This weekend, Houghton’s indoor track and field team will be traveling to Bourbonnais, Illinois for the 2014 National Christian College Athletics Association (NCCAA) Indoor Track and Field Championship. Interestingly, Olivet Nazarene University, which is hosting the event, is also fielding a purple and gold team.
After a nine-hour journey, Houghton’s athletes will prepare for a multitude of events including four short distance sprinting events and one hurdle event; 3 long distance races; triple, high, and long jump, and other field events such as the shot put and relays. Two rigorous and lengthy events round out the meet: the women’s pentathlon (60 meter hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump, and 800 meter sprints) and the men’s heptathlon (60 meter dash, long jump, shot put, high jump, 60 meter hurdles, pole vault, & 1000 meter sprints).
So far this season Houghton’s athletes have been competing well in their events. Freshman Marshall Brady, once a local high school athlete, set a new school record in a meet this past Saturday in Ithaca. Scoring 4141 points after his final event, Brady finished tenth out of twenty-three against a field of athletes from St. John Fisher, Cortland, Cornell, and other regional universities. The week before, Brady was named as NCCAA Track and Field Student-Athlete of the Week. Another freshman, Joanna Friesen, a native of Pennsylvania, nearly broke the school record with her pentathlon score of 2279 points in five events. Friesen placed twelfth out of fifteen in her field. Junior Andrea Melhorn also shattered an old school record in the hammer throw with a score that landed her in thirteenth place in her event. These athletes will lead the charge for Houghton in their events in Illinois.
Travelling along with the athletes and trainers will be the meet’s Vice Chair Matt Dougherty, a Houghton graduate of the class of 2001, who was named men’s track coach in 2010. Coach Dougherty provided solid endorsements for the swath of athletes Houghton will be bringing to the event. “As always, we are looking to improve every chance we get to compete and we look to see how competitive we can be in the team rankings. The men are fairly low this year with injuries to some key upperclassmen and some athletes who are just lacking their fitness from a year ago. The women are a good mix of new and experienced athletes. Hopefully our seniors can help our first year runners adapt well to the national championships.”
Houghton’s men’s and women’s track and field team also performed at the Empire 8 Championships in Ithaca at the beginning of February. While Ithaca ended up sweeping both the men’s and women’s overall titles, Houghton’s athletes successfully finished in the top five in a multitude of events. Friesen placed in the 800 meter sprint, the distance medley relay (DMR), and the 4×400 meter relay, while Figueroa placed in the triple jump and 60 meter sprint events. Another female athlete, senior Leah Williams assisted in the DMR and ranked highly in the women’s mile race. For the men, a fifth position in the DMR as well as strong performances by Brady in the long, triple, and high jumps rounded out Houghton’s first round of indoor championship events.
Houghton’s gradual integration into the NCCAA allows for continued involvement in NCCAA championship meets as well as NCAA events. As a Christian organization, the NCCAA asks hosting universities to develop a service aspect of the event to parallel the athletic events. This year’s project, sponsored by voluntary donations from participating colleges, is a partnership with an organization called Living Alternatives, a pro-life clinic and assistance program that seeks “to promote life-affirming options and provide practical assistance, while sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in word and deed and to minister restoration to those who have been wounded by the trauma of abortion.”
Houghton’s track and field athletes head into this weekend’s championship events with great determination. Coach Dougherty, when asked about pre-event jitters, commented, “I wouldn’t say we are nervous. It’s an excited anticipation to test ourselves to find out where we are. This year’s national championship is as competitive as it has ever been and, as one of the smallest schools competing and the only NCAA DIII competing this year, we try and make our presence known as best we can.”