NNU Track and Field traveled to Provo, UT this week to compete in the BYU Indoor Invitational — the Nighthawks' first meet of the indoor season. The team collected 23 personal bests and three new NNU school records at the meet that consisted of mostly NCAA Division I programs. 

Sophomore Abbey Wood started out her season strong with a brand new school record in the 60 meter dash. After deciding to approach the meet without any extra pressure on herself, she ended up crossing the line in 7.62 seconds — taking her spot as seventh in GNAC history.

"Going into the meet, I tried to have no expectations for myself. I just wanted to see where I was at and hit a time similar to where I started out last season," Wood explained.

"When I crossed the line and saw my time, I was in disbelief. 

"I met my season goals of breaking my record, hitting the nationals provisional mark, and making it into the GNAC top 10. Next meet, I'm looking forward to improving and seeing if I can better my chances of qualifying for nationals!" exclaimed Wood.

NNU women's track and field performed exceptionally at the BYU Invite. Sophomore Shayna Williams achieved a personal best in the 60m, taking her spot as tied for 9th in NNU history. Kalli Brence snagged the fourth spot in NNU 60m dash history with her new personal record of 7.90 seconds. Freshman Kylie Coles tied for 9th in NNU History in the 60m dash with 8.09, and senior Ellie Alberts earned a PR in the triple jump with a mark of 10.65m. 

On the men's side, standout sophomore Steven Schmidt continued dominating in the multis department after a stellar freshman year last spring. Schmidt took home two NNU school records this week in the heptathlon event (5203 points) and the indoor high jump (6'11"). His new heptathlon personal best puts him 6th in GNAC history and high jump mark is third all-time in the conference.

"It felt good to get back on the track to see where I was after a great fall training," said Schmidt. 

"It was great to go out there and prove to myself that I could do what I thought I could do. I've been thinking about this meet for a while now and had the record for the heptathlon on my radar. 

"On the first day of the heptathlon, I was well on pace to break the school record — probably 100 points above. I had a decent hurdle race, but I knew I needed to rise to the occasion especially after not doing very well in pole vault," mentioned Schmidt.

"Going into the 1000m, I knew I had to run 3:02 or faster to break the school record. When I saw the clock was at 1:58 on the last lap, I knew I had to find a second gear. 

"At 60 meters left, I saw the clock getting close, and I sprinted as hard as I could and saw the clock at 3:01 when I crossed the line! I ended up breaking the school record by 40 points. It felt awesome to see that after really gutting it out that last lap," mentioned Schmidt. 

"For the high jump record, this was a long time coming. In my senior year of high school, I jumped 2'11'' but I've been frustrated with trying to get back up there since then. 

"This meet was nice to remind me of the way I know I can jump. To have consistent good jumps again was a great feeling, especially when I found out I broke the school record by two inches." 

The NNU men had a fantastic meet, starting with a personal best from Derek Knight in the shot put with 12.46m. In the same event, Braden Swaney threw a new PR at 11.51m. Freshman Dallin Garner ran 7.10 in the 60m dash, good enough to tie for 6th in NNU history. Brayden Durfee achieved a personal best in the 60m with a time of 6.96, snagging the second spot in NNU's top 10 list in the event. Freshman Anderson Kron surprised the field with an 8.55-second run in the 60m hurdles, putting him 9th in NNU history.

"It was an amazing first meet," said Head Coach Danny Bowman. 

"There was a great atmosphere at the facility, there was great team support, and everyone had a stellar work ethic. 

"This team works for each other and with each other. I love to see these things coming together at the first meet of the season," said Bowman. 

The Nighthawks are next slated to compete at the Spokane Indoor Challenge on January 13th and 14th.