Lansing Sun

One Michigan State Spartan reached new heights, literally, in a track and field meet at the Michigan Invitational Saturday in Ann Arbor.

Sophia Franklin set a school record in the indoor pole vault at 4.27m, clearing her former record of 4.25m that she had set at the last two CVSU Holiday Opens.

Four other Spartans earned first place in their events to share in the squad’s success at the invitational. 

"I think we saw a lot of improvement through our first couple meets at this point," said Director of Track & Field Lisa Breznau said in a recap on the school’s website. "From a performance standpoint, our group is just starting to let go and focus on just competing instead the outcome and we are seeing that pay off.” 

Michigan State saw strong performances from its pole-vaulters and high jumpers in both the men's and women's competitions. 

Senior Trevor Stephenson opened the meet by winning the men's pole vault, clearing 5.25m. That was followed by Franklin’s record-setting vault.

In the high jump, Spartans claimed three of the top four spots on the women’s side. Sophomore Avery Budz set a personal record of 1.73m for the win, while sophomore Elizabeth Knoll and junior Olivia Lopez finished tied in second with Toledo's Promise Cross at 1.63m. For the men, freshman Jalen Nelson took first when he cleared 2.00m. 

In other field events, graduate transfer Quiara Wheeler make her first appearance as a Spartan, taking the top spot in the women’s weight thrown with a distance of 20.73m.

In running events, freshman Noah Sage won the men's 400m race with a 47.49 time. Senior Shakira Dancy took second in the women's 200m dash with a PR time of 24.68, while senior Brooke Bogan placed second in the 60m dash at 7.52 and junior Jaiden Paris in the 60m hurdles final in 8.50.

“The sprinters and hurdlers in particular had a really great day, and the jumps squad as well,” Breznau summed up. “There were positive things coming out of both of those groups and I'm excited about the momentum that they're creating.”

Athletes to watch in the future include: sophomore Hunter Zartman, who finished fourth with a time of 1:53.40 in his first-ever men's 800m; senior Michael Davenport, who came in second in the men's pole vault at 4.80m; and sophomore Kaia Scheffle, who ran the women's 60m hurdles at 8.60 (second best time overall) in the preliminaries, before posting a false start in the finals that prevented a place.