Sebastian Szweda Mittelstadt
From the soccer field to the steeplechase, Anchorage’s Sebastian Szweda Mittelstadt can now add “school record holder” to his resume.
After excelling as a tri-sport athlete at Service High, the two-time relay medalist on the track and two-time player of the game at the state tournament took his talents to Blue Mountain Community College. His stint as a Timberwolf included lacing up the cleats for 18 games, scoring 7 goals, with 41% of shots made on the goal.
But as soon as Szweda Mittelstadt’s time on the pitch came to a close, he returned to oval, this time at Westminster College in Utah. The junior had an immediate impact, finishing his first collegiate cross country season within the Griffins’ counting squad at South Central Regionals.
The success has continued on the track, with Szweda Mittelstadt translating his hurdling and middle-distance aptitude to the mile and steeplechase, where he now holds the program records. The junior lowered his outdoor mile time to 4:28 at the BYU Robinson Invitational to pair with his 9:55.73 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, improving by nearly 20 seconds and collecting the win in the process.
With only a handful of meets under his belt, Szweda Mittelstadt has seemingly already found his groove, chasing new heights every time he gets on the starting line.
Sadie Tuckwood
Around the nation, a multitude of Alaskans have continued to register impressive marks.
Juneau’s Sadie Tuckwood scorched another personal best in the 1500 — her third in the past four weeks. At the Payton Jordan Invitational, the Gonzaga sophomore slashed more than four seconds from her previous time, stopping the clock at 4:23.15. The time ranks third in program history and third on the Alaska all-time performers list, behind Allie Ostrander (4:14.76) and Kaarin Knudson (4:20.15).
Also in California were Northern Arizona’s Santiago Gomez-Prosser and his former teammate, Tristian Merchant of Liberty. The pair, while in different heats, narrowly missed their lifetime bests for 5,000 meters, with Gomez-Prosser running 13:51.88 and Merchant at 13:58.00. Merchant’s time ranks seventh in program history.
At the Mt. SAC Relays, Girdwood’s Ava Earl knocked over five seconds from her 5,000-meter time, set just three weeks prior. The Northwestern sophomore sped to a time of 16:19.34, to place tenth in the elite field. Her time moves her up to third in program history and third on the Alaska all-time performers list, behind Allie Ostrander (15:16.38) and Maggie Callahan (16:13.71).
James Connally
Juneau’s James Connally had a solid showing at the NNU Open. The Eastern Oregon freshman recorded a lifetime best of 22.08 seconds in his collegiate debut in the outdoor 200, slicing over half of a second from his previous best. The time led Connally to a runner-up finish in the 31-person field, ranking eighth in program history. He also competed in the 100 (11.48) and ran a leg on the 4×100 relay (42.04), which finished runner-up and moved into the top five in EOU history.
Racing in her first 800 post-collegiately was Eagle River’s Vanessa Aniteye. The Seattle Pacific standout, who now competes for the HSV-Leichtathletik club, lined up with some of her former Division II rivals. Aniteye narrowly finished runner-up in her heat in 2:06.69, erasing her personal best in the process. The time now ties with Anchorage’s Caitlin Reese for No. 4 on the Alaska all-time performers list, trailing Kaarin Knudson (2:04.52), Danielle McCormick (2:05.00), and Tanner Ealum (2:06.64). Aniteye also doubled back in the 400, recording a time of 54.47 seconds.
Other notable outdoor track and field performances by Alaskans:
- Homer’s Audrey Rosencrans completed a unique triple at the Bryan Clay Invitational. The Academy of Art senior stayed busy, racing the 10,000 (37:18.10), 3,000 steeplechase (11:07.31), and 1500 (4:46.78).
- Soldotna’s Cody Nye logged personal bests at Carleton Relays and the Running on Hope Invitational. The Minnesota-Morris junior improved by nearly two feet in the hammer throw (142 feet, 4 inches) and over four inches in the shot put (52 feet, 1.25 inches).
- Palmer’s Sophie Wright set a lifetime best in the 800 at the Bryan Clay Invitational. The Western Washington sophomore ran 2:13.19, slicing more than half a second from her previous best. She also raced the 1500 (4:32.90), running just outside her personal best.
- Anchorage’s Brady Burrough placed third at the Maverick Invite in the 1,500. The Fort Lewis sophomore ran 3:59.31 to improve his time by over 1.5 seconds.
- Juneau’s Anna Frazier had a successful showing at the Larry Byerly Invite. The Linfield sophomore turned in a time of 19:57.76 in the 5,000 to improve her personal best by over 18 seconds.
- Palmer’s Lev Robertson secured a lifetime best in the 800 at the Carla Coffey Invitational. The Amherst senior ran 1:56.55 to improve by nearly 1.5 seconds.\
- Anchorage’s Lucy Young recorded personal bests at the Wake Forest Invitational and Meet of Champions. The William & Mary sophomore competed in the 1500 (4:40.05) and 3,000 steeplechase (11:14.02), finishing runner-up in the latter with a six-second personal best.
- Wasilla’s Cort Sandefur registered a personal best in the hammer throw (127 feet, 11 inches) at the Montana Open. The MSU-Billings freshman improved his hammer throw by nearly five feet, in addition to competing in the shot put (38 feet, 11 inches) and discus (133 feet, 10 inches).
- Anchorage’s Lauren Parsons competed in all four throws at the SMU Cardinal Invitational, registering personal bests in each event over the course of two meets. The Minnesota-Morris freshman took part in the shot put (28 feet, 0 inches), discus (87 feet, 8 inches), javelin (83 feet, 4 inches), and hammer throw (89 feet, 6 inches).