LINK – ASHLAND UNIVERSITY TRACK AND FIELD PAGE
The impressive list of early-season awards for Ashland University's men's and women's indoor track and field teams in 2018-19 got much longer on Tuesday (Jan. 29) morning.
As announced by the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference on Tuesday, three Eagles earned Week 5 GLIAC Athlete of the Week honors – senior Myles Pringle (men's running), junior Alex Hill (men's field) and senior Natalie Helenthal (women's field).
At the Penn Nationals on Saturday (Jan. 26), Pringle won the men's 400-meter dash invite race in 46.12 seconds, improving upon his previous automatic mark for 2019 NCAA Division II indoor nationals (March 8-9 at Pittsburg State, Kan.) in the process. That time is 1.14 seconds faster than the second-best mark in the country. Pringle also was a part of the winning men's 4x400 relay team which crossed the finish line in 3:12.97, the third-fastest mark in D-II this season.
Hill finished third at Penn State in the men's weight throw at 20.68 meters/67-feet-10¼. His season-best effort of 21.42 meters/70-feet-3½ is No. 2 in the nation.
Also at Penn State, Helenthal earned an automatic berth into D-II indoor nationals after winning the women's weight throw at 19.88 meters/65-feet-2¾. That mark is No. 2 in the country.
For Pringle, this is his 12th GLIAC weekly award, Hill now has five and Helenthal now has three.
Of the 20 GLIAC weekly awards chosen over the first five weeks of 2018-19, 11 have been earned by Ashland student-athletes.
Ashland's men, ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division II, and women, ranked No. 8, will go to the 15th Annual Akron Invitational on Friday and Saturday (Feb. 1-2).
2018-19 ASHLAND UNIVERSITY GLIAC TRACK AND FIELD ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
- Week 1 women's field – Lindsay Baker
- Week 1 women's running – Gariana Bercheni
- Week 1 men's field – Jim Toth
- Week 2 women's field – Natalie Helenthal
- Week 2 men's running – Myles Pringle
- Week 2 men's field – Brent Fairbanks
- Week 4 men's running – Trevor Bassitt
- Week 4 men's field – Brent Fairbanks
- Week 5 womens' field – Natalie Helenthal
- Week 5 men's running – Myles Pringle
- Week 5 men's field – Alex Hill
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