Hope had three All-America performances at the NCAA Division III track and field championships held at Benedictine University in Lisle, Ill. from May 25-27.
The Flying Dutch finished in a tie for 33rd place among 74 women's teams with nine points while the Flying Dutchmen tied for 50th among 70 men's teams with four points.
Junior Ryan TerLouw of Pella, Iowa (Pella HS) achieved NCAA All-America status in the 1500-meter run for a second consecutive year by finishing fifth in the event. A year ago TerLouw was seventh at nationals in the event. Defending national champion Nick Symmonds led the field of 12 runners with a time of 3:49.24. TerLouw was timed in 3:51.72. This is the third straight year that Hope has had an All-American in the 1,500 and the fourth time in school history. TerLouw also competed in the 5,000-meter run finishing 17th (16:22.78) in the field of 18 runners.
Sophomore Lindsay Lange of Manistee, Mich. (Manistee HS) won the bronze medal with a third place finish in the seven-event heptathlon. Her final total of 4,790 points is a Hope College record. There were 19 athletes entered in the two-day competition. Lange won the 100-meter hurdles (:14.53) and the 200-meter dash (:25.39). She ended third in the high jump (5-1 3/4) and shot put (36-7 1/2), was eighth in the long jump (16-5 3/4), and 19th in the javelin (86-0). Calvin College senior Christine Hendricks won the event with an NCAA record of 5,012 points. Lange is the second Hope athlete to achieve All-America status in the heptathlon. In 1995 Kelly Etheridge finished in fifth place. Lange also competed in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing 17th (:15.22) in the field of 20 competitors. Nine hurdlers advanced to the finals.
Junior Jennifer VanderMeer of Holland, Mich. (Holland HS) achieved NCAA All-America honors for a third consecutive year, finishing sixth in the pole vault. She cleared a height of (12-2 1/2) in the field of 19 vaulters. Senior teammates Maureen Warfield of Adrian (Adrian HS) and Laura Borovsky of Livonia, Mich. (Churchhill HS) finished 13th (11-6 1/2) and 15th (11-6 1/2) respectively. The event was won by Ashley Johnson of Wilmington, Ohio at (12-6 1/4).
Senior Jeff Weber of Grandville, Mich. (Grandville HS) finished 13th in the trials of the 1,500-meter run (3:52.31). The top 12 runners advanced to the finals.