Seward, Neb. – The Friends University Falcons are gearing up for the NAIA National Championship meet the right way with multiple terrific performances in a last chance meet at the Concordia Twilight Friday (May 9) in Seward, Neb.
The event featured the Men's 4 X 400 Relay team of Daniel Castello, Spencer Hines, Carter Giittinger and Eddy Rachedi coming through in the clutch and obtaining a national berth with an NAIA A Standard performance of 3:13.44 that is now the 15th best time in the NAIA this season.
That wasn't the only standard set, as Damon Scott nailed a B Standard in the Long Jump (7.23m) for the Falcons.
Mikkel Tarver (14.40m) also continued his march toward the national competition with a win in the Triple Jump, while Giittinger (14.32m) came in right behind as the runner-up.
On the women's side, Aaliyah Ramirez (3.53m) tuned up for the national meet with a seventh-place finish in the Pole Vault.
It's now full speed ahead to the NAIA National Championship meet for the Falcons, which is set for May 21-23 at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind.
"What a great evening for our men's program," said Friends track & field head coach Henry Brun. "Tyrique was able to go out there and snag his national qualifying mark to earn his way back to the NAIA meet after dealing with the windy conditions last week at the conference meet. The men's 4x400m relay was electric - I couldn't be more proud of those four guys. They started the season at 3:25 and it's been amazing to watch them really buy into the process of progress individually and together. They left it all out there on the track. We spent weeks flirting with the national standard and school record and they certainly did not leave it up to chance last night. When you run a time like 3:13 you are a serious contender to make a national final.
I am very excited about the group traveling to NAIA Nationals. It's a larger group, 17, and that will bring some great energy to the meet. This group has been focused all season and they have put up performances that have either broken school records or solidified themselves as Top Three performances all-time within the program. I can't wait for us to piece everything together and see what's in store in Indiana."
