A True Team MIAC Championship!

NORTHFIELD, Minn. (2/28/26)---Break out your best purple outfit, put on some Prince and watch Star Wars Episode 1 – it's time to party like it's 1999.

Concordia ended its 27-year championship drought by using the strength of its team to capture its fourth MIAC Indoor Championship Meet title in program history. The Cobbers only had three event wins over the two days but used a boat load of podium finishes to tie for the most indoor championships of any school currently in the conference.

The Cobbers finished with 144.0 total team points which was eight more than St. Olaf and 21 clear of Bethel in third place. The 144.0 team point total is 41 more than they scored at last year's meet and 83.2 more than they scored two years ago when they finished in sixth place – program turn around complete; get ready to hand the MIAC Coach of the Year hardware to Marv Roeske.       

Concordia started Day 2 of the indoor championship meet 5.5 points off the lead and poised to make a push for the title.

That push came from one of the least expected places in the arena – the high jump pit. The Cobbers were trailing St. Olaf until CC had five athletes finish in the Top 8 which all scored team points in the high jump. The 27.5 point turbo boost helped Concordia speed past the Oles and into first place in the meet – a lead they never relinquished.

First-year athlete Lauren Pearson recorded her second event win of meet when she cleared 5-03.00 on her second attempt at that height.

To make the future even brighter for the Cobbers, they went 1-2-3 in the event and all three were first-year athletes. Emma Norton came out of nowhere to finish second at 5-01.75 and Lauren Selle was third with the same height as Norton.

Kaili Malvey made it four first-year jumpers in the Top 6 when she tied for sixth at 5-00.50.

Abby Lovelace was the fifth CC jumper to score team points. She placed eighth with the same height as Malvey.

The other double-digit team point scoring event on Saturday came from the 600-meter crew. Senior Kyla Nygaard finished second and first-year speedster Josie Brown was fifth. Nygaard, who also finished second in the 800 meters, posted a time of 1:35.66 and Brown crossed the line in 1:37.09 and the pair picked up 12 points for the Cobber cause.

After that it was the old adage of "death by a thousand paper cuts" for Concordia. They "nickel and dimed" their way to the title by scoring points in 19 of the 20 total events over the weekend.            

One of the most clutch performances on Saturday came in the final individual running event where sophomore Ashley Nelson used a huge kick in the 3000 meters to pass a pair of St. Olaf runners and finish seventh in the event. Her late-race kick gave Concordia a huge 3-point swing in the team race which gave Concordia a bigger margin for error in the 4x400-meter relay. Nelson wound up finishing in seventh place in a time of 10:27.66.

The distance corps, mentored by MIAC assistant coaches of the year Maddie Van Beek and Munir Isahak, came up big in the 1000 meters as well. Londyn Ames and Kelyn Henry-Perlich both scored team points to offset one of the Oles stronger events. Ames, the most improved track athlete on the Cobbers, finished fourth in a time of 3:00.57 and Henry-Perlich was eighth at 3:03.63. Both finishing times were season bests for the pair.                   

The Cobber field athletes were not to be overshadowed as they scored in three of the events on Day 2.

The high jump led the field parade and Chloe Mueffelmann, Gracie Gallagher and Genevieve Dabout picked up the baton in the shot put.

The trio scored five key team points with Mueffelman finishing fifth at 39-09.75, Gallagher eighth with a distance of 38-10.50 and Dabout ninth at 38-06.75. Gallagher and Dabout also scored team points in the weight throw on Day 1 with Top 6 finishes.

Pearson added to her podium finishes when she placed eighth in the long jump with a distance of 17-01.25. She finished the meet by scoring 21 team points over the two days.

The Cobber 4x400-meter relay team of Brown, Emily Rengo, Emma Warner and Nygaard closed out the championship run in style by posting an MIAC meet and facility record. They placed second, which was more than enough to clinch the title, with a time of 3:55.28.

Concordia will now concentrate on the NCAA National Meet and try to qualify as many athletes as possible when they participate in the NCAA Last Chance Qualifier at Wartburg College on Mar. 6-7.    

Final MIAC Indoor Championship Meet Team Standings
1. Concordia - 144
2. St. Olaf - 136
3. Bethel - 123
6. Carleton - 77
5. Saint Benedict - 76.5
7. Macalester - 59
4. Gustavus - 55.5
8. Saint Mary's - 52
9. Hamline - 27
10. St. Scholastica - 15
11. Augsburg - 12  
12. St. Catherine - 3   

COBBER NOTABLES
MIAC CHAMPIONS:
DMR Relay - 1200-Londyn Ames, 400-Josie Brown, 800- Kyla Nygaard, 1600-Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 12:27.98
High Jump – Lauren Pearson – 5-3 (1.60m)
Pentathlon – Lauren Pearson – 3472 points

MIAC ALL-CONFERENCE (places 1-3):
1st – DMR Relay - 1200-Londyn Ames, 400-Josie Brown, 800- Kyla Nygaard, 1600-Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 12:27.98
1st - High Jump – Lauren Pearson – 5-3 (1.60m)
1st - Pentathlon – Lauren Pearson – 3472 points
2nd – 600 – Kyla Nygaard – 1:35.66
2nd – 800 – Kyla Nygaard – 2:14.83
2nd – 2x200 Relay – Emma Warner, Emily Rengo, Piper Osborn, Andie Sandman – 1:45.01
2nd – 4x400 Relay – Josie Brown, Emily Rengo, Emma Warner, Kyla Nygaard – 3:55.28
2nd - High Jump – Emma Norton – 5-1.75 (1.57m)
3rd – 200 – Emily Rengo – 25.93
3rd - High Jump – Lauren Selle – 5-1.75 (1.57m)

MIAC ALL-CONFERENCE HONORABLE MENTION (places 4-6):
4th – 55 – Emily Rengo – 7.34 (7.30 prelims)
4th – 200 - Andie Sandman – 26.09
4th – 1000 – Londyn Ames – 3:00.57
4th - Weight Throw- Gracie Gallagher – 51-7.25 (15.73m)
4th – Pentathlon – Abby Lovelace – 3150 points
5th – 600 – Josie Brown – 1:37.09
5th – 5000 – Ashley Nelson – 18:28.54
5th tie – Pole Vault – Brynley Coleman – 10-7 (3.23m)
5th – Shot Put – Chloe Mueffelmann – 39-9.75 (12.13m)
6th tie – High Jump – Kaili Malvey – 5-0.5 (1.54m)
6th - Weight Throw- Gena Dabout – 48-0.75 (14.65m)

OTHER SCORERS (places 7-8):
7th – 200 – Emma Warner – 26.52
7th – 400 – Josie Brown – 58.99
7th – Mile – Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 5:13.69
7th – 3000 – Ashley Nelson – 10:27.66
7th – Triple Jump – Piper Osborne – 35-2 (10.72m)
8th – 1000 – Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 3:03.63
8th – High Jump – Abby Lovelace – 5-0.5 (1.54m)
8th – Long Jump – Lauren Pearson – 17-1.25 (5.21m)
8th – Triple Jump – Kaili Malvey – 34-11.25 (10.65m)
8th – Shot Put – Gracie Gallagher – 38-10.5 (11.85m)
8th – Pentathlon – Kaili Malvey – 2977 points

COBBER SCHOOL RECORDS:
55 – Emily Rengo – 7.30 (prelims)
55 Hurdles – Lauren Pearson – 8.46 (pentathlon)
Pentathlon – Lauren Pearson – 3472 points

COBBER ALL-TIME LIST:
55 – Emily Rengo – 7.30 (prelims) - ALL-TIME #1
55 – Andie Sandman – 7.44 - ALL-TIME #3 tie
55 – Lydia Fynboh – 7.48 – ALL-TIME #5
400 – Josie Brown – 58.99 – ALL-TIME #6
400 – Emma Norton – 61.00 – ALL-TIME #15
600 – Josie Brown – 1:37.09 – ALL-TIME #2
1000 – Londyn Ames – 3:00.57 – ALL-TIME #2
1000 – Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 5:03.63 – ALL-TIME #8
Mile – Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 5:13.69 – ALL-TIME #4
55 Hurdles – Lauren Pearson – 8.46 (pentathlon) - ALL-TIME #1
55 Hurdles – Kaili Malvey – 8.76 - ALL-TIME #8
55 Hurdles – Taylor Christenson – 8.94 – ALL-TIME #16
4x200 Relay – Emma Warner, Emily Rengo, Piper Osborne, Andie Sandman – 1:45.01 - ALL-TIME #2
DMR Relay - 1200-Londyn Ames, 400-Josie Brown, 800- Kyla Nygaard, 1600-Kelyn Henry-Perlich – 12:27.98 – ALL-TIME #2
High Jump – Lauren Pearson – 5-3.75 (1.62m) - ALL-TIME #9 tie
High Jump – Lauren Pearson – 5-1.75 (1.57m) - ALL-TIME #18 tie
Weight Throw- Gracie Gallagher – 51-7.75 (15.73m) – ALL-TIME #4
Pentathlon – Lauren Pearson – 3472 points – ALL-TIME #1
Pentathlon – Kaili Malvey – 2977 points – ALL-TIME #12 tie

PERSONAL RECORDS:
400- Josie Brown, Emma Norton
600- Josie Brown
800- Lauren Pearson (pentathlon), Addie Dahl, Aftyn Hahn, Lauren Selle (pentathlon), Kaili Malvey (pentathlon)
1000- Londyn Ames, Kelyn Henry-Perlich
Mile- Kelyn Henry-Perlich
3000- Lilly Dickinson
55 Hurdles- Lauren Pearson (pentathlon), Kaili Malvey, Taylor Christenson (pentathlon)
High Jump- Lauren Pearson (pentathlon), Emma Norton
Shot Put- Gracie Hartl
Weight Throw- Gracie Gallagher, Kaycee Endreson
Pentathlon- Lauren Pearson, Kaili Malvey