DAVENPORT - The Southwestern track & field team continued its strong start to the outdoor season Saturday with four more school records at the SAU Spring Opener.
Conrad Schroeder and Molly Venteicher each claimed two school records apiece in the throwing events, which were held at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois. Schroeder had a big day for the Spartans, posting new PR marks in all four throwing events. Already the owner of the school record in the javelin, Schroeder surpassed his previous mark on the final attempt of the competition with a throw of 46.63 meters (153 feet). He finished the javelin competition with the three best marks of the day.
Schroeder also vaulted into the top spot in school history in the hammer throw with his throw of 34.78 meters (114 feet, 1 inch) on his final attempt of finals. The previous record was 32.17 meters, set by Keegan Longabaugh in 2016. Schroeder moved up to No. 2 on the program's all-time list in the shot put with his new PR of 12.12 meters (39-9.25) and also in the discus with his throw of 33.57 meters (110-2).
"Conrad made the transition this year from middle distance to throwing, which is a big change. He's put in a lot of work to continue to get better in the throwing events, and it showed Saturday," said Scott Vicker, director of cross country/track & field. "He had a big day, and I couldn't be more proud of him, especially as conditions were tough early on in the day for the throws."
Venteicher continued her assault on the SWCC record book in the throwing events by breaking two of her own school records and posting a third PR for the day. Venteicher led a 1-2 finish in the women's javelin competition with a new school record throw of 34.26 meters (112-5), while teammate Bri Osterson finished second with a throw of 30.72 meters (100-9). Freshman Malori Leonard finished seventh in the event at 26.84 meters (88-1). Those three, along with Samira Baade, have formed a strong javelin event group that currently ranks second in the NJCAA in the USTFCCCA #EventSquadRankings.
Venteicher also broke her own school record in the hammer throw with a mark of 39.88 meters (130-10). Her third PR of the day came in the discus throw, where she threw 35.30 meters (115-10), moving her up into third on the program's all-time performance list.
"Both our men and our women's throwers take a lot of pride in the javelin," Vicker said. "Coach (Mark) Evans has done a great job working with them on that event. For our women to rank second nationally and the men fourth in the #EventSquadRankings for that event is a testament to how hard they work on it."
In total, the Spartans picked up six event victories for the day. Freshman Ben Olson was part of three first-place finishes. Olson took home the win in both the high jump (1.85 meters) and long jump (6.82 meters), both of which were good enough to move him into third on the program's all-time performance lists. He also ran the leadoff leg of the winning 4x400 relay team that consisted of Jonathon Hackett, Justin Cunningham, and Robert Norton. It was a back-and-forth battle with Monmouth College for the win, but Norton came from behind in the final 100 meters to edge out the Scots at the line.
Sophomore Justin Cunningham picked up the other Spartan victory by running away from the field in the 100 meter dash. Sprint times were heavily affected all day by a strong headwind.
"There could have been a lot of excuses about the weather on Saturday, but I was really proud of our team for how they competed in the conditions all day," Vicker said. "Even though some of the times were affected by the conditions, I can tell we're progressing. Overall, it was a great weekend for us after having to switch meets because of the weather."
Southwestern returns to action Friday at the Dutch Invitational, hosted by Central College.
