Track & Field Conference Championships

FAYETTE, Mo. – Results | After a season of tough practices and great competition, the Pioneers took their battle tested and battle worn warriors to Central Methodist University for this two day Heart of America Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championship. They would fight through their war-wounds and lay it all on the line for the final meet of the season for many.
 
If there was any battle fatigue, the Pioneers hid it well as 19 different Pioneers grabbed All-Conference honors, some in multiple events for a total of 30 medals with relays getting four each. In all, there were five Heart of America Conference gold, nine silver, and four bronze event set of medals given to the Pioneers. Along with All-Conference honors, there were 32 Pioneers who contributed to team scoring with 25 setting personal or collegiate bests, eight National qualifying marks (four – A and four - B standard), six seasonal relay bests, and a school record set in the shot put.  Also, Victoria Lotz was awarded the women's 2025 Heart of America Track and Field – Field Athlete of the Meet with Jatavion Pegues winning the men's 2025 Heart of America Track and Field - Track Athlete of the Meet.  Finally, the coach of the very strong throwing crew was not to be overlooked as Coach Houser won the women's 2025 Heart of America Track and Field Assistant Coach of the Year.
 
In this two day event, the throwers, long jumpers, and 800 meter experts were the first to go to battle. Where the throwers and jumpers were an aerial assault, the 4x800 teams hit the ground running, each doing their part.
 
Led by the top NAIA hammer thrower in the country, the Pioneer women grabbed 21 points in the hammer with Victoria Lotz taking the gold, Caley Blosser the silver, and Alexandra Dickerson taking sixth.  Three of the ladies set personal bests, Blosser, Dickerson, and Alicia Hernandez-Mast, as Blosser also qualified for Nationals with a B-standard throw which placed her 13^th in the nation.
 
Similarly, the women's long jump crew took to the skies with four Pioneers hitting scoring marks.  Senior Reanna Green took the gold with an A-standard National mark where she sits eighth in the nation, while Olivia Young, Nala Burns, and Hayley Loewen went sixth, seventh, and eighth, respectively, to total 16 points.
 
Meanwhile in the men's division, Brody Stewart and Jaxson Nation were sending rockets into the afternoon sky with personal bests in the javelin throw. In doing so, Stewart also claimed eight points by taking the silver medal home with him.
 
In the men's hammer, Jacob Creswell continued leading the Pioneer charge as he has all season long with a fifth place showing for four team points. This gave the Pioneers 12 points in total, all from the throwing crew.
 
In the 4x800, the women's squad of Isabella Meili, Anna McKnight, Alex Gere, and Casandra Reyes, fought the good fight for a fifth place finish to bring the team total to 41 points for the day.  This put the Pioneers in a two-way tie for second place at the end of one day.
 
Likewise, the 4x800 Pioneer men of Zack Jones, Bret Bourquin, TJ Besmer, and Ray Kosgei, equaled the women's placing of fifth for four points with the team gathering 16 points for the day. They were sitting in the top six as they awaited the second day battle.
 
Day two of the battle held promise for the men, especially, as Gift Iredia and Jatavion Pegues qualified in the 100 and 200 meter dash finals while Sam Keita and Lance Jones did, likewise, in the 110 meter high hurdles.  Iredia qualified for the finals in both events by setting personal records in each.
 
On Saturday, the battle ground exploded with the field events leading the way for the Pioneers. The women throwers of MNU continued their relentless aerial attack with Lotz taking the title in both the shot put and the discus. Both were personal bests with her shot put launch setting a new outdoor school record. Lotz also claimed the fifth and sixth spots in the nation with A standard marks in the shot put and discus, respectively. Dickerson followed her team leader with a personal record in the discus and grabbed two points with a seventh place finish. The shot put sent all five Pioneers to the finals with Hernandez-Mast obtaining her second personal best of the weekend and Ella Margheim and Blosser rounding out the scoring in seventh and eighth, respectively. In total, the Pioneer women throwers scored an incredible 51 points for the team.
 
The points continued to pour in from the field as the women jumpers added another 14 points to their previously earned 16 for a total of 30. Freshman Ella Burnett set a collegiate best in the high jump to claim the silver medal while seasoned veteran Hayley Loewen took home the bronze in her strongest event, the triple jump.
 
Up first for the running events, Jackson Elsey and Ken Morgan, represented the Pioneer men in the 3000 meter steeplechase. They both ran personal bests as Elsey took two points home for the team with a seventh place finish.
 
The women and men's team of the 4x100 both hit seasonal bests to claim All-Conference honors with bronze medals. The women's team consisted of Green, Lakin Essex, Burns, and Daizy Ntowe. The men were represented by Maikyah Stowe, Pegues, Blake Poje, and Iredia.
 
The men's scoring continued with Keita and Lance Jones hitting their strides in the 110 meter hurdles. In a very tight event, Keita grabbed the silver medal for All Conference honors while Jones added two additional points with a seventh place finish.
 
Switching to the long sprint and/or mid-distance events, the 400 meter dash looked to be a very competitive event. The Pioneer women ran well as Essex and Joslyn Griffin took fifth and sixth for points and Hannah Edwards added to the personal records column. For the men, in a very close photo finish, Blake Poje was nipped at the line, giving him the silver medal, with Mathew Banuelos hitting his stride for a personal best.
 
As previously mentioned, Pegues and Iredia made the finals in the true sprint event, 100 meter dash. Pegues took home the silver with a personal best as Iredia felt a tug in a muscle but was still able to finish in seventh for team points. However, this did eliminate Iredia from future events at the meet including the finals in the 200 meter dash, a setback for the team.
 
In what some might claim was the track event of the day for the Pioneers, five Pioneers set personal bests in the 800 meter run. Josephine McClung got the Pioneer women revved up with her inspirational come from behind close, starting from the 200 meter mark, to set a personal best and win her heat over a former high school teammate. Gere, who was the fastest leg on the 4x800 Pioneer squad, was relentless in her open. At the end of the first lap, she was in second place and would not give-in. Though the leader switched places, Gere remained constant to grab the silver medal and set a personal record. Likewise, the Pioneer men were patient as TJ Bessmer sat back only to rip past the leaders and claim his heat with a personal best. Senior Bret Bourquin was not to be outdone in his heat either. He moved into position around the final curve and then blasted past his opponent to also set a best and take the heat which put him in first overall before the last heat. Generally, out fast, Zack Jones put himself in position in the first lap, but did not lead at the first 200 meters. Jones fought hard to grab the bronze medal and set a personal best, making sure he beat teammate Bourquin. Bourquin, however, also scored points, taking fifth overall.
 
Next up was the 400 hurdles with three Pioneer's taking to the track in this grueling event.  Kirsten Wetterstrom set the tone with a personal best in the women's division as the men awaited their turn. Both in the fast heat, Lance Jones and Keita got out well, making the competition fight.  Keita led to the last hurdle, though in a battle with CMU.  Unfortunately, the realities of track struck as Keita took a tumble and rolled on the track. Always the fighter, he was able to get up and finish the race.  Jones, a couple lanes over, grabbed the fourth place finish to aid the team in points.
 
Representing the Pioneers in the 200 meter dash, Pegues had a good start in the finals and drove past his competition to grab the silver medal. He set a personal best and had a time that would normally be a B standard qualifier, but there was enough wind to squelch that hope.
 
Ending the long distance events for the day, senior Reyes made her debut in the 5000 meter run. She ran very well to take sixth place overall and take three points off the table for the competition.
 
The final event for the day was the ever exciting 4x400. Though CMU women dominated this event with an A standard National qualifying time, MNU was obviously in the hunt for a National qualifying time, too. The 4x400 squad of Janiah Nicholson, Griffin, Gere, and Essex would not be deterred as they fought hard to keep close to CMU. By the end of the second leg, the Pioneers were all by themselves, three seconds ahead of the third place team, but four seconds behind CMU. They were there to seize the opportunity. Gere and Essex closed the race strongly to grab the silver medal as well as a B standard National qualifying time. For the men's squad of Pegues, Bourquin, Zack Jones, and Poje, once again, CMU was there to keep the men pushing. Though there were five teams within striking distance after two legs, CMU had the advantage with MNU towards the end of that pack.  In the third leg, the Pioneers and CMU started separating from the crowd. In the final leg, CMU had a slight lead with Poje bearing down quickly. Poje overtook the Eagle on the backstretch and never let up to grab the gold medal and help the team qualify for Nationals with a B standard mark.
 
With all the events completed, and after a strongly waged battle, the Pioneer women walked away with a third place Heart of America Conference award while the men earned a respectable fourth place team finish.