RedTails Track and Field Compete in the Good Friday Challenge at Wartburg College

WAVERLY–Both the men's and women's RedTail Track and Field teams competed at Wartburg College for their first outdoor meet on April 29, 2024, for the Good Friday Challenge. The men scored a total of 44 points and came in fourth place overall. And the women came in 12th place. 

"The kids handled the wind and being outdoors for the first time this season very well," said head coach Scott Roberts. "We had some really good performances."  

The men's team started strong in the meet with the 100-meter dash. Sophomore Liam Carlson placed fourth with a time of 10.95. Sophomore Alec Schneider came in eighth place with a time of 11.24. Carter Even, a freshman, got 11th place, where he ran a time of 11.35. Sophomore Jaxon Weber got 21st place with a time of 12.19. On the women's side, sophomore Tasha Williams came in 18th place (13.37). Her sophomore teammate, Grace Rathe, came in 29th place with a time of 14.23 seconds. 

A large group ran in the 200-meter dash. Sophomore Evan Kearney placed ninth overall with a time of 22.72 seconds. His teammate, Carter Even, was close behind coming in tenth place (22.77). Freshman Sean Knockel came in 12th (23.13) and sophomore Liam Carlson in 13th place (23.18). The rest of the RedTails came in the top 27th runners. For the women's 200-meter dash, Tasha Williams placed 20th (28.13), Kendall See got 24th place (28.41), and Grace Rathe came in 35th (30.41). 

Freshman Austin Langreck placed 14th (55.36) in the 400-meter dash. For the women, sophomore Amber Homan placed eighth (1:02.10). 

In the 1500-meter dash, sophomore Brennen Sager placed 32nd (4:22). Freshman Kory Sweeney placed 38th ( 4:29). And sophomore Anna Dietzenbach placed in 33rd with a time of 5:50.59. 

For the men, sophomore Kasey Wirtjes got ninth place (16.10) in the 110-meter hurdles. His teammate, Tyler Bartles, ran a 17.05 giving him 11th place. Kallie Mincks ran the 100-meter dash for the women, and she got 16th place (17.65)

Freshman, Noah Sheridan, had an amazing race with the 400-meter hurdles, where he came in second place. He had a time of 56.19. Kenny Cutler, also a freshman, was right behind him in third place, where he had a time of 56.52 seconds. 

Moving on to the relays, Carter Even, Evan Kearney, Caden Stimmel, and Liam Carlos came in third (42.42) for the 4x100. Coach Roberts said, "I thought they ran really well, even though we had only practiced the exchanges for one day." The women's 4x100 didn't place, but their runners were Kallie Mincks, Grace Rathe, Kendall See, and Tasha Williams. 

The men placed third in the 4x400 (3:34.58) with Sean Knockel, Kaden Miller, Evan Kearney, and Kenny Cutler. 

The field events were a success with sophomore Tino Tamayo coming in sixth place for men's shot put, where he threw 14.91 meters. Sophomore Delaney Kopriva placed 21st for the women with 10.22 meters. 

Men's discus throw sophomore Brandt Williams finished in sixth place throwing at 41.60 meters. Tino Tamayo wasn't far behind in ninth place (40.68m). Adam Smith threw 38.28 meters, which gave him 13th place. Beau Brackemeyer threw 33.40 giving him 18th place.

Brandt Williams came in 11th (44.90m) for the hammer throw. Tino Tamayo got 13th (44.35m), and Beau Brackemeyer got 17th (40.34m). Adam Smith threw 31.30 meters, which gave him 27th place. On the women's side, Delany Kopriva came in 21st place throwing 33.79 meters. 

Brandt Willams got third place in the javelin throw. He threw 50.74 meters, which is his personal best. 

Both men and women will be competing in the Mississippi Rumble in Dubuque on April 6, 2024, for the next meet, and they are hoping to continue to improve their skills.