Huntington's Addy Wiley Completes 800/1,500 Double

By David Woods for DyeStat

In March’s indoor NAIA Championships, Addy Wiley was all about endurance. In the outdoor championships, it was all about speed.

Wiley, a Huntington (Ind.) freshman, produced three fast finishes and two more titles in the nationals at Marion, Ind. She doubled in the 1,500 and 800 meters Friday.

In the 1,500, she ran the closing 400 in 60.44 to win by eight seconds in 4:14.56. That was barely off the meet record of 4:14.38 by Anna Shields of Point Park (Pa.) in 2018. In the 800, after a 64.20 first lap, Wiley closed in 60.09 for 2:04.29, beating defending champion Lisa Voyles of Indiana Tech by nearly four seconds.

In Thursday’s 4x800 relay, Wiley’s 2:01.25 third leg helped the Foresters finish fifth.

Her 1,500 felt “pretty easy,” coach Austin Roark said in a direct message. “Said she didn’t mean to run that fast. So that’s encouraging.”

Wiley has not met the standard of 4:05 for July’s USA Championships. She is next scheduled to race June 3 in the Music City Track Carnival at Nashville, Tenn. She was fourth in the 1,500 at USATF Indoors.

Last year she set a national high school record for 1,600 meters and finished fifth in the 1,500 at the World Athletics U20 Championships. In the NAIA indoor nationals, she won the 600, 800, mile and 3,000, and anchored Huntington to first in the distance medley relay.

British Columbia won its third women’s team title in the meet’s past four editions. The Thunderbirds scored 104 points to 71 for runner-up William Carey (Miss.).

Life (Ga.) was third with 50. Marian (Ind.) made the podium for the first time by tying indoor champion Indiana Tech for fourth at 36.

Hannah Antkoviak of Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) was outstanding performer and Machaeda Linton of William Carey most valuable.

Antkoviak, a sophomore, won the 400 hurdles in 56.71, lowering her own NAIA record from 56.97 on April 28 at the Drake Relays, and was third in 100 hurdles in 13.61. Linton, a Jamaican freshman, won the long jump Wednesday at 19-4.25w (5.90m) and triple jump Thursday at 41-1 (12.52m).

Nigerian sophomore Praise Idamadud of Cumberland (Tenn.) won a 23.60/53.28 double in the 200 and 400.

Salieci Myles, a William Carey sophomore from Jamaica, clocked 13.28 in the 100 hurdles to tie the meet record set by Crystal Bardge of Embry-Riddle (Fla.) in 2012. Myles also matched Bardge for the best wind-legal performance in NAIA history.

British Columbia freshman Sonya Urbanowicz won the pole vault at 12-11.50 (3.95m), beating two-time champion Josie Puelz of Concordia (Neb.).

Oregon Tech’s Alex Conley threw 155-1 (47.27m) to win the javelin after finishing second in 2022, 2021 and 2019.

Life men repeat men's title

Life overtook British Columbia on the final day to win the team’s championship with 55 points. B.C. scored 41. Indoor champion Southeastern (Fla.) was third with 39 and Indiana Tech fourth with 33.

Dylan Kucera of Midland (Neb.) was outstanding performer and Phemelo Matlhabe of Life most valuable.

Kucera repeated as shot put champion with a mark of 63-8.25 (19.41m). Matlhabe, a 24-year-old South African, clocked 20.51 to win the 200 again. 

Westmont’s Senzo Sokhela, a South African junior, won a third 800 title in 1:48.78. He finished second in the 1,500 behind Jason Bowers of Cumberland. Bowers, a freshman from South Africa, had a time of 3:47.25.

Another repeat winner was British Columbia’s Rowan Hamilton in the hammer at 236-1 (71.97m). 

Ghanian sprinter Saminu Abdul-Rasheed of Florida Memorial won the 100 in 10.23. He had also won the indoor 60.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.