TRACK & FIELD

Later this week, five Foresters will compete in the NAIA Annual Indoor Track & Field National Championships in Brookings, S.D. at Dakota State University’s Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex. A total of 983 student-athletes qualified for the 2019 NAIA event.

On the women’s side, senior Aspen Dirr will be tripling at nationals by running in two individual events and one relay.

Dirr along with freshman Saige Norris, sophomore Jessica Chojnacki and junior Molly Mitchell will represent HU on Thursday in the Distance Medley Relay semifinals slated for 4:30 p.m. CST. The foursome ran a 12:28.97 at the Crossroads League Championships on February 9 to be seeded 10th out of 13 teams. The top eight teams will advance to the DMR finals on Saturday at 4:20 p.m. CST.

On Friday, Dirr will then toe the line for the semis of the 1,000 meters at 3:15 p.m. CST. The Hudson native is seeded third out of 16 runners based on running a 2:58.46 at Findlay’s Flag City Open on February 16. The finals of the 1K will feature the top eight finishers of the semis and is scheduled for Saturday at 2:25 p.m. CST.

Dirr is only one of nine runners who qualified for the mile. As such, there will be just the finals of this race on Saturday at 12:25 p.m. CST. She is seeded fourth having clocked in at 5:02.71 at the CL meet.

Sophomore Adrien Gentie is the lone Forester representing the Huntington men’s team. He qualified for the mile at the Flag City Open by running a 4:21.64. He is scheduled to run in the semis on Friday at 12:20 p.m. CST as the 14th seed. Finals for this race will take place on Saturday at 12:35 p.m. CST.

For all five Forester athletes, this weekend marks the first time they have competed in the NAIA Track & Field National Championships.