Nabwe Defends Title, Gophers in Third at Indoor Big Tens

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MINNEAPOLIS – For the first time in nine years the Big Ten has a back-to-back weight throw champion. Minnesota redshirt sophomore Anthonett Nabwe claimed her second straight conference title in the women's weight throw, tossing a championship throw of 24.22m (77-5 1/2) on her final attempt on Friday in Indianapolis at Fall Creek Pavilion.

Win the win Nabwe became the fifth Big Ten women's weight thrower to defend their conference title and the first to do so since 2016 when two-time Olympian Kelsey Card went back-to-back. Nabwe will be back in action on Saturday, on B1G+, in the shot put where she is seeded ninth.

The victory for Nabwe also came with a sixth-place finish from Hadley Streit, who posted a final mark of 21.32m (69-11 1/2). In her first Big Ten final, Streit added three team points to Minnesota's 26 overall on Friday. Joining the weight throwers in scoring on Friday was the women's distance medley relay. The DMR crew of Isabelle Schmitz, Dyandra Gray, Zoie Dundon and Erin Reidy put forth a school-record time of 11:02.42 in the final to earn a Big Ten bronze medal. Schmitz's medal gives her one in her true freshman campaign while Gray, Dundon and Reidy add to their now seven combined conference medals in their careers.

Adding three team points in the women's long jump was Alliyah McNeil, finishing sixth with a mark of 6.18m (20-3 1/2). The Jamaican's best jump came on her second attempt and makes McNeil now a six-time conference scorer in three years at Minnesota.

Minnesota's youngest individual Big Ten scorer on Friday was redshirt freshman Kennedy Martinson. The Coon Rapids High School product captured a sixth-place finish in the women's pentathlon, posting a lifetime best 3,955 points to push to fifth all-time at Minnesota. Martinson's pentathlon kicked off with a bang with an 8.41 (1,037 points) personal best time in the 60m hurdles, which also went down as the fastest among the 25 competitors. The time also went down as the No. 7 fastest 60m hurdles time overall in Gophers history. Martinson was 13th in the high jump with a lifetime best 1.64m (783 points) and followed that up with an 18th-place finish in the shot put with a toss of 10.15m (539 points). Martinson, then in 10th overall through three of five events, made her move. She went to the long jump and posted a quality mark of 5.64m (741 points) on her first of three attempts. Then she put down her third lifetime best of the day in the 800m with a time of 2:14.84 (895 points). Martinson's late push in the pentathlon put her in sixth and gave Minnesota three team points.

Minnesota also earned one team point from Lexy Berger who put down an indoor lifetime best of 4.26m (13-11 3/4) in the pole vault to capture eighth in a loaded Big Ten pole vault field. Berger matched the sixth-place finisher, Mia Morello of Illinois, but finished eighth based on misses. The Minnesota graduate student is fourth all-time indoors in program history and is now an eight-time Big Ten scorer in her incredible career in the Twin Cities.

In the 600m it was former Big Ten Champion, Abigail Schaaffe, making another conference final with the No. 7 time in the prelims. Schaafee's 1:31.36 puts the Jamaican in her record fifth-straight 600m Big Ten final.

Maja Maunsbach's school record in the 60m hurdles prelims highlighted Minnesota's effort on the straightaway on day one. The Sweden national made Minnesota's 60m hurdles school record a now three-way tie with the time of 8.13 matching Emma Spagnola (2017) and Kimberly Golding (2017). Maunsbach's time in the prelim was also good enough to put her third overall in the field that consisted of 20 entries. Just missing the final was Zariyah Black (8.32), who's time nearly matched her lifetime best of 8.30 that sits fourth all-time in Gopher history.

Before she was earning a Big Ten medal in the DMR on Friday, Erin Reidy was making a Big Ten final individually in the mile. Kicking off the day on the track Reidy put down an automatic qualifying time of 4:43.13 and will aim to score for the Maroon and Gold at 12:30 p.m. CT on Saturday.

MINNESOTA'S BIG TEN SCORERS (3rd, 26 points):
1st. Anthonett Nabwe, Weight Throw, 10 Points, 24.22m (79-5 1/2)
3rd. DMR (Isabelle Schmitz, Dyandra Gray, Zoie Dundon, Erin Reidy, 6 Points, 11:02.42)
6th. Hadley Streit, Weight Throw, 3 Points, 21.32m (69-11 1/2)
6th. Alliyah McNeil, Long Jump, 3 Points, 6.18m (20-3 1/2)
6th. Kennedy Martinson, Pentathlon, 3 Points, 3,995 points
8th. Lexy Berger, Pole Vault, 1 Point, 4.26m (13-11 3/4)

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