Moments after Minnesota State Moorhead sophomore Jessica Trautwein won the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference outdoor triple jump title, Dragon coach Keith Barnier leaned back in his chair and smiled.
"We're going to rename the (women's) team the Trautweins," Barnier said. "I'm ordering the uniforms today."
Barnier might not have been joking.
Trautwein, a Fargo South graduate, was first in the triple jump, third in the 100-meter hurdles and was part of the Dragons'fourth-place 400-meter relay team Saturday to help the teamto a third-place finish at theNSIC track and field championships at Ron Masanz track.
Trautwein, the NSIC Heptathlon champion, also finished first in the long jump and second in the high jump Friday to accumulate 47 of MSUM's 134 points. Winona State won the women's team title with a score of 177.
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Bemidji State captured the men's team crown with 228. The MSUM men finished third with 83.
"It was a fun day," Trautwein said. "I was really happy with everything. We had two of the best days to compete and there was a lot of good competition."
Trautwein opened Saturday's competition by winning the triple jump with a personal-best distance of 39 feet, ½ inch. Dragon junior Kristan Anderson was second at 37-7¼.
Trautwein's winning jump would have eclipsed the NSIC conference record of 38-5 if not for a stiff cross wind that made the distance ineligible.
"It was great to start off like that," Trautwein said. "I think it carried over to the other events."
MSUM's Dane Moreland and Steve Solum continued their rivalry in the men's 800.
Moreland, who entered the finals with the top time in the preliminaries, shot out to lead at the start of the race.
Solum, the top-seeded runner in the event, was boxed in for three laps until he found an opening with about 100 meters remaining.
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"I was worried that was going to happen because I like to sit and wait to take the lead," said Solum, who won the event with a time of 1:55.81. "I finally saw a little gap and knew I had to shoot through it or it wasn't going to happen."
Moreland finished second with a time of 1:56.96.
A few minutes before his showdown with Solum, Moreland breezed to a win in the 1,500.
Moreland, who ran away from the field at the start of the final lap, won the event with a time of 4:05.41. Northern State freshman Matt Walberg finished second at 4:07.93.
"Everyone wanted me to take the lead right away," he said. "I wanted to make it a 400 race. I just stayed behind and that last 400 was all guts."
Winona State's Jessica Devine won the 100 dash and 100 hurdles. Jonathon Hawks of Bemidji State was a double-winner, taking first in the 100 and 200.
Winona State junior Deidra Fager finished first in the 400 and 400 hurdles. Christa Pribula won the 1,500 and 3,000 steeplechase for Bemidji State.
Winona State's Amelia Soto and Northern State's Matt Scott were both double-winners in the 5,000 and 10,000.
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"I was very happy with where we placed," Barnier said. "We've got good leadership and good recruits coming in. We are definitely coming into the next one hoping to win a championship."
Readers can reach Forum reporter Heath Hotzler at (701) 241-5562
