Olympic Spotlight: Another Record For Track and Field

The winter season for college athletics often feels like the shortest of the three seasons. Everything before the new year feels a bit like preseason and as soon as classes are back in session conference championships are around the corner.

Even with the short calendar, Hawkeye sport has stuffed the stat sheet with strong performances, including a new set this past week in track and field and gymnastics.

Let's take a closer look.

Iowa hosted the Black and Gold Invite last weekend and used the opportunity to continue to rewrite the record books. Friday's performances were huge from the start, with Jamie Kofron tossing a 21.04m weight throw and claiming 3rd place on the all-time list at Iowa. Her throw earned her 1st place in the event, followed by fellow Hawkeye Alivia Bauer (19.20m). Kat Moody placed 2nd in the shot put (16.22).

The performances continued to come fast and furious on Saturday, highlighted by a new school record in the men's 60m by Kalen Walker. Walker ran a 6.58 to claim gold in the event and the top time in school history. It's the third time this season that Walker has set the school record and he now owns the 7th-fastest time in Division 1.

Grant Conway finished first in the 60m hurdles, running the 4th fastest time in school history, 7.70. Miya Brines finished 2nd in the women's 60m hurdles in 8.63 to close out the podium finishes for the Hawkeyes.

The Hawkeyes hosted strong competition last weekend and came up with huge results. Kofron and Conway are experienced members of the team and put together career-best performances, while Walker continues to show that he's one of the fastest sprinters in the country. Conway's run had to feel especially sweet, as he's battled injuries in recent weeks, while Kofron came back for a final season in search of huge personal bests and top marks and has to be satisfied that she's reaching those goals so early in the year.

The Hawkeye indoor team continues to show they're one of the strongest Track and Field programs in the country. Coach Woody and company have built a program capable of sustained success and we're seeing a strong combination of experienced athletes reaching their peaks while new blood is constantly coming in and blazing their own trail.

After last week's meet, both the men's and women's sides have multiple events ranked in the top 20, led by a #2 ranking in the men's 60m hurdles and weight throw, as well as the #2 ranking in the women's pentathlon and the #3 spot in the women's 60m hurdles.

The Big Ten Championships are less than a month away, so the Hawkeyes are splitting up next week to make sure all of their events experience as much competition as possible. They'll send athletes to Texas Tech, Arkansas, and Notre Dame for next week's events.

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Iowa gymnastics (2-2) split a pair of meets last week, beating Southern Utah 195.800 - 195.425 before falling to Michigan State (5-3) 195.700-197.400. Perhaps bigger than the two meet results though was the injury All-American Adeline Kenlin suffered early in the meet after landing awkwardly on her vault attempt. She sat out the rest of the meet and did not compete against the Spartans. There's no official word on the extent of her injury, but it's a huge blow to a team that was already working to overcome the loss of Jerquavia Henderson, who stepped away from the team just before the year started for health reasons.

After Kenlin's injury against Southern Utah, the Hawkeyes showed tremendous resiliency, dealing with lineup changes in all three remaining events and overcoming an early deficit to win the final three events and the meet. Ilka Juk put together a huge performance on the beam, scoring a 9.900 and claiming the event title in what is usually Kenlin's specialty, while head coach Larissa Libby's daughter Bailey Libby took home the win on the floor, scoring a career-high 9.900. Freshman Eva Volpe stepped up in a big way as well, claiming a share of the title on bars, scoring a 9.850.

The GymHawks continued to battle without their stars and leaders against Michigan State, but came up just short. The Hawks put together a season-best 49.100 point performance on the vault, including a career-best 9.875 from Avery Chambers and a 9.825 from Gianna Masella in her first vault of the season. Emily Erb scored a career-high 9.900 on the floor and Eva Volpe notched a personal-best 39.175 in the all-around.

Kenlin's injury is a major setback for a Hawkeye team that had high expectations coming into this season. Many of the Hawks' newcomers are stepping up and contributing, but it's unreasonable to expect them to fill the shoes of an All-American, let alone two. Still, on an individual level, the Hawks are showing improvement from meet to meet. They'll tell you they haven't put it all together into a complete performance yet, but each week's meet shows that this group is up for whatever challenges the season throws at them.

Iowa will next compete on February 4th against Nebraska (3-3) (1:00 PM CT, BTN+).

Iowa tennis dropped both matches at the ITA Kickoff over the weekend, falling 4-3 to Clemson (4-1) and 4-2 to Alabama (3-1). Against the Tigers, Iowa scored points on courts 1,2 and 5 with wins from Daianne Hayashida, Chelsea Bluestein, and Barbora Pokorna respectively. Hayashida is currently ranked #109 nationally.

Against the Crimson Tide, the Hawks again scored points from Hayashia on court one, who won in straight sets, and Pokorna on court 4, who scored a straight set victory of her own.

The Hawkeyes will be back in action on February 3rd and 4th when they take on Kansas State (3-0) and Denver (2-2).

It's not quite baseball season yet, but with many outlets posting their preseason team and prospect rankings, it's an exciting time to be a Hawkeye fan. The Hawks are ranked #20 in Baseball America's preseason poll, as well as D1Baseball.com's rankings, and have the top five prospects in the Big Ten, as well as six of the top 10, according to Perfect Game's recent rankings. The Hawkeyes are the only Big Ten team ranked in the top 25 by Baseball America.

And the accolades don't stop there. Iowa's roster has brought home a cache of preseason All-Conference awards as well.

Rankings aren't wins, but it's hard not to be excited for the upcoming year on the diamond for the Hawkeyes. They've got some of the best players in the country in their rotation and a lineup that should be as potent as ever. Head coach Rick Heller has consistently gotten the most out of his talent and now he's got more talent than ever.

We'll get our first chance to see the Hawks on the diamond on February 16th when they take on Seaton Hall.