NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Stanford set season indoor track and field bests in two relays at the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame on Saturday.
The men's 4x400 team of Julian Body, Louis Stenmark, Gabriel Navarro, and Isaiah Brandt-Sims won in 3:10.57 on the 320-meter Loftus Center track. The time was the fifth-fastest in Stanford indoor history and was more than a second faster than the same foursome ran at Albuquerque's Don Kirby Invitational last week. This is the fourth top-10 indoor 4x400 appearance for each of Body, Navarro, and Brandt-Sims.
The team will have one more chance to break into the national top 16 and earn a berth into the NCAA Indoor Championships, next weekend at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships in Seattle.
The Stanford women's distance medley team of Julia Heymach, Ashlan Best, Carolyn Wilson, and Jessica Lawson was sixth in a strong field, running 11:04.30 – a slight improvement over the 11:04.47 that had the Cardinal No. 6 in the country going into this weekend. The Card could be on the qualifying bubble after all the weekend results are collected.
Alex Wilson Invitational
At Loftus Sports Center
(320-meter track)
Saturday
Winners and Stanford competitors
Men
800 – 1, Cooper Williams (Indiana) 1:47.24; 23, Hari Sathyamurthy (Stanford) 1:56.45.
4x400 relay – 1, Stanford (Julian Body, Louis Stenmark, Gabriel Navarro, Isaiah Brandt-Sims) 3:10.57 (No. 5 Stanford AT).
Women
Distance medley relay – 1, Michigan 10:54.47; 6, Stanford (Julia Heymach, Ashlan Best, Carolyn Wilson, Jessica Lawson) 11:04.30.
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Merritt jumps to personal best
AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Kaitlyn Merritt increased her indoor personal record in the pole vault to 13-11 ¼ (4.25 meters) and Stanford teammate Aria Small captured the women's triple jump on Friday at the Air Force Collegiate Open, remaining undefeated this season.
Merritt tied with Kathryn Tomczak of Air Force for the winning height of 13-11 ¼ (4.25m), but finished second on a countback. Tomczak cleared on her first try, while Merritt made it on her second. Merritt took three tries at a lifetime best 14-2 ¾ (4.34m), but was unsuccessful.
Merritt's 13-11 ¼ (4.25m) is her indoor best by a centimeter and strengthens her hold as the No. 2 indoor performer in school history.
Going into this weekend, the nation's No. 16 triple jump performer was at 42-11 (13.08m). Small's season and lifetime best is 42-4 (12.90m). She'll get another shot at nationals at the MPSF meet.
Air Force Collegiate Open
At Cadet Field House Indoor Track
Friday
Winners and Stanford competitors
Women
Pole vault – 1, Kathryn Tomczak (Air Force) 13-11 ¼ (4.25m); 2, Kaitlyn Merritt (Stanford) 13-11 ¼ (4.25m) (No. 2 Stanford AT); 3, Erika Malaspina (Stanford) 13-5 ¼ (4.10m).
Triple jump – 1, Aria Small (Stanford) 41-5 ¾ (12.64m).
