Local college athletes shine in track meets

Freshman soars at college meet

Cloquet native and 2022 graduate Olivia Jameson finished a standout conference meet earlier this month at De Pere, Wisconsin May 5-6.

A freshman architecture major from Cloquet competing for Illinois Tech, Jameson won the high jump with a height of 1.60 meters at the Division III Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Outdoor Track & Field Championship.

Jameson earned conference Freshman of the Year after placing first in the high jump, fifth in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.96 seconds, fifth in the 100-meter hurdles in 15.82, and fourth on the 4x400 meter relay team with a school-record time of 4:10.30.

Jameson’s 100 dash time of 12.96 is second all-time at the school.

In April, the 4x100 relay team featuring Jameson broke the school record with a time of 52.64.

Coil fourth in B1G

University of Wisconsin graduate student Sam Coil finished last weekend just off the medal stand at the Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

Coil, of Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota, finished fourth in the hammer throw at the meet in Bloomington, Indiana, with a toss of 213 feet, 3 inches.

Coil had won gold during the indoor season in the 35-pound weight throw in February. He is finishing his collegiate eligibility at Wisconsin after several seasons competing for South Dakota State University in Brookings. He is seeking his master’s degree in accountancy in Madison and plans to work for PWC in Minneapolis beginning this summer, according to a Pine Knot News profile in March.

Kelley helps NDSU win conference

Cloquet graduate Kendra Kelley, enjoying a banner return to collegiate sprinting following the birth of her son, helped the North Dakota State University women's track and field team win its 14th outdoor conference title in 15 tries last Saturday.

The D-II Bison brought home the trophy on the final day of the Summit League Outdoor Championships in Fargo.

The Bison women stormed back to finish with 254 points for the win. South Dakota finished second with 240 points.

Kendra Kelley (23.69) and teammate Jasmine Williams (24.46) placed second and third, respectively, in the 200-meter dash. In the 100 dash, Kelley took third.

Kelley also took part in 4x100 and 4x400 relays that both finished as conference runners-up.

Kelley did not compete during the 2021-22 indoor or outdoor seasons after giving birth to her now 1-year-old son, Brayden. She stormed back to competition this year, beginning with several wins and school-record finishes in the indoor season.