Men's Track and Field | 5/4/2023 6:57:00 PM

ADRIAN, Mich. – The Golden Eagles started the WHAC Championships with a ton of success, seeing three school records. Josh DeVries, Ashley Verplank, and Phoenix Velthouse all achieved school record marks on the day as the Golden Eagle men scored 55 team points while the women totaled 57 to both sit in third after day one of the WHAC Championships. Cornerstone continues action at the WHAC Championships tomorrow starting at noon in Adrian.  
 
Men's Results 
The men's action opened with multiple outstanding performances in the men's hammer throw. Nick Huynh highlighted action with a throw of 53.81m to move to third all-time on CU's outdoor list and finish second in the event for eight points. Stephen Weflen PR'd with a mark of 42.39m to finish fifth and Ryan Shinabery went 42.13m for sixth place, giving CU a total of 18 points in the event. 
 
Brad Holbrook was able to clear 1.95m in the high jump to finish fourth overall for five points. The mark is a new PR and moves him to fifth all-time in program history. 
 
The men's 4x800 quartet of Nate Vruggink, Logan Churchill, Luke Pohl, and Colten Covington were able to run a mark of 7:47.36 to finish third overall and earn the season's first NAIA Provisional Standard in the event. The quartet also moves to seventh all-time on CU's outdoor list. 
 
In a qualifying event of the 110m hurdles, just a week after regaining the freshman record from teammate Patrick Adams, Phoenix Velthouse would set the school record. Velthouse ran a finals qualifying mark of 14.88 to move on to tomorrow and break a 22-year-old school record held by one of his coaches in Paul Koutz. 
 
A red-hot Phoenix Velthouse would also be the top scorer for CU in the long jump with a PR mark of 6.87m to finish fifth for four team points. Seth Stoltz also found his name in the top eight with a PR and eighth-place leap of 6.56m to earn one more team point. The duo both move up on the CU top 10 outdoor list. 
 
Freshman Hunter Leven added team points in the men's javelin with a new PR of 49.72m to finish third and earn six team points. The mark also moved him to fourth all-time in school history. 
 
The final men's running event of the day was the 10,000m. Only one CU athlete ran in Jamin Thompson, and he scored, finishing third with a time of 32:03.25 to earn six team points.
 
The night ended with Josh DeVries clearing a monster mark in the pole vault. DeVries tied the school record at 5.00m for a new PR and he won the individual WHAC Title. The mark also moves him into NAIA Auto Qualifying Standards for the National Championships the end of May. 
 
Women's Results 
The first female to score was Morgan Vargo in the long jump. Vargo leaped 5.34m to earn third in the event for six points. 
 
Ashley Verplank was able to continue her tear in the pole vault with a new PR as she broke her own school record and finished second overall for eight team points. Tatum Townsend also scored for CU with a sixth-place finish of 3.55m in the event. 
 
In one of the few running events on day one, the quartet of Lauren VanderLaan, Jessica Jarski, Kori Baumann, and Rachel Barone were able to record a fourth-place finish of 9:45.92 in the 4x800. The mark scored five team points for CU. 
 
In the women's high jump, both Kaitlin Essig and Braely Herrema were able to score for CU with a mark of 1.55m. The duo finished fifth and sixth respectively for seven total team points. 
 
In the women's hammer throw, Cornerstone saw two scorers. The senior Jenna Breuker led the way with a third-place finish of 47.76m, while freshman Claire Meacham snuck into seventh with a throw of 42.03m.  
 
The final running event of the day on the women's side was the 10,000m that saw only eight entrants. Cammie McConnell and Haley Nieuwkoop were two of those as they finished third and fourth respectively for 11 team points. 
 
The night ended with women's javelin where Jenna Breuker and and Halle Schnyders each scored with fourth and fifth place finishes. Breuker went 31.25m, while Schnyders went 30.77m to total nine team points. 
 
What's Next?
Cornerstone continues the WHAC Championships tomorrow at noon back at Siena Heights.  
 
Track & Field Contact: Jesse Campbell 
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