After five students qualified for the NAIA Indoor National Championships last week, the women’s track and field team had another strong meet on Saturday. In addition to winning four events and qualifying in another five, the women’s team hit four more national qualifying marks and broke a school record.

Goshen College’s all-American thrower, Deanna Kronk, a senior, led the way with National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics automatic qualifying throws in shot put and weight throw. Kronk won the shot put event with a throw of 42′ 11 1/2″ and placed second in the weight throw with a season best 49′ 9 1/2″ mark.

“Deanna is throwing very good for this time in the season,” said Leaf’s Coach Rick Clark, “especially in the shot put where she has worked hard to correct some difficulties she had last year.”

Peni Acayo, a sophomore, broke an 11-year-old Goshen College record and hit the NAIA automatic qualifying mark in the triple jump with a 36′ 11 1/2″ leap. Acayo placed third in the long jump with a jump of 17′ 2 1/4″.

“Peni practically jumped out of the building in both the triple and long jump,” said teammate Abri Houser, a senior. “If she can avoid injury, she will improve those jumps even more.”

Houser had a strong showing herself. For the second straight meet, she hit the NAIA qualifying mark in the 55-meter hurdles, finishing second with a time of 8.64 seconds. Houser also placed third in the high jump, jumping 4′ 10″.

Rachel Baker, a junior, and Laura Harnish, a senior, also had strong performances, running away from the field in the 800-meter and the mile run, respectively. Baker finished in 2:27.21 and Harnish ran the mile in 5:18.29, only two seconds off the NAIA qualifying pace.

After breaking the school record in the distance medley in Findlay, Ohio last weekend, the men’s track and field team broke another record on Saturday and had four top eight finishers.

Placing second behind last year’s national runner-up, Joss Foss of Indiana Wesleyan, Samuel Chegea, a senior, set a new Goshen College record in the mile run with a time of 4:19.00.

“It was a tight and exciting race where the top four runners broke 4:20,” said Cark. “[The mile run was] the highlight for the men … where the Leafs took two places.”

David Rumsey, a senior, also placed, finishing eighth with a personal best 4:30.64.

Ben Bouwman, a junior, placed fifth in the 3000-meter run with a time of 9:08.88.

The distance relay medley team of Bouwman, Rumsey, Chege and Alain Chaponniere, a first-year, finished second with a time of 10:44.10.

The Maple Leafs will next travel to Marion, Indiana to participate in the Indiana Wesleyan Invite.