Iowa Central unseats South Plains as DI women's track & field champions
May 18, 2013
STEVE CARPENTER, HUTCHINSON COMMUNITY COLLEGE
HUTCHINSON, Kan. – With a blazing third leg of the women’s 4x400-meter relay by Iowa Central’s Dominique Kimpel, South Plains College’s reign as the queens of NJCAA track and field official came to an end on Saturday at Hutchinson Community College’s Gowans Stadium.
Iowa Central snapped South Plains’ streak of four-consecutive national championship by winning their program’s first national crown, edging the Texans 143-133. When Kimpel finishes her leg of the 4x400 relay, the only way South Plains could have extended the streak would have been if the Tritons would have been disqualified.
Instead, Iowa Central cleanly finished off the relay for its fourth event championship of the final day of competition. But it was after the 5,000 meters, the next to the final event of the Championships, where the Tritons put themselves in position to win the title.
Iowa Central trailed South Plains by 19 points after 12 events and 18 points after 20 events. The Tritons then authored a 1-2-3 sweep of the 5,000 meters – Iowa Central’s second event sweep of the Championships – by Finola McKenna, Hannah Maina and Ebeisa Nyandwi to take a 133-127 lead over the Texans. ICCC finished off its first national women’s title in style by blitzing the field in the 4x400 relay. South Plains finished third.
The Tritons had three double-event winners at the 2013 Championships, led by McKenna, who was named the Female Field Athlete of the Meet.McKenna won the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Friday, the 5,000 meters and placed fourth in the 1,500 meters.
Kimpel was the 200-meter national champion and ran the third leg of the 4x400 relay. Chantal Duncan won the 400 meters and ran the anchor leg of the 4x400 relay.
South Plains won three event championships on Saturday, getting a pair of victories from Desreen Montague, who won both the 800- and 1,500-meter runs. The Texans got off to a good start on Saturday by winning the 4x100-meter relay.
South Plains’ Ashley Johnson was named the Female Field Athlete of the Tournament with her Heptathlon championship, second-place finish in the long jump and seventh-place finish in the long jump.
2013 Awards
Team Champion – Iowa Central
Coach of the Meet – Denny Meyers, Iowa Central
Female Field Athlete of the Meet – Ashley Johnson, South Plains
Female Track Athlete of the Meet – Fiona McKenna, Iowa Central
National Coach of the Year – Mike Bloemker, Johnson County
National Assistant Coach of the Year – James White, Butler
Photos by Stephanie Carpenter & Tyler Williams