Hope’s Sara Schermerhorn was already an NCAA champion, but with two events on the day, the senior was looking to make some more history.
Schermerhorn won the NCAA Division III championship in the 400 meters, crossing the finish line in a personal-best 54.19 seconds to claim her second individual crown.
It was part of a two-event All-American performance for the Hope senior during the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
She won the 400 title during the indoor season.
Schermerhorn also finished seventh in the 200 meters (24.24) to earn All-American honors with teammate Sofia Fischer (24.29), who was eighth.
Calvin’s Sydney Radigan won the NCAA title in 23.43 in a meet record.
Also on Saturday, Hope’s Kevin Barifagok finished fourth in the 400-meter hurdles.
The sophomore crossed the line in 52.10 to earn All-American honors.
Hope had two All-American women’s performances earlier in the meet.
Jaidyn Klimp joined an elite group of Hope College women’s heptathletes on Friday by delivering an All-America performance.
The freshman from Galesburg finished fifth during the two-day event, scoring 5,033 points over seven events for the highest NCAA Championships total in Flying Dutch history.
“Jaidyn’s All-American performance in the heptathlon was the exclamation mark on her historic freshman season,” head coach Jordan Bartolazzi said. “Scoring 5,033 points as a freshman — especially when she learned three of the seven events for the first time this year — is an amazing accomplishment. She’s got a tremendous level of confidence and belief in herself, and has really discovered the perfect event for her skill set in the heptathlon. I’m so proud of her and grateful to have been part of this special season with her.”
Klimp is Hope’s sixth different All-American heptathlete and the first since Alison Rich in 2017. Lindsay Lange ’08 accomplished the feat a program-best three times.
Molly Durow etched her name in the Hope College track record books during her final race.
The senior from Glenview became the second Flying Dutch runner to claim All-America First Team honors in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Friday during the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
Durow’s seventh-place run of 10 minutes, 33.58 seconds put her with Hope great Erin Herrmann as an All-American in the event. Herrmann won the steeplechase national title in 2017 and was national runner-up in 2016.
The performance at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse marked Durow’s second All-America effort during her last season. Durow captured All-America Second Team honors in March at the NCAA Indoor Championships with a 15th-place time in the 1-mile run.
“Molly is the ultimate competitor and such a joy to watch compete,” Bartolazzi said. “She learned the steeple for the first time this year — her senior season — and it ended with Molly as an All-American. She displayed incredible toughness by steepling five times in the last four weeks in the middle of student teaching, and even overcame a fall in the prelim on Thursday to make the final.
“Credit to coach Mark Northuis for his work with Molly, who has developed into one of Hope’s most successful distance runners. It’s been a privilege to watch Molly represent Hope with such passion and determination.”
Calvin University’s Sophie Bull placed first with a meet-record time of 10 minutes, 4.18 seconds.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Hope College runner Sara Schermerhorn wins NCAA title, stuns with two events
Reporting by Dan D’Addona, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
