Baker, McKown Win Championships, Baker & Olivo to Nationals

SANFORD, SD – Waldorf Indoor Track & Field athletes excelled at the 2024 North Star Athletic Association (NSAA) Indoor Track & Field Championships held Sunday at the Sanford Jackrabbit Athletic Complex at South Dakota State University.  Senior Wade Baker claimed conference championships in the shot put and weight throw events.  Sophomore Eliza McKown claimed the NSAA crown in the 600 meter run.  Both Baker and senior Jorge Olivo-Cabrera qualified for nationals, with the latter qualifying in the 60 meter hurdles.

Baker wrote another chapter in his storied throwing career at Waldorf.  He took first in the shot put event with a winning heave of 16.37 meters, meeting the A standard for national qualification.  Baker, had already qualified for nationals in the weight throw, yet improved upon his A standard with a winning toss of 18.21 meters.  2024 marks the third career indoor national qualification for Baker.

McKown became the first woman in Waldorf program history to win the North Star title in the 600 meter run.  The sophomore finished strong with a time of 1:39.92 to claim the title. 

Olivo-Cabrera qualified for nationals and earned All-Conference honors with his time of 8.31 seconds in the 60 meter hurdles.  His finish was good for third place at the event.  Olivo-Cabrera qualified for nationals and broke his own school record in the event, making this his third all conference finish in Indoor as well as his second trip to indoor nationals.

The Warrior 4 x 400 meter relay team of Catherine Clarke-Ashford, Marissa O'Connor, Brandi Peck, and McKown earned All-Conference honors.  The team finished second with a time of 4:10.38. 

Baker and Jasmine Bentley were selected as the men's and women's Champions of Character for Waldorf, respectively. 

"I am beyond proud of how our athletes competed this weekend," said Waldorf Director of Cross Country and Track and Field Janna Langrell.  "Our men went out and competed well, setting multiple personal bests throughout the day. Wade had a huge breakthrough in both shot put and weight throw moving himself up in the national rankings to 12th and 10th respectively, making this Wade's third trip to indoor nationals."

Langrell was also pleased with the efforts of several other Warriors.  "Danielle Wood covered the most distance for the day, tallying 8,800m of race distance for the day and setting personal bests in both the 3,000m and 5,000m," Langrell said.  "Our relay teams laid it all out there and ran with so much heart, embodying what it means to be a Warrior."

Assistant Coach George Adams also expressed excitement with the team's showing at the conference event.  "We were able to come out and compete at our best at the conference meet which is what we always aim to do as a team," Adams said.  "We gathered momentum throughout the day with Eliza, Brandi, and Nolan Reynolds in the 600m and our 400m and 200m groups coming out and putting their best performances of the year on the track…Overall, it was an extremely good, full team performance."

Assistant Coach Trevor Gorwin echoed their sentiments.  "Seniors Wade Baker and Jasmine Bentley both ended the day with personal records in their events," Gorwin said.  "They were also selected to represent the North Star Champion of Character for demonstrating true dedication and compassion towards others and the sport…I'm incredibly proud of the Waldorf Track and Field Team for demonstrating why we are Warriors."

Baker and Olivo-Cabrera will return to Sanford to compete in the NAIA National Indoor Track & Field Championships from February 29-March 2.