CC Helps CC Sweep Double Dual
MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/13/21)---The thermometer outside might have read -12 but inside the Olson Forum it was a balmy 72-degrees as Concordia hosted its home opener in a double dual against Southwest Minnesota State and Valley City State. The Cobbers used their overall team depth and the quality of their middle distance and distance corps to take down the Mustangs 88-53 and better the Vikings 89-65.
The hottest spot of the afternoon came in the 60-meter dash where freshman Colin Conteh posted the fourth fastest time in school history in the very first home meet of his collegiate career. Conteh battled with SMSU sprinter Broderick Starnes and was able to use that dual to cross the line in a time of 7.24. That mark is the fastest by a Cobber since 2014 when Ben Vickstrom set the school record of 6.98 at the MIAC Indoor Meet.
Conteh also put up a PR in the 200 meters as he finished third in a time of 23.79.
Concordia junior Cal Wright edged out Conteh for second place in the 200. He crossed the line in a time of 23.19 which is his fastest time of the year in the event and fifth best in the MIAC this season.
The biggest non-surprise of the day was that Cobber junior Jesse Middendorf won both the 600 and 800 meters. Middendorf won both events by over a full 4-seconds. He ran a 1:23.07 in the 600 meters and a 2:00.06 in the 800 meters. It was the first time he ran the 600 meters this season and his finishing time is the best in the MIAC this season which gives him the top times in the 600 and 800 meters.
Concordia's middle-distance depth was on display in both the 600 and 800 where they swept the Top 4 spots in each event. Senior Connor Haugrud and junior Dan Wilson swapped second and third-place finishes in the races. Haugrud was second in the 800 at 2:06.02 and third in the 600 at 1:29.72 while Wilson posted a runner-up finish in the 600 with a time of 1:27.83 and was third in the 800 after crossing the line in 2:07.89. Junior Hans Frank-Holzner was fourth in the 600 at 1:31.02 and freshman Lucas Hinojos was fourth in the 800 at 2:14.66.
The Cobbers also recorded wins in the two distance events. Senior Munir Isahak clocked a season-best 9:05.27 and won the 3K by a solid 8-seocnds. Cole Nowacki outdistanced fellow freshmen Leo Smith to grab the victory in the indoor mile. He came through with a mark of 4:33.70 which edged Smith by .42 of a second. Smith's time earns him a spot in the Top 10 of the MIAC in the event. Smith was also second in the 3000 meters to Isahak. He ran a 9:13.62 which was just off his pace from the season opener at NDSU two weeks ago.
Senior Jake LePard and sophomore Wade Rhonemus gave Concordia event wins in field events. LePard came up with a season-best distance of 20-07 in the long jump. That mark is a season best and ties for fourth best in the conference. Rhonemus, who posted a PR in the heptathlon two weeks ago, won the pole vault with a mark of 12-07.50. Rhonemus was also second in the long jump at 20-03.75 as he continues to improve his skills for the multi-events.
The bookend pair of Jacob Steiner and Cooper Folkestad led the way for CC in the throws. Senior Steiner was third in both the shot put and weight throw while freshman Folketad was fourth in the shot put and eighth in the weight throw. Steiner had distances of 47-08 in the shot put and 50-03.50 in the weight throw. Both marks are just shy of his season bests which he posted in the season opener at NDSU. Folkestad's distance of 47-05 was also short of his mark at NDSU. He was able to come up with a mark of 43-03 in the very first weight throw of his college career.
Upperclassmen Jacob Kerzman and Ben Schelske both recorded season bests in the weight throw. Kerzman was fifth in the event with a mark of 47-01.00 and Schelske was sixth at 45-02.50.
UP NEXT: Concordia will host its second consecutive dual meet when they square off against 8th Street rivals MSU Moorhead on Saturday, Feb. 20 at 11 a.m.
SPONSOR: Today's recap is sponsored by the fine folks at Buffalo Wild Wings. Cobber fans can be like freshman sprinter Colin Conteh who eats his post-meet meal at Buffalo Wild Wings. B-Dubs loves its sports and has been a gracious sponsore for Cobber athletics for the past several years. Hey - you can even find their logo under the basketball scoreboard.
