Women’s Outdoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week (April 10)

4.10.18

INDIANAPOLIS - After strong performances by Hillsdale, the Great Midwest Athletic Conference announced that two Chargers have been named Outdoor Track & Field Women’s Athletes of the Week on Tuesday.
 
Hillsdale will host the Great Midwest Outdoor Championships on May 3-5; the Chargers also served as host to the indoor meet this season.
 
Women’s Track Athlete of the Week
Allysen Eads
Hillsdale
Junior
Northville, MI (Farmington Hills Mercy HS)
 
Eads is the first Charger to win the Great Midwest Track Athlete of the Week Award for the outdoor campaign, and she did so in style. Her first outdoor run of the season resulted in the junior putting up the best 3,000-meter steeplechase performance of the season.
 
Eads ran a 10:44.64 to set the conference record previously held by Malone’s Jade Smith last year. Smith’s time finished at 10:46.86, which Eads broke on Friday.
 
Eads will look to continue upon a strong performance from last season as she finished 18th in the 3K steeplechase at the 2017 DII Outdoor Track & Field Championships with a time of 10:50.95.
 
She also finished 17th at the DII Indoor Track & Field Championships in March in the mile with a time of 5:04.22.
 
Women’s Field Athlete of the Week
Alexandra Whitford
Hillsdale
Senior
Grandville, MI (Grand Rapids South Christian HS)
 
Whitford completed the sweep for the Chargers this week with her performance at the Hillsdale Invitational as well.
 
Whitford showed her potential last season when she finished ninth in all of Division II in the pole vault last season at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She posted her collegiate career best last season at the Hilltopper Relays with a mark of 4.13 meters.
 
The senior has continued that success into this season as her clearance of 3.94 meters on Friday is currently good enough for sixth in the country as a provisional qualifier.
 
She also set a new conference record with that mark, shattering the previous record held by Walsh national qualifier Kaitlyn Barber from earlier this season. Barber cleared 3.75m in the current outdoor season.