Baker Track and Field Competes at Pioneer Classic

OLATHE, Kan. - Competing in its final full road meet of the regular season, the Baker track and field teams delivered a strong overall performance at the Pioneer Classic, hosted by MidAmerica Nazarene, this past weekend.

In the debut meet of MNU's new track facility, the Wildcats claimed 18 top-three finishes, including three event titles, and had a handful of athletes earn season-best marks.

Haley Carter and Haylei Potter each won an event on the women's side, with Carter (19:01.08) being the first of a 1-2-3 BU finish in the 5K, while Potter came out on top of the pole vault after clearing 2.90 meters. Ellie Barnard (19:13.29) and Haley Thompson (21:32.12) followed Carter in the 5K in second and third.

The men's 5K race featured a similar finish as the women's, as Michael Knaussman paced the BU group with a first-place time of 16:17.99. Grayson Fink (16:26.01), Jaden Vohs (16:34.31) and Grant Gogis (16:46.38) followed in consecutive order.

Natalie Kennedy earned a pair of runner-up finishes in the 800m and 1500m after registering her fastest times of the season in both races. She went 2:26.35 in the 800m and 5:05.79 in the 1500m.

Luke Persson finished third in the men's 1500m on a time of 4:20.26, crossing just a few seconds ahead of Fink (4:22.58), who came in fourth.

Julie Coffey marked four top-four outings in the field events, taking second in the javelin (40.26m) and discus (33.35m), third in the hammer (43.31m) and fourth in the shot put (11.24m).

Dylan Triebel had his best meet of the spring after marking season-high throws in the discus and hammer. He took sixth in the discus on a throw of 40.48 meters and seventh in the hammer with a 38.22m.

In the sprints, Ashby Graham clocked a 26.49 in the 200m and placed second, one of three runner-up finishes for Graham at the two-day meet. She also took second as part of BU's 4x100-meter and 4x400-meter relay teams.

The women's 4x100m relay team of Potter, Ashby Graham, Shanniel Graham and Makenna Longacre ran a 49.59 to place second, while Rylee Lansdown swapped out for Potter for the 4x400m squad that took second on a time of 4:19.30.

Up next, Baker will host its home track meet with the 2026 ZK Invite set for Saturday, April 25, in Baldwin City. Field events are scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m., while running events will begin at 11 a.m.

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