Central takes three event crowns at Jim Duncan Invitational

Hobart and Purcell earn wins

by Joseph Flaherty

Des Moines, IA (04/14/2025) — Running on the famous blue oval at Drake Stadium, the Central College track and field teams tallied three event championships at the Jim Duncan Invitational Friday.

The Dutch men finished third in the team standings while the women were fourth. Central was the top Division III team for each gender. The Jim Duncan Invitational featured an array of Iowa schools of all sizes as the host school preps to host the Drake Relays in two weeks

"It started out cloudy and cold but as the day went on the day got better," coach Brandon Sturman said. "All of the races and events got better with the weather."

Kale Hobart (sophomore, Mason City) captured the men's 400-meter hurdles title in a time of 53.22 seconds. It's the third-fastest time this season in Division III and No. 4 on the school's top-10 list.

"It shows his dedication and athleticism that he can train for decathlons and still go out and win this race," Sturman said. "Our goal is to qualify for the national meet in his next decathlon and then run the 400 hurdles at conference."

Men's triple jumper Kale Purcell (senior, Holton, Kan.) gave Central a third individual title, winning with a mark of 46 feet, 7.50 inches.

"It's not his best mark but he was able to finish strong and win the meet," Sturman said. "We need to start a little faster but he did a good job of staying focused and correcting himself throughout the jumps."

Top-eight finishes - men

400 meters - 2. Kaleb Brand, 48.56

4x100 relay - 6. Central, 43.16

4x400 relay - 4. Brian Hart, Kaleb Brand, Jrake Van Hemert, Alex Volden, 3:18.75

110-meter hurdles - 3. Connor Miklos, 14.82; 4. Grant Miller,14.91; 5. Kale Hobart, 14.92; 7. Gage Huyser, 15.59

400-meter hurdles - 1. Kale Hobart, 53.22; 8. Cor Huyser, 56.72

3,000-meter steeplechase - 7. Randy Jimenez, 9:38.77

Long jump - 6. Reid Pakkebier, 21-4

Triple jump - 1. Kale Purcell, 46-7.50; 4. Jackson Tavegia, 41-9.75

High jump - 4. Lance Bunde, 6-2.75

Pole vault - 6. Alex Miller, 12-11.5; 7. Dylan Maurer, 12-11.5

Javelin throw - 5. Grant Miller, 166-10