The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's & women's track & field teams finished up competition in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships on Friday in Platteville. The men's team finished 4th overall in the WIAC with 57 points, the women finished 8th with 26.25 points. On the second day of competiton, the Warhawks had 12 inidivuals reach the podium, and the men's 4x400 take second overall. 

The first final of the day featuring Warhawks was the men's 60m dash. Sam Vargas (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) and Caleb Beightol (Belgium, Wis./Cedar Grove-Belgium) ran together, finishing within a thousandth of a second of each other in a photo finish. Vargas had the slight edge, with an official timing of 6.779 seconds to finish 4th overall. Beightol timed in at 6.780 to take fifth overall.

Alyssa Stacy (Sycamore, Ill./Sycamore) placed on the podium in the women's 200m dash, finishing 6th overall with a time of 25.63. Stacy's time was the 9th fastest in Warhawk History. In the men's 200m dash, the Warhawks had three runners make the podium, and one earn a Second Team All-Conference spot. Sam Vargas (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) timed in at at 21.80, a personal best, to place second overall in the event. Chris Kalies (Grafton, Wis./Grafton) and Jack Erickson (Belleville, Wis./Belleville) placed 6th and 7th, timing in at 22.12 and 22.19, both top-10 times in program history.

Both 4x400 relays finished in the top-4 of the meet. The women's squad of Kiertsen Dellar, Hannah Bilodeau-Wahl (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem), Lily Cooper (Elkhorn, Wis./Elkhorn), and Sophie Beightol (Belgium, Wis./Cedar Grove-Belgium) placed 4th overall with a time of 4:00.79, the 8th fastest time in program history. The men's squad placed second overall with a time 3:19.43, giving second team All-Conference for Brad Heller (Brookfield, WI/East), Jack Erickson (Belleville, Wis./Belleville), Chris Kalies (Grafton, Wis./Grafton), and Gabe Ubert (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha South). 

In the field events, Ryleigh Czarnecki (Muskego, Wis./Muskego) placed on the podium in the women's weight throw. Czarnecki had her best throw in the first round of the finals at 16.81m (54-3.00) to place 8th overall. The 16.81m mark was a personal best and the 8th best throw in the record books.

Max Wallace (West Allis, Wis./Hale) placed 7th in the men's triple jump, recording a 13.83m (45-4.50) on his third jump of the day. On the women's side of the triple jump, Lexie Weier (Mineral Point, WI/Mineral Point) placed on the podium as well, recording her best jump of 11.03m (36-2.25) to place 8th overall. 

In the men's high jump, the Warhawks had three place on the podium. Landon Scray (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead), Jer'Von Anderson (Watertown, Wis./Watertown), and Daniel Nickel (Marshall, Wis./Marshall) tied for 5th, surpassing the 1.96m (6-5.25) bar on their second attempts.

Next week, the Warhawks will compete in various Last Chance Meets, looking to submit their final times before the NCAA Indoor Track & Field National Chmapionship on March 13th and 14th in Birmingham, Alabama. 

Friday Recap
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's & women's track & field teams opened competition in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships on Friday in Platteville. The Warhawks had eight podium finishers from the first day of competition.

The first podiums of the day came from the women's mile. Katie Erb (Winnebago, Ill./Winnebago) and Emma Henningeld both placed in the top 8 for the Warhawks. Erb finished 3rd, earning an All-Conference Honorable Mention, crossing with a 5:05.05. Henningfeld ran a career-best time herself, crossing at 5:10.98 to finish 7th overall and move into 10th place in the Warhawk record book. 

The women's team had another two podium finishers in the high jump. Amanda Hillman placed second overall, surpassing the 1.60m (5-3) bar to earn a Second team All-Conference placing. Danielle Pouska (Algonquin, Ill./Jacobs) reached the 1.55m bar, tying for 8th place overall in the podium finish. 

For the men, the Warhawks had a strong showing in the 400m. Chris Kalies (Grafton, Wis./Grafton) and Gabe Ubert (Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha South) both set career-bests in the event, moving into the top-5 spots in the Warhawk record book. Kalies placed 5th overall with a 49.00, the third-best time in Warhawk history. Ubert timed in right behind him with a 49.23 for a 6th place finish, and the fifth fastest time in the program record book. 

Lincoln Begin (Greenfield, Wis./Greenfield) placed on the podium in the long jump. With his final jump of the day, Begin marked a 6.93m (22-8.75) jump, placing 7th overall in the conference meet.  

In the men's pole vault, Jack Froslee (Andover, Minn./Andover) had a career mark, reaching the 4.80m (15-9.00) bar. Froslee placed 6th overall in the event.

The Warhawk squad will continue the WIAC Championship meet on Saturday. Saturday's events include the men's 60m finals, in which Caleb Beightol (Belgium, Wis./Cedar Grove-Belgium) & Sam Vargas (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) both qualified. Beightol had the 2nd fastest time in the prelims with a 6.73, while Sam Vargas (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead) set a career-best 6.76, the third fastest time in program history.