The Grand Valley State University men’s and women’s outdoor track and field teams saw significant success at the GLIAC Championship meet in Big Rapids, Mich., on May 6-7. The top athletes hope to continue that success as they prepare for the final meet of the season at the National Championships on May 27-29 in Charlotte, N.C.

The men tallied 197.5 points to take second place at the conference meet. Their score placed them just 11 points behind first-place finisher Ashland University.

But it was the women who headlined the event. With a finishing score of 291 points, the women set a record for highest point total in meet history in the process of capturing first place.

But despite setting the record, senior hurdler Kristen Nozime said the team had hoped to reach even higher.

“We came in wanting to double second place,” she said. “(Ashland) shot for 150, so we wanted to score 300. We feel like we’re on a different level now, and we wanted to come in and prove it.”

With 291 total points, the women’s team fell just one point shy of doubling Ashland’s 146 point total.

Nozime did her part by placing first in the 400-meter hurdles. Her finish at 1 minute 42.73 seconds was only 0.01 seconds ahead of senior teammate Danielle Fonseca.

The women throwers had an especially strong showing. The Lakers took three of the top four places in the women’s shot put with sophomore Lauren Buresh taking first place. Her throw of 49 feet, 2.25 inches was more than three feet farther than second place Kelly Ash of Ashland.

Freshman Liz Murphy placed ninth in the shot put, but she more than made up for it with a first-place finish in the hammer throw. She slung the hammer 197-10, which set a new school record and maintained her rank as No. 1 in the nation.

“We’ve got a very talented group of girls that really work hard and have done everything that I’ve asked of them this year,” said GVSU throws coach Cory Young. “They were all very motivated at the GLIAC meet and were ready to throw those big throws. We’re not peaking out at all – we’ve still got some girls doing some heavy lifting, but they still came in and competed really well.”

The distance runners also fared well as they took the top four spots in the 5,000-meter run, led by junior Megan Maceratini. The women took three of the top four spots in the 10,000-meter as well, with senior Leah Borns winning the event.

On the men’s side, sophomores Paul Zielinski and Ryan Toth went one-two in the 5,000-meter, and sophomore Anthony Witt took first place in the 10,000-meter.

GVSU swept the 3,000-meter steeplechase with both the men and women claiming first through third places.

With the GLIAC tournament behind them, both teams will continue to train for the NCAA National Championship.

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