Mustang Weekly Recap (December 2-8)
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: The Mustang women's basketball team enjoyed a pair of wins to kick off their December schedule. The Mustangs traveled to Lamoni and defeated Graceland on Wednesday, 93-66, before beating Missouri Valley on the road, 75-66. Against Graceland, Claudia Vanzant nearly recorded yet another double double, leading the Mustangs in scoring with 16 points. She also contributed nine rebounds, including four on the offensive end. Vanzant was joined in double figures by Malie Marfil with 14, Isabel Wallschlaeger with 12, and Sam Kiel with 11. Madison Skelton, Annika Headington, and Wallschlaeger orchestrated the offense, as Skelton ended with six assists while Headington and Wallschlaeger each had eight.
Against Missouri Valley, a pair of Mustangs had 20 point outings, led by Vanzant and Skelton. Malie Marfil was not far behind with 18. Vanzant would add 10 rebounds to give herself yet another double double on the season, with four boards on the offensive end. Annika Headington would add in another five assists to help pace the Mustang offense.
MEN'S BASKETBALL: The Mustangs would fall in both contests over the past week, losing on the road to Graceland on Wednesday, and on the road to Missouri Valley on Saturday. Against Graceland, Jaxson Fried would lead the team in scoring with 22 points on 8-13 shooting. He would be joined in double figures by Dimitrije Nikolic and Kaden Johnson, who had 13 and 12 points respectively. Fried would lead the Mustangs in rebounding with four against the Yellowjackets.
Against the Vikings of MVC, Fried had a career game, pouring in 38 points on 14-23 shooting, including going 7-8 from the free throw line. He would also add in six rebounds. He would be joined in double figures by Aidan Yamilkoski with 20. Yamilkoski would lead the team in rebounds with seven. The other Mustang in double figures was Elijah Ward, who had 10 points on 5-9 shooting.
MEN'S BOWLING: The Mustangs topped the list through qualifiers on Saturday at the Warhawk Open, beating out second place St. Xavier by over 100 pins through the qualifying rounds. The Mustangs would hold the top two performances in the tournament, with Blake Walsh and Zach Andresen taking home the top two spots. Walsh would record 1191 total pins, with an impressive average of 238.2. His tournament average was the fifth highest pinfall average in the tournament's history. Andresen also found himself on the all-tournament team in second place, with a total pinfall of 1121, and an average of 224.2.
WOMEN'S BOWLING: The Mustangs finished the qualifying round on Saturday with the top spot, outpacing St. Xavier by over 250 pins. Brooke Salzman placed second individually on Saturday, having a five-game total of 1093 pins, with an average of 218.6 per game. Savannah Dickson was not far behind, adding 1024 pins and a 204.8 average. Rounding out the top 20 was Nada Abdul Jalil and Elena Carr, with pinfall totals of 979 and 957.
MEN'S INDOOR TRACK: The Mustangs competed in three different meets to kick off the 24-25 campaign, starting with the Cornell Winter Invitational. Perez Hemmings secured a personal best in the 60m hurdles, ending with a time of 8.77 seconds. Noah Valenzuela took home the top spot in the 400m, ending with a time of 51.87 seconds. At the Frigid Bee Invitational, Omar Salinas earned fifth in the shot put with a mark of 13.28m, while Nate Jones placed sixth with a mark of 13.11m. At the Mel Tjeerdsma Classic, Baylor Speidel led the way in the 60m dash, earning third place in the finals with a time of 6.97 seconds.
WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK: At the Cornell Winter Invitational, Kaylee Bunn finished second in the 60m dash with a time of 8.00 seconds, while Gralynn Martin clocked a time of 8.46 seconds. Dayna Maiers earned a personal best in the 60m with a time of 9.10 seconds. Corinne Gadient earned third in the 1000m with a time of 3:11.77, while Arianna Lopez finished third in the 3000m with a time of 12:14.96. At the Frigit Bee, Brooklyn Johnson claimed first place in the long jump with a mark of 5.23m, while Bre Nail placed second in the shot put with a mark of 12.89m. At the Mel Tjeerdsma Classic, Kalin Rotzoll would place second in the 5000m with a time of 18:15.80.