As the indoor track season nears its end, the HU Track and Field squad has put together an impressive season. With personal records and top finishes galore, this Pipers team eyes the end of the indoor season with optimism.

Success has been a commonality for these Pipers as evidenced by the recent Luther Invitational. The women’s podium was topped by the likes of sophomore Molly Meyers, first-year Frankie Witham and first-year Anabel Bradley. Not far behind with second place finishes included sophomore Desirae Dates, senior Madison Reed, sophomore Bria Luepke and first-year Marissa Albers. In the 4×400 meter relay, Bradley combined with senior Andreiana Aurelius, first-year Kebeh Temeh and first-year Kyla Chester to take the gold. 

These results together led to a first-place finish for the women’s team as a whole, topping Upper Iowa University and the host team Luther College.

“I’m really proud of the whole team for our success at the Luther meet and this season as a whole,” Bradley, the victor of the 1000m, said. “We have been practicing since the beginning of the year so it is fun to show off our hard work and to see that training translated over into success on the track and in the field events in competition this season.”

Bradley feels her key to success is, “showing up to practice every day even when I don’t feel the best or don’t have a great workout. Consistency is what really matters,” she said.

This sentiment is also reflected by the Head Women’s Track and Field Coach Vaughn Tackmann. 

“This sport is more about striving to be better than what you were the day before, and the day before that,” Tackmann said. “That’s really hard to do.”

Tackmann has also expressed his admiration and appreciation for young Pipers such as Bradley and the aforementioned Witham. 

“This group can set the foundation of how this program launches into the future,” Tackmann wrote in an email. “Frankie shows up everyday wanting to absorb information to get better. … Frankie competes and has the mentality of just going for it.  They are also extremely willing to make adjustments on the fly,” Tackmann wrote in an email.

While the women showed out at the Luther Invitational, the men had their time to shine as well. The men’s third-place finish was capped off by first-year Jackson Lightner’s victory in the 60m hurdles as well as not one but two first-place finishes by senior Michael Braun, who topped the field in both triple jump and high jump. 

Braun, who is no stranger to first-place finishes, came into this season as the reigning Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) high jump champion. Braun attributes this domination of the field to his mentality.

“[The key is] staying focused on what I can control,” Braun said. “Track is a weird sport in the sense that there is no defense, and you can’t really do anything to your opponents to stop them from doing what they can, so the more you can focus on the things you can control, the easier it is to stay focused on what you need to do.”

The Pipers look forward to carrying over this success to the MIAC indoor championships hosted by St. Olaf starting on Feb. 22.