Three Eagles Qualify for Nationals, Two Set Program Records in Pella
Pella, IA -- Faith Track & Field kicked off the 2026 season with 14 participants at the Central Dutch Invitational in Pella.
Saturday saw two records fall, and three qualifying standards met as the Eagles had a solid showing in Pella.
In his first long jump of the season, Cade Cooper both qualified for Nationals and broke the program record that he previously set in 2025, with a distance of 6.62m. Austin Jordan followed suit in the same event, reaching the qualifying standard in his first collegiate leap, and then setting a new pb two jumps later with a distance of 6.54m. Carlie Blevins finshed the day with a late evening 5000m race, and her time of 18:56.88 was enough to qualify for Nationals, and beat the previous program record set by Becca Hulinsky in 2024.
Codie Wirges (Triple Jump) and Carlie Blevins (5000m run) both finished in the top 10 in their event, and three more Eagles came within one second of meeting the qualifying standard in their events, but will have to wait a week to best their times. Full team results can be found >here<
Up Next: The Eagles will travel to Mount Vernon to take part in the Cornell Invitational on April 4th. Event information will be posted as it becomes available.
2026 Nationals Qualifiers
Cade Cooper: Long Jump (3/28, Central Invitational)
Austin Jordan: Long Jump (3/28, Central Invitational)
Carlie Blevins: 5000m run (3/28, Central Invitational)
