BROOKINGS, S.D. – The Augustana indoor track & field squads opened the 2022-23 season at the SDSU Holiday Invitational & Multi in Brookings, South Dakota, Friday. The Vikings saw top-five performances in multiple events, highlighted by national qualifying marks for three Vikings. 

The indoor pentathlon kicked off the start of the season for Augustana. Recently coined NSIC track athlete to watch, Kylee Sallee, placed third overall in the event scoring 3353 points. Her performance in the event was just enough to garner the first national qualifying mark for the Vikings this season. 

Sallee saw her highest points in the 60 meter hurdles with 800 points following a 9.54 finals time. She took second place in the high jump, clearing 5' 02" to garner 701 points. Her success continued into the long jump placing second with a distance of 5.47 meters. In the final two events, Sallee took eighth in the 800 meter run with a time of 2:37.05 and placed sixth in shot put with a throw of 10.37 meters. 

Elizabeth Schaefer secured a spot in the 60 meter hurdle finals for the Viking women following a third place finish in the prelims with a time of 8.93. Schaefer took hold of fourth place overall in the event, racing a time of 8.96 to cap off the event.

Maia Peterson was the sole individual champion of an event for Augustana. She took home first place in the 400 meter dash with a finals time of 59.11. 

In the 60 meter dash, Augustana newcomer Lily Juhnke placed fifth overall in the event with a finals time of 7.91. Juhnke improved by .03 of a second heading into the finals following her preliminary time of 7.94. 

For the men of Augustana, the NSIC track athlete to watch, Lawrence Lokonobei placed second overall in the 60 meter hurdles with a finals time of 8.03. Andrew Martens followed inches behind Lokonobei taking hold of third place with a time of 8.17. Martens and Lokonobei both achieved national qualifying marks in the event complementing Sallee's earlier in the meet. 

Martens also saw a second place finish in the 300 meter dash running across the finishing line in a time of 35:38. 

Continuing the success of his teammates, Jed Dooyema took hold of a fourth place finish in the 400 meter dash with a time of 50.72. Dooyema's time was just 1.08 short of the top finals time. 

Gavin Fischer saw a third place finish in the 200 meter dash event, clearing the finish line in a time of 22:12.6 to grasp six points in the Vikings favor. 

Up Next
Augustana indoor track & field returns in January at the Mount Marty Opener on Jan. 14 in Yankton S.D.

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