Fleshner 2nd in 55 hurdles, women place 6th at IIAC Championships
DECORAH, Iowa – Bayley Fleshner turned in an all-conference performance in the 55-meter hurdles to lead the Simpson women's track and field team on the final day of the 2014 Iowa Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships.
Fleshner finished second as the Storm placed sixth of eight teams with 48 points. Wartburg won the conference title with 282 points.
The junior from Rockwell, Iowa posted the No. 2 qualifying time in Friday's preliminaries and held her place in the finals despite cutting .05 seconds from her first effort. Fleshner finished in 8.43 seconds, behind only Wartburg's Tashina McAllister, who set a facility record by breaking the tape in 8.27.
The effort marked Fleshner's third consecutive all-conference performance after placing third as a freshman and sophomore.
Sarah Ney had a solid day in the sprints, finishing fifth in the 55 meters (7.43) and fourth in the 200 (26.23). Lauren Martin added a seventh-place showing in the 55 (7.50).
Simpson had two, top-eight finishers in the 800 meters. Freshman Jessie Eyerly placed sixth (2:24.38) and senior Lindsey Borgomainerio came in eighth (2:26.91).
In relay action, the 4x800-meter team of Eyerly, Larissa Backhaus, Borgomainerio and Jessica Gronke placed fifth (10:05.41). The 4x400-meter quartet of Martin, Ney, Fleshner and Sarah Galbraith came in sixth (4:09.37).
Simpson's last chance to qualify for nationals will be on Friday, March 7 at the North Central NCAA Qualifier in Naperville, Ill.
Team Results
- Wartburg – 282
- Loras – 97
- Dubuque – 90
- Luther – 88
- Central – 83
- Simpson – 48
- Buena Vista – 29
- Coe – 22
