Senior Kayla Silva, junior Anna Schatzle lead Women’s Indoor Track and Field at Polar Bear Qualifier
By Wes Mayberry
ADA — Senior Kayla Silva (Westerville/South) and junior Anna Schatzle (Brookville, Ind./Franklin County) posted top-two finishes Saturday to lead the Ohio Northern women's indoor track and field team in the Polar Bear Qualifier at the ONU Sports Center.
The event was not team scored.
Silva won the 60-meter dash, tying her own school-record time of :07.82.
Schatzle finished second in the pole vault, setting a new personal-best with a height of 3.72 meters, which ranks fifth in program history.
That mark also puts her in solid position to qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships, which are scheduled for March 11-12 in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Nationally, the top 20 individuals in each event and top 12 relay teams qualify for the NCAA Championships, and Schatzle currently ranks 18th in the pole vault.
The Polar Bears had four other top-five finishers on Saturday.
Junior Gabrielle Kowalczyk (Marion/Pleasant) placed third in the 400 meters with a time of 1:03.23, and freshman Summer Bouillon (Carey) finished third in the 3,000 meters with a time of 13:09.86.
Sophomore Olesya Mertz placed fourth in the 1-mile run with a time of 5:43.26, and freshman Toria Ingalls (Tiffin/Columbian) finished fourth in the high jump with a mark of 1.53 meters.
Following the national meet, the Polar Bears will return to action on March 26 to open their 2022 outdoor schedule at the Indiana Wesleyan Invitational.