Track & field teams are UAA champions
The men’s and women’s track and field teams swept the UAA Outdoor Championships at Francis Field April 23-24.
With the two league championships, the University broke the UAA record for most overall conference titles during a single athletic year with 11; WUSTL also held the old record, nine, which had been set on three occasions.
The women tallied 13 titles and were led by senior Maggie Grabow and freshman Danielle Wadlington. Grabow won the 1,500-meter run in 4:41.74, and she followed that with a first-place finish in the 5,000 by clocking a 17:36.09.
Wadlington displayed her versatility throughout the weekend, winning the triple jump and the 200-meter dash Sunday. Additionally, Wadlington led off the Bears’ winning 4×100 relay squad that set a UAA record by clocking a 48.79 to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Outdoors.
She was joined on the winning team by senior Hallie Hutchens, junior Leah Sabin, Brookfield and junior Julie McDermitt. Junior Laura Ehret, sophomore Natalie Badowski, Wadlington and junior Michelle McCully combined to win the 4×400 relay in 4:00.37.
Ehret also picked up the 800-meter conference title by posting a time of 2:19.39, and McCully won the 400 in 58.18. Hutchens made more UAA history in the 100-meter hurdles, becoming the only student-athlete to win the event four consecutive years in the league’s 18-year history.
Sophomore Delaina Martin added another title by winning the discus. In the prelims she recorded a team season-best throw of 39.34 meters and held on for the win in the final (34.44 meters). Freshman Tiffany Barbour took home the javelin championship with a throw of 32.18 meters.
Junior David Skiba paced the men’s squad, winning both hurdles events. He won the 110 hurdles in 14.81, good for an NCAA “B” cut. Skiba recorded another provisional qualifying time in the 400-meter event, clocking a time of 54.36 for the win. Junior Drew Martin added the men’s title in the discus, registering a throw of 42.84 meters.
The men, 10-time UAA outdoor champions, won seven individual titles on the weekend. The women have totaled nine UAA outdoor titles and have won six straight since 2000.
Baseball splits two; closer to wins mark
The baseball team split its two games last week to move to 28-7 overall, just two wins away from matching the single-season record for victories.
WUSTL fell, 7-3, on April 19 at Illinois Wesleyan University.
But on April 21, the Red and Green exploded for 21 hits and 16 runs to end its three-game slide. Dan Rieck went 2 for 3 with another round-tripper, his team-leading 10th of the season. His 10 home runs also tie the WUSTL single-season record. Sophomore Brent Buffa went the distance on the mound and improved to a team-best 9-1, as he allowed just four hits and struck out 11.
Softball team ekes out two narrow road wins
The top-ranked softball team improved to 41-1 with two one-run victories against Wartburg College April 24 in Waverly, Iowa. With the two wins, WUSTL extended its school-record winning streak to 24 games.
In Game 1, senior Jackie Burgdorf hit a two-out, two-run home run in the top of the seventh to lead the Bears to a 3-2 come-from-behind win. The home run for Burgdorf was the first of her career. Sophomore Laurel Sagartz picked up the win, improving to 20-1.
In the nightcap, the Bears pounded out 13 hits and held off a late rally from the Knights to post a 7-6 victory.
Women’s tennis team sweeps Principia, 9-0
The women’s tennis team wrapped up regular-season play April 19 with a 9-0 sweep at home against Principia College.
At No. 1 singles, senior Kacie Cook rolled past Principia’s Kat Pomeroy, 6-0, 6-0. With the win, Cook improved to 13-11 overall. Senior Sara Kabakoff moved up to No. 2 singles for the day and won, 6-0, 6-3, to up her record to a team-best 19-6.
Men’s tennis team takes two of three
The No. 17 men’s tennis team posted a 2-1 record last week to end its regular season with a 13-5 record.
The Bears opened the week with a 7-0 win over Maryville University on April 19 at the Tao Tennis Center. On April 23, WUSTL split matches with 10th-ranked Kalamazoo College and Coe College.
Freshman Charlie Howard posted WUSTL’s only victory in a 5-1 loss to No. 10 Kalamazoo College with a 6-0, 6-3 win. Howard capped the week off with two victories in the Bears 5-1 win over Coe College. He leads the team with a 24-4 singles mark and is 20-9 in doubles for a 44-13 overall mark.