PITTSBURGH, Kan. - The Ashland men's team and Grand Valley State women's team lead the point standings after the first day of competition at the 2019 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at Pittsburgh State University.
The Eagles head into Saturday with 24 points in the men's standings and lead second-place Colorado School of Mines by seven points. The GVSU men are third with 15.25 points.
Grand Valley State leads the women's standings with 21 points, three points ahead of Adams State.
The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference has one individual champion as GVSU junior Bobbie Goodwin won the women's weight throw with a distance of 20.75 meters (68-1).
The Ashland men placed second, third and fourth in the men's weight throw. Sophomore Brent Fairbanks was the NCAA runner-up with a distance of 21.14 meters (69-4 1/4). He was followed by teammates Nick Zack (21.06 meters, 69-1 1/4) and Alex Hill (20.75 meters, 68-1). AU's Natalie Helenthal was fourth in the women's weight throw (20.38 meters, 66-10 1/2).
Grand Valley's Zach Panning placed second in the men's 5,000-meter run in 13:46.87, while GVSU's Gina Patterson was seventh in the women's 5,000 with a time of 16:49.76.
Ashland's Myles Pringle finished fourth in the men's high jump (2.12 meters, 6-11 1/2), and GVSU's Jacob Battani was sixth in the men's pole vault (5.16 meters, 16-11).
Rachael Walters, Heather Johnson, Abby Crouch and Allie Ludge of GVSU took third in the women's distance medley relay (11:29.05). The GVSU men's DMR team of Jonathon Groendyk, Andrew McFarland, Nick Salomon and Dennis Mbuta was fifth in 9:49.47.
