Montreat Cavalier runners. Ben Hall and Olivia Mills qualified for the 2010 NAIA National Track & Field Championships in the half marathon event on December 12 and 13th.
Ben Hall was the first to qualify on December 12th at the Kiawah Island Half Marathon in South Carolina. His time of 1:15:19 was good enough for 3rd place overall out of a field of 2688 runners. This will be Ben's third marathon at the track championships.
"I think Ben's in terrific shape. It's great to get this qualification mark, so that he can focus on building up the mileage and workload for the championship race in May," said Coach Larios. "I also think this is the best shape he's been in after a school break, which is a testament to his desire to compete well at the championships."
Making her debut in the half marathon a day after Ben, Olivia Mills put together a strong performance over the 13.1 mile race for a qualifying time of 1:35:39, good enough for 47th place out of nearly 600 women. Mills qualifying race came at the VA Blue and Gray Half Marathon in Fredericksburg, VA on December 13th.
"I knew Olivia could do it, her progression had been textbook," added Larios. "I'd like to see her qualify in another event, perhaps the 10k, so we'll see how this spring works out for her."
Both runners will compete at this year's championship event on the campus of Indiana Wesleyan University on May 20-23, 2010.
For the first time in school history, Montreat College earned a spot on the national championship scoreboard by collecting two points for Talisa Bishop's seventh place marathon finish. Bishop led all Montreat performers by completing her first marathon in 3:19:10. Out of 126 colleges and universities represented at the NAIA national championships, Montreat College tied for 55th. Bishop's seventh place finish was just one spot from becoming an All-American.
Wayland Baptist won the women's team championship with a total of 102 points, followed by Oklahoma Baptist and Lindenwood University with 58 and 52 points, respectively.
On the men's side, Azusa Pacific once again won the team title with 80 points, just nine points ahead of sprinting-powerhouse Dickinson State.
With hot and humid conditions, Montreat's marathon team of Ben Hall, Wilbourn Kosgei, Lindsay Mizok, Arilicia Adkins and Talisa Bishop found it very difficult to compete at their highest potential. With 74 marathoners entered in the Saturday morning event, 19 found the conditions too difficult to complete the race. Heat exhaustion and dehydration were the main causes of the 19 athletes that dropped out of the rolling 26.2 mile race.
