WICHITA, Kan. -- The John Brown University track and field team delivered a strong showing at the Herm Wilson Invitational, securing six podium finishes and twelve top-10 performances across a range of events this weekend (Jan. 30-Feb. 1) inside the Heskett Center on the campus of Wichita State University.
JBU's middle-distance squad showed its strength with junior Matthew Cook surging to a second-place finish in the 800 meters, stopping the clock at 1:57.84. Senior Drew Janzen followed in fourth, crossing the line in 2:00.50. On the women's side, senior Anna Keys put together a strong kick down the final stretch to claim silver in the mile, finishing in 5:22.40.
The distance crew packed the leaderboards in the 5,000 meter event, where senior Emma Brown and freshman Paige Andrews both landed on the podium. Brown finished runner-up in 19:48.06, a personal best, while Andrews grabbed bronze in 20:17.75. The men followed suit, with senior Josiah Petak taking second in 15:58.38, sophomore Zach Briscoe placing third in 16:02.79, and freshman Sam Burkett finishing just off the podium in fourth at 16:08.72.
In the field events, freshman Benjamin Coker recorded a ninth-place finish in the long jump, hitting a mark of 6.61 meters (21 feet, 8.25 inches). He also cleared 1.80 meters (5 feet, 10.75 inches) in the high jump, tying for 10th place. Freshman Noah Osterloh rounded out JBU's top-10 finishes, landing 10th in the triple jump with a best effort of 12.64 meters (41 feet, 5.75 inches).
Senior Evie Scoles made her mark in the throws ring, finishing fifth in the shot put with a best toss of 12.79 meters (41 feet, 11.5 inches). Later, she would set a new program record, breaking her own, with a 12.67 meter (41 feet, 7 inches) weight throw to finish 15th in the event, a six-place improvement over her seeding.
With six podium finishes and twelve top-10 results, the Golden Eagles hope to ride the momentum when it returns to the track next weekend (Feb. 7-8) at the Northwest Missouri State Bearcat Invite, held at the Carl and Cheryl Hughes Fieldhouse in Maryville, Mo.
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