SIOUX CITY, Iowa -- For the first time in program history, two Bruin women captured titles at the long-running Sioux City Relays held Friday. Hannah Perkins and Madison Nelson ran to victories in the 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter events, respectively.
The weather-shortened relays, held at Olsen Stadium on the campus of Morningside University, concluded after Friday's events. Through a mutual decision of meet officials and coaches, Saturday's slate of events was canceled in light of the forecasted cold temps, wind, and rain.
Friday's weather, however, was excellent for distance running, with temperatures near 60 and a mild breeze. Running in the first event of the day, Hannah Perkins was never challenged as she ran to the win in the 5,000-meter race. Her debut effort at the distance on the track brought her home in 20:51.88. "Hannah ran a very intelligent race," commented coach Craig Christians. "She pulled away from the pack but then really challenged herself over the last mile. I was very proud of her effort."
The second victory for the Bruins came in the day's last event, the 10,000 meters, run under the lights of Olsen Stadium at 8:00 p.m. Madison Nelson had company from one competitor for just over a mile but began putting distance on the field to win the event handily in 39:55.98. "Madison is still getting her feet under her after her surgery, and this was a big step forward," said Christians. "She clicks off the sub-6:30 miles like it was just another training run, this one just happens to be 25 laps of the track."
Four Bruins contested the 800-meter run. Alicia Rivera Camargo had her third consecutive personal best for the season as she lowered her own school record to 2:30.62. She finished 21st among 42 entrants. Caroline Feig had a strong effort in lowering her season best to 2:46.21
The Bruin men were represented in the 800 by Richard Marcoux and Aaron Newton, finishing 16th and 34th, respectively. Marcoux's finishing time was 1:59.87, while Newton crossed in 2:05.69. "All of our 800-meter runners, the men, and the women, ran aggressively in the first 400 and suffered a bit down the home stretch. Coach Barbosa has coached them to do that, and they may have been disappointed in their final times, but Coach and I were very proud of the way they competed. Those experiences will carry over to their next races and help them improve."
The final contested event of the day was the 400-meter run, where Aaron Newton dropped down in distance from his normal events to work on his speed. He ran a fine time of 55.69.
The Bruins will travel to Crete, Neb., next Friday-Saturday, April 21-22, where they will compete in the Jim Dutcher Invite on the Doane University campus.
