Forness & Hendrickson Are MIAC Champs

NORTHFIELD, Minn. (5/05/17)---Seniors Mikayla Forness and Joe Hendrickson pulled off the double win in the MIAC multi-event championships at Carleton. Both athletes used big numbers in the javelin to win the heptathlon and decathlon at the conference meet.

It is the first time since 2008 that Concordia athletes have swept the wins at the MIAC heptathlon and decathlon. Leah Kay and

Forness was in fourth place with two events left in the heptathlon and then uncorked a throw of 136-02 to climb all the way into second place just five points off the lead. Forness finished off the win by clocking a 2:25.85 in the 800 meters. Her time was the second fastest among the 14 competitors and he won the heptathlon by 212 points.

Forness' final total of 4,721 points is a career best and the fourth best in Division III this season. It is also the third highest total in school history.

Hendrickson found himself in third place after the eighth of ten events. Like Forness, he then won the javelin competition with a mark of 159-08. His season-best distance earned him 569 points and vaulted him into second place – only 44 points shy of the lead.

In order to win the overall decathlon title Hendrickson needed to beat the leader in the 1500 meters by a full 8.0 seconds. He would make sure that it wouldn't be close as he blew away the field and won the race with a career time of 4:34.0. He was 12 seconds faster than the runner-up in the event and beat the overall decathlon leader heading into the final event by 16.3 seconds.

Hendrickson's total of 6,197 points is a career best and the fifth highest total in program history.

Forness finished in the Top 4 of competitors in six of the seven events in the heptathlon. She had the best mark in the shot put and javelin and finished second in the 200 and 800 meters. Forness scored more than 700 points in the 100-meter hurdles, 200 and 800. Her highest point total came in the very first event when she ran a 15:45 in the 100-meter hurdles and scored 783 points.

Hendrickson had four event wins out of the 10 events. He posted the best marks in the shot put, discus, javelin and 1500 meters. He scored more than 600 points in five of the events and had 700 or more in the 100-meter dash, 400 and 1500 meters. As with Forness, his top-scoring event came in the very first race of the two-day competition. Hendrickson ran an 11.62 in the 100-meter dash and amassed 728 points.

The Cobbers had four athletes compete in both the heptathlon and decathlon. Jenna Stilwell and Marissa Andersen placed seventh and eighth in the heptathlon and Forness' sister Miriah Forness came home in 13th place. Stilwell and Anderson had season-best point totals.

Willie Julkes III, Brett Brenden and Alex Van Bemmelen were the other three competitors for the CC men's team. Julkes placed fifth with a career-best total of 5,399 points. Brenden was close behind with 5,357 points which was good for a seventh-place finish. His total is a career best and is more than 800 points better than his 15th-place finish at last year's conference decathlon. Van Bemmelen made it three straight career-best point totals for the Cobber men. He scored 4,516 points and finished in 13th place.

WHAT'S NEXT: The Cobber multi-event athletes will join the rest of Concordia when the teams compete in the Ron Masanz Invite hosted by MSU Moorhead on Saturday, May 6.       
   
FINAL MIAC DECATHLON STANDINGS
1. Joe Hendrickson - Concordia Moorhead – 6197
2. Preston Huddleston - St. Thomas – 6139
3. James Moyer - Bethel – 6061
4. Eli Knutson - St. Olaf – 5831
5. Willie Julkes - Concordia Moorhead – 5399
6. Adam Kaiser - St. Olaf – 5377
7. Brett Brenden - Concordia Moorhead – 5357
8. Nelson Finne - Gustavus – 5345
9. Adam Rikkers - St. Thomas – 5244
10. Liam Sullivan - Carleton – 4886
11. Chris Frick - St. Olaf – 4798
12. Derek Huntley - Gustavus – 4614
13. Alex Van Bemmelen - Concordia Moorhead – 4516
14. Kyle Stichman - Bethel – 4429
15. Caden Skinner - Bethel - 4218