December 5, 2025
BROOKINGS, S.D. – Dakota State (S.D.) made their 2025-26 women's indoor track & field season debut Friday at the NCAA Division I meet, the South Dakota State Holiday Open. The Trojans excelled in their season opener with three new school records and a NAIA national qualifying mark.
Oliviyah Thornton threw a new school record in the weight throw, tossing 17.33 meters (56 feet, 10.2 inches) to finish fifth. She broke the previous DSU school record of 16.66 meters (54 feet, 8 inches) by
Kiana Mounga last season. Thornton's mark is the NAIA 'B' provisional qualifying mark for the national indoor track & field meet.
Mounga followed up with a toss of 15.16 meters (49 feet, 9 inches) for the Trojans. Other weight throw results include
Bella Maxwell – 14.63 meters – 48 feet;
Alivia Bickett – 13.05 meters – 42 feet, 9.75 inches;
Lilly Young – 12.90 meters – 42 feet, 4 inches; Aailyah Bertelsen – 12.01 meters – 39 feet, 5 inches;
McKenna McIlravy – 11.24 meters – 36 feet, 10.5 inches, and
Emily Dvorak – 11.05 meters – 36 feet, 3 inches.
Thornton also produced a career best shot put of 13.24 meters (43 feet, 5.25 inches) to place fourth for DSU. Her shot-put toss is the fourth best in the Trojan women's indoor track & field school record.
Casey Olson posted her personal record of 12.11 meters (39 feet, 8.75 inches), followed by Bicket with 11 meters toss (36 feet, 1.25 inches).
Hadley Hollenbeck threw 9.71 meters (31 feet, 10.25 inches) and Dvorak 7.45 meters (24 feet, 5.5 inches).
Amelie Steins hit a personal record time of 8.89 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles for Dakota State, finishing ninth overall in the field. Her time broke a new school record which was previously held by Bobbi Jo Dykstra with a time of 9.00 seconds in 2008.
Steins was just .08 seconds shy of hitting the NAIA school qualifying time in the 60-meter hurdles. Olson added a career best time of 9.68 seconds, followed by
Taneaja John in 10.22 seconds, and
Alyssa Koffler with a personal record time of 10.63 seconds.
Steins hit a career best 5.44 meters long jump leap (17 feet, 10.25 inches) to finish third in the event. Her long jump is the second best in the DSU women's indoor track & field school record book.
Natalie Stoks added 4.66 meters mark (15 feet, 3.5 inches).
The third school record came in at the last event of the day, the 4 x 400-meter relay. Steins,
Anna Schneider,
Molli Thornton, and
RayLee Wallis teamed up to a new school record time of 3 minutes, 58.50 seconds. They finished third in the race and produced the top NAIA place finisher, which is just nearly two seconds shy of producing the NAIA national qualifying time.
The same 4 x 400-meter relay team members held the previous school record last season with a time of 4:00.79.
M. Thornton clocked a time of 8.04 meters in the 60-meter dash, followed by
Averie Marshall with a personal record time of 8.20 seconds.
Bridget Bartling clocked a time of 8.21 seconds, and Stoks with a time of 8.27 seconds.
Stoks led the Trojans with a time of 27.67 seconds in the 200-meter dash.
Bethany Lawson posted a time of 27.94 seconds, Marshall in 27.96 seconds, John in 28.13 seconds, Bartling in 28.15 seconds, Olson with a personal record time of 28.65 seconds, and
Alyssa Koffler in 30 seconds.
Lindsey Roth led DSU with a third-place finish in the 1-mile run, registering a time of 5 minutes, 22.88 seconds. Kerria Miller placed fifth in 5:34.28.
Schneider earned a seventh-place finish with a time of 1 minute, 42.10 seconds in the 600-meters.
Wallis clocked a time of 59.09 seconds in the 400-meter dash for DSU, placing 11
th overall. Lawson added a time of 1 minute, 5.80 seconds.
Valerija Curikova ran 10 minutes, 30.44 seconds in the 3000-meter run.
Presli White recorded a personal best 11:11.39 in the race.
Dakota State wraps up their 2025 calendar year next Saturday (Dec. 13) in the Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) Snow Tiger Invitational in Mitchell, S.D.
