Hillary Holt closing out her win in the 1,500-meters
MARION, Ind. - Hillary Holt became the first individual NAIA National Champion in the nearly 100-year-old history of College of Idaho track and field, winning the 1,500-meter final at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships.
The sophomore, from Mountain View High, defeated a field of 15 runners, with a school-record time of 4:30.10, winning the championship by a second and a half over Maria Bernard of the University of British Columbia. Her finish was part of a record-setting day by the Lady Yotes, as The C of I placed in a tie for tenth overall in the team standings.
“It was pretty spectacular,” said head coach Pat McCurry. “Two months ago, she had a broken bone in her leg and now she is a national champion. We have told Hillary all along that she could win the 1,500, and today it set up perfectly. The race was very tactical and she executed our plan perfectly and pulled away on the final lap.”
Competing in 90 degree temperatures with a heat index of 104 degrees, Holt returned to the track 90 minutes later to place fourth in the 800-meters with a time of 2:11.63 – earning her third outdoor All-America honor.
Sora Klopfenstein got the day started with a bang for the Yotes, battling from an early fall on the fourth water jump to take second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase (11:16.32). The sophomore, from Meridian, became just the second Coyote to place second at nationals (Stephanie Helm placed second indoors in 2008).
The Coyote men also received a banner performance from Greg Montgomery, battling the conditions to take third in the 5,000-meters with a time of 14:55.75. The junior becomes the first C of I men’s athlete to earn All-America honors in cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track in the same year. His performance helped the Yotes to a 39th-place finish overall.
Others competing today included Mike Hurd, who finished ninth in the 400-meter hurdle finals (53.40), Audrey Youren, who finished 12th in the high jump (5-4 1/4), and Andre Archer placing 17th in the triple jump (46-0). Rounding out the Coyote contingent were Kayloni Perry and Sarah Johnson, who took 14th (4:51.28) and 15th (5:00.50) in the 1,500-meters.
Shorter University won the men’s title, while Oklahoma Baptist claimed the women’s overall crown.