Day two is devoted to the relays as the Dordt University women's track and field team competed in four relays to highlight Friday's action at the Drake Relays. The 113th annual event is being run on the historic Blue Oval, also known as Drake Stadium, in Des Moines, Iowa.
The Defenders 4x400 relay team earned a spot in Saturday's final by posting a season-best and eighth fastest time in today's prelim. The quartet of
Anmarie Stuit,
Shelby Buwalda,
Mika Kooistra and
Emilee Heynen finished second to Central Missouri (NCAA D-II) in their heat but qualified for the finals on the basis of time. Today's time meets the NAIA 'A' standard, is No.1 in the GPAC and currently ranks sixth in the NAIA.
Dordt's first event on Friday, the 4x100 relay, saw the Defenders run a season-best time and finish fourth among NAIA schools and 16th out of 23 teams overall. The team of
Erica Nikkel,
Lydia Herman,
Isabel De Lay and
Ayda Den Herder clocked a time of 49.46, bettering their season best by nearly two seconds. The Defenders have the fifth best time in the GPAC, 11th best in program history.
The Defenders competed in two more relays in the evening session, relays that are unique to the Drake Relays. Up first for was the sprint medley where the Defenders ran the fastest time among NAIA schools and finished eighth overall with a time of 4:11.34. Dordt's team of
Anna Herman, Den Herder, Buwalda and Heynen posted the seventh fastest time in program history.
Dordt's final event was in the 4x200 where they finished 21st overall, fourth among NAIA schools competing. The Defenders team of Nikkel, Herman, Herman and Den Herder completed the race in 1:44.8, a time that ranks fourth all-time.
Defenders Line-Up For Saturday:
- Distance Medley - 8:45am
- 4x400 Final - 4:55pm
Defender Results:
- 4x100 Relay
- 4x400 Relay
- Sprint Medley
- 4x200 Relay
