Just a freshman, VanderKooi beat a field of 22 runners in the mile at the Grand Valley State-hosted Bill Clinger Classic on Friday.
VanderKooi edged out his own teammate Mark Miller for the event victory with a time of 4:16.11. Previously in the indoor season, Vanderkooi had competed in the 800m in two different events.
The Charger’s first effort in the mile was very close to the conference championship record established by Cedarville’s Daniel Michalski back in 2017 (4:15.96).
In addition to owning the conference's top time in the mile this season, VanderKooi also owns the top conference season time in the 800m (1:56.53).