Results
La Crosse, Wis. - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse women's track & field team captured the Phil Esten Challenge Saturday night at Roger Harring Stadium at Veterans Memorial Field Sports Complex. The Eagles finished with 259.83 points while UW-Eau Claire was second with 123.50 and Winona State University (Minn.) third with 58.00. A total of 19 teams scored points.
UWL's
Skylar White won the heptathlon on Saturday with 4,384 points. The Eagles had four of the top-eight finishers as
Allison Anderson was fifth (4,225),
Alexys Scheuerell seventh (4,126) and
Noelle Hackenmueller eighth (4,031). The heptathlon concluded Saturday with the long jump, javelin throw and 800-meter run after competition included the 100-meter hurdles, high jump, shot put and 200-meter dash on Friday.
The Eagles won seven other events on Saturday, including four in the field events.
Ashley O'Connell won the pole vault (12-6 1/4),
Ainsley Hansen the high jump (5-6 1/2),
Gabby Johnson the javelin throw (128-6) and
Skye Digman the hammer throw (189-2).
UWL also won three titles on the tack.
Lauren Jarrett won the 100-meter dash (11.96) and
Brooke McDowell the 100-meter hurdles (14.34). The Eagles' 4x100-meter relay of
Bella Seitz, Jarrett,
Emma Lawrence and
Emily Dawidowich also took first (48.28).
Other top-six finishes in Saturday's field events, included
Macie Todd second (5-4 1/2) and
Alia Vanderhoef fourth (5-2 1/2) in the high jump,
Dyllan Powers econd (17-10 1/4),
Maya Evans third (17-7) and
Jenna Miller sixth (17-3 1/2) in the long jump and
Miah Keller second (38-2 3/4),
Samantha Barrett third (37-10 3/4) and
Kylah Frederixon sixth (36-7 1/2) in the triple jump.
Ella Puls placed second (122-8), Vanderhoef fifth (103-7) and
Kaydee Johnson sixth (103-5) in the javelin throw with
Leah Surprenant second (169-8) and
Izzy Carroll fourth (157-11) in the hammer throw.
Araceli De Leo Lopez finished tied for third (11-4 1/2) in the pole vault.
On the track, Dawidowich finished second (12.12) in the 100-meter dash while
Morgan Jennings was second (59.10),
Lilly Halvorson third (59.17),
Amber Johnson fourth (59.20) and
Izi Knoernschild sixth (1:00.28) in the 400-meter dash.
Melanie Kunze finished second (1:03.45) and
Mara Schroeder third (1:07.15) in the 400-meter hurdles with
Amber Grosse placing sixth (15.69) in the 100-meter hurdles. Kimberly Carviou was sixth (4:38.31) in the 1,500-meter run.
Esten served as head coach of the men's cross country program at UWL for 28 years (1970-97). He led the Eagles to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III title in 1996. UWL added national runner-up honors in either the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) or NCAA Division III eight times during Esten's tenure. In all, Esten's squads finished in the national top-10 in 26 consecutive tries and appeared in a national championship in 27 of his 28 cross country seasons. UWL won 20 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) titles under Esten. He was named the WIAC Men's Cross Country All-Time Coach.
He also served as an assistant track & field coach at UWL for 34 seasons. Esten is a member of the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Hall of Fame, UWL Wall of Fame, NAIA Cross Country Hall of Fame, NAIA District 14 Hall of Fame and Wisconsin Cross Country Coaches' Association Hall. He is a 1965 graduate of UWL and former cross country and track athlete.
UWL returns to action Thursday, April 27 at the Drake University (Iowa) Relays.
