RIPON, Wis. – The Concordia University Wisconsin men's track & field team wrapped up competition Saturday at the Northern Athletic Collegiate Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships.
The Falcons finished second with 148 points, propelled by five first-place finishes. It marks the program's best indoor finish since 2018, when CUW also placed second. St. Norbert College claimed the team title with 265.5 points.
CUW opened the day on the track with senior Melanie Arvis (Berwyn, Ill.) capturing the mile title. Fresh off her 5,000m championship on Friday, Arvis clocked a personal-best 5:10.60 to edge teammate Danielle Van Grinsven (Appleton, Wis.) by 0.30 seconds in a photo finish. Junior Mikayla Becker (Plantation, Fla.) added points with an eighth-place, PR performance of 5:44.92.
Arvis later secured her third conference crown of the meet, winning the 3,000m in 10:46.42—more than five seconds clear of the field.
Sophomore Jacey Read (Carbondale, Colo.) claimed the 60m dash title in a personal-best 7.86, prevailing by 0.01 seconds in another photo finish. The sophomore also posted a PR in the 200m, placing sixth in 26.37, with freshmen Sophia Wunderlich (Greenville, Wis.-27.22) and Isabella Albert (Juneau, Wis.-27.25) finishing seventh and eighth.
Van Grinsven added a runner-up finish in the 800m (2:22.75), while junior Olivia Ebel (Mt. Clemens, Mich.) placed eighth (2:30.28).
In the 60m hurdles, Wunderlich took second in a personal-best 9.06. Junior Emma Eilertson (Mukwonago, Wis.) finished fourth (9.54), and freshman Callynn Strauser (Sheboygan, Wis.) placed eighth (10.64).
The Falcons' 4x400m relay of Wunderlich, Van Grinsven, Ebel, and freshman Adalin Nodolf (Ripond, Wis.) placed third with a season-best 4:17.33. Nodolf also recorded a PR in the open 400m, finishing sixth in 1:02.12.
In the field events, Eilertson cleared 1.54m on her first attempt to place second in the high jump.
In the shot put, sophomore Makenna Herbrand (Fond du Lac, Wis.) finished sixth with a personal-best 10.99m, while junior Paige Schreiber (Dousman, Wis.) placed eighth at 10.62m.
FRIDAY
Senior Melanie Arvis (Berwyn, Ill.) captured her first conference title in the 5,000 meters, winning by nearly 25 seconds with a season-best 18:24.88. The senior closed with a 41.643 final 200 meters to seal the victory.
CUW also claimed the Distance Medley Relay title. The quartet of junior Mikayla Becker (Plantation, Fla.), freshman Adalin Nodolf (Ripon, Wis.), junior Olivia Ebel (Mt. Clemens, Mich.), and senior Danielle Van Grinsven (Appleton, Wis.). The team sat in second place through three legs before Van Grinsven erased a nearly 60-meter deficit on the anchor. The senior surged past St. Norbert in the final lap to secure the win. The Falcons completed the 40000m in 12:49.98, with Van Grinsven clocking 36-seconds in the final 200m.
Freshman Lydia Boehlke (High Ridge, Mo.) scored in the pentathlon, placing fifth with 2,549 points—second best in program history and a 197-point personal best. Her top event was the 60-meter hurdles (11.37).
Freshman Sophia Wunderlich advanced to the 60-meter hurdles final after winning her preliminary heat in a personal-best 9.16. She later added a third-place finish in the triple jump (11.20m). Senior Kate Kotula (Wyomissing, Pa.-6th, 10.68m) and sophomore Amiyah Jackson (Beaver Dam, Wis-7th, 10.49m) also scored in the event.
Kotula contributed additional points in the pole vault, clearing a personal-best 3.30m for third place, while junior Caitlyn Weitzel (Fallston, Md.) placed fourth at a season-best 3.15m.
In the weight throw, junior Bryanna Mursch (Grafton, Wis.-6th, 13.56m) and sophomore Makenna Herbrand (Fond du Lac, Wis.-8th, 13.18m) advanced to finals and scored for the Falcons.
On the track, sophomore Jacey Read (Carbondale, Colo.) won her 60-meter dash prelim heat in 7.96 to advance to Saturday's final. Freshman Isabella Albert (Juneau, Wis.) also qualified, posting a personal-best 8.13 for the seventh-fastest time of the day. Junior Emma Eilerston (Mount Pleasant, Wis.) qualified for the 60m hurdles with a time of 9.58, and freshman Callynn Strausser (Sheboygan, Wis.) snuck her way into the finals after clocking 10.65.
CUW will seek additional qualifying marks next weekend at a last-chance meet; details are to be announced.
