The Wildcat track and field team broke two records at the Hillsdale Invite on Saturday, April 16.

Freshman Shayla Huebner broke the 400-meter dash record set by Kaylee Lasako in 2008 by .43 of a second with a time of 57.08. Huebner finished third in the event.

“When I crossed the finish line and saw my time, I felt happy and grateful that my hard work had paid off,” Huebner said. “We have had a lot of cold meets and slower times, so this was a nice change.”

Huebner then teamed up with senior Danielle Brzezinski, sophomore Clara Churchill and freshman Paige Dutcher to break the 4×400-meter relay record with a time of 3:54.76. The group
finished fourth.

“I feel really proud because it took a team effort,” Huebner said. “My teammates ran fast split times and had some of their best times. It felt great to be a part of something bigger than just myself.”

The Wildcats finished third with 154 points, just one point shy of second place Hillsdale and three points short of champion Findlay.

“The team performed very well,” head coach Jenny Ryan said. “We had some great performances and many personal records.”

Three Wildcats won events at the meet. Freshman Michelle Juergen won the high jump with a height of 5 feet 3 inches, sophomore Kieren Becker won the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:43.31, and sophomore Kameron Burmeister won the 5,000-meter run with a time of 17:45.95.

Junior Samanthia Johnson set a provisional mark of 149-3 in the discus throw and finished second. Johnson also finished third in the javelin throw with a distance of 103-6.

Finishing second in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.51 was freshman Yasmin Jelassi. Sophomore Ine Mylle finished second in the triple jump with a height of 37-10.5 and junior Jasmine Williams finished second in the discus throw with a distance of 145-7.

“I was very happy to see how well the team performed at this point in the season,” Ryan said.

The Wildcats will be competing at the Al Owen Classic on Friday, April 22 and Saturday, April 23 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

“The team is ready to go and compete well,” Ryan said. “The weather will be perfect and everyone is training well and ready
to go.”

There will be between 30 and 40 teams from Division II and III. Many of the GLIAC schools will be there along with many other strong programs.

Ryan added that the meet will be great because it will be competitive and give the team a chance to see how they stack up against some of the best.

On Sunday, April 17 at the Student-Athlete Awards Banquet, Williams was named the team’s most valuable,  Juergen was named the newcomer of the year, Becker was named most improved, and Huebner was named the scholar athlete.

“I was really honored and shocked,” Huebner said. “There are a lot of smart and hardworking people on this team. I do put in a lot of time and effort into everything I was able to accomplish my first year, but so does everyone else, and I feel grateful that that was recognized.”

Ryan is looking forward to the last part of the outdoor season.

“I am very happy with the attitude and performance of this group,” Ryan said.

Huebner is excited for the upcoming years as a Wildcat.

“We have had a very positive and successful year,” Huebner said. “I have seen a lot of growth and improvement from the beginning of the year to the end of the season. I’m looking forward to what the next few years have
to offer.”