Distance and jumps crew pace Central men at Bearcat Open – Marion County Tribune

PELLA — An abundance of good marks in the jumps and distance events highlighted the Bearcat Open for the Central College men’s indoor track and field team on Saturday.

There were no team scores at the meet hosted by Division II Northwest Missouri State University on its 300-meter track. Central did not send its full roster to compete.

“It was mainly our distance group and a select few from the sprints, jumps and hurdles,” coach Brandon Sturman said. “We mostly took athletes who might have needed some additional work or could have benefitted from higher-level competition.”

In the 800-meter run, Will DeHaan (sophomore, DeWitt, Central DeWitt HS) was 16th (1:56.58) and Preston Kizer (senior, Dubuque) was 22nd (1:57.03). Nate Sanders (junior, Waukee) was 16th in the 3,000-meter run in 8:53.28.

“It was a long weekend for all of our distance runners,” Sturman said. “We’re the only Division III school at the meet. For us to be in some of the faster heats and competing is exciting. Going back-to-back days will also get them ready for the conference meet.”

Brock Lewis (sophomore, Lathrop, Mo.) surpassed 23 feet and seven meters for the first time collegiately. He placed fifth in the long jump with a distance of 23 feet, 0.75 inches. He was also 13th in the triple jump (44-6.25).

“Brock had a phenomenal day in long jump,” Sturman said. “In the triple jump, we had some approach issues and couldn’t get on the board consistently. We’re pretty confident in how we’re jumping, we just need to continue to work on some technical stuff.”

Drake Lewis (senior, Lathrop, Mo.) finished fifth after clearing the high jump at 6-8.

“He didn’t hit a new PR, but he was jumping at his current PR,” Sturman said. “He had some really good attempts at it.”

Central will travel to Grinnell next Saturday for the Darren Young Classic.