Waverly, IA- A select few Wittenberg University men's and women's track and field athletes competed in the 2021 Division III Elite Meet this weekend from Wartburg College from Waverly, Iowa. Due to the cancelation of the NCAA Winter Championships, the Tigers are taking part in DIII Elite Indoor Championships to replicate the next highest level of competition to get that championship caliber experience.
Four Tigers were set to compete at the 2020 NCAA Indoor Championships a year ago when the competition was called off just a day before events were set to begin. Three of those four Wittenberg athletes return to compete on a national stage for the first time in nearly a year. Alexis Johnson competed in the 60-meter dash, long jump and triple jump competition. Stevie Plikerd joins her fellow Tiger, competing in both the long jump and triple jump. Alexis Gray pushes the pack across the nation in the 800-meter run and looked to be one of the favorites to claim a spot on the podium. Hannah Schartz competed in the biggest meet of her collegiate career, competing in the high jump competition. Schartz currently sits in the top 10 nationally, clearing the bar at 5'5.
Johnson picked up a fourth-place finish in the 60-meter finals with a time of 7.92 and a second-place finish in the triple jump after going for a distance of 11.39m. Picking up points in the women's long jump was Plikerd with a second-place spot and distance of 5.35m. Gray was able to make an impact in the 800-meter with a finishing time of 2:14.92 and third place spot. And in her biggest meet thus far, Schartz took home second in the high jump with a height of 1.62m.
The men's team was represented by Austyn Albanese, Ezekiel Bennet, Ian McCandlish, and Deven Ramsey who competed in the men's 4x400 and finished with a time of 3:22.48 and seventh place. They were joined by senior, Zachary Guyer who competed in the pentathlon. Guyer took home first in the long jump at 6.48m, a tie at first in the high jump with a height of 1.89m, second-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles, fourth in the shot put (10.70m), and fifth place finish in the 1000-meter run. Guyer picked up a total of 3360 points to take over a new Wittenberg school record for points in the pentathlon and personal record. The personal record gave Guyer a second-place overall finish.
With all events score the Tigers went home with a fifth-place finish on the women's side and a 20th place finish on the men's side. Wittenberg will be back home on March 26th for their Tiger Quad meet.