GRINNELL, IA – The Beloit College track and field teams made a powerful statement during the opening sessions of the Midwest Conference Championships at Grinnell College. Competing against the best in the region, the Buccaneers' athletes delivered standout performances across sprints, distance events, and field competitions, led by a conference title in the women's pole vault.
The highlight of the field events for Beloit was Naomee Casey's (Broken Arrow, Okla) dominant performance in the Women's Pole Vault. The senior soared to a first-place finish with a height of 3.05m, securing 10 points for the Buccaneers. She was joined on the podium by teammate Haley Carlin (Sarasota, Fla.), who cleared 2.75m to take third place, adding six points to the team total.
The Buccaneer men also found significant success in the field. In the Men's Shot Put, Ian Phillips (Machesney Park, Ill.) unleashed a massive throw of 15.25m, earning a silver medal and second-place honors. Joshua Martinez Marte (Beloit, Wis.) also broke into the top ten with a mark of 14.03m.
In the Men's Long Jump, John Deary II (Avondale, LA) put on a show, leaping 6.78m to finish second overall. His teammate Andrew Arhebun (Chicago, Ill.) also performed well, finishing 11th with a jump of 6.29m. On the women's side of the throws, Adelaide Schmitt (Aurora, Colo.) led Beloit in the Shot Put with a 9th-place toss of 10.79m.
On the track, Josh Yearby (Hollywood, FL) proved to be one of the fastest men in the conference. Yearby clocked a blazing 6.77s in the Men's 60 Meter prelims, the fastest time of the day, comfortably qualifying him for the finals. Yearby was also a vital component of Beloit's relay success.
The Men's SMR 1600m relay team—composed of Yearby, Ayouba Sumoaro (Las Vegas, NV), Nate Otis (Shoreview, Minn.), and Kembre Daniel (Chicago, Ill.)—battled to a second-place finish with an impressive time of 3:34.00. Later, in the Men's 4x200 Relay, the quartet of Yearby, Izzy Zewdie (Las Vegas, Nev.),Deary II and Otis secured 5th place in 1:30.95.
The Beloit women were equally competitive in the relays. The 4x200 Relay team (Allie Roberts, Jaslyn Gama (Beloit, Wis.), Cole Miller (Salem, Ore.), and Syniyah Quenga (Urbana, IL)) sped to a 4th-place finish in 1:49.37. Earlier in the day, the Women's SMR 1600m team took 5th place with a time of 4:24.67.
In the longest race of the day, the Men's 5000 Meters, Dylan Malmgren (Loves Park, Ill.) showed immense endurance, finishing 4th overall with a time of 15:17.44. In the Men's 1 Mile, Leo Ramos led the Bucs with a time of 4:41.06.
Over the hurdles, Otis qualified for the finals in the Men's 60m Hurdles with a preliminary time of 8.87s, placing him 7th. In the Women's 60 Meter Prelims, freshman Quenga also punched her ticket to the finals, finishing 7th with a time of 8.18s.
As the championships continue through the weekend, the Buccaneers remain in a strong position to climb the team standings, fueled by today's podium finishes and multiple qualifiers for the sprint finals. Action is set to being tomorrow at 10:30 am.
