WAVERLY, Iowa- The Knights No. 4 ranked men's and No. 24 ranked women's track and field teams capped off day one of the Wartburg Indoor Select in record-breaking fashion. Grace Braden broke the program record in the pentathlon.
 
Mitchell Darst (heptathlon 60m) and the 4x400 relay team (Jeffrey Oestreicher, Alex Kerr, Hutton Edney, and Jimmy Weispfenning) earned event wins on the men's side.
 
The heptathlon will conclude tomorrow with three more events (60m hurdles, pole vault, 1000m). The Knights have two competitors in the top four. Mitchell Darst is in second with 2568 points and Daniel Zietlow is in fourth with 2535 points.
 
Grace Braden (pentathlon, pentathlon high jump, pentathlon long jump, pentathlon 60m hurdles), Caitlin Benesh (pentathlon shot put, pentathlon 800m), and Abby Veld (shot put invitational) earned event wins on the women's side.
 
The Knights had the top two finishers in the pentathlon. Grace Braden claimed the top spot on the program's top 10 list with 3421 points. Camesha Good previously was at the number one spot with her performance in 2012. Caitlin Benesh rose to third on the program's top 10 list with 3315 points. Braden now stands sixth on the TFRRS list for this season. Benesh now stands 12^th on the TFRRS list for this season.
 
Scoring Link 
 
FIELD EVENTS
(M) Heptathlon (High Jump): Daniel Zietlow was the top finisher for the Knights with a 1.83m 6-00.00 mark. Mitchell Darst was the next highest placer with a 1.77m 5-09.75 mark to finish fourth place.

(M) Heptathlon (Long Jump): Mitchell Darst (6.14m 20-01.75) and Daniel Zietlow (5.96m 19-06.75) led the Knights with second and fourth place finishes, respectively.

(M) Heptathlon (Shot Put): The Knights had two top five finishes. Daniel Zietlow took second with a 11.58m 38-00.00 mark and Mitchell Darst took fifth with a 9.80m 32-2.00 mark.

(W) Pentathlon (High Jump): Grace Braden (1.56m 5-01.25), Caitlin Benesh (1.53m 5-0.25), and Jazmine Woode (1.50m 4-11.00) were the top three finishers in the event.

(W) Pentathlon (Long Jump): The Knights had the top three finishes. Grace Braden (5.32m 17-05.50) placed first, Caitlin Benesh (5.14m 16-10.50) placed second, and Jazmine Woode (4.54m 14-10.75) placed third.

(W) Pentathlon (Shot Put): Caitlin Benesh (10.47m 34-04.35) placed first, Grace Braden (10.43m 34-02.75) placed second, and Jazmine Woode (9.57m 31-04.75) placed third.

(M) Shot Put Invitational: Deacon Vasey was the only competitor for the Knights in the field. Vasey finished in ninth place with a 13.97m 45-10.00 mark.

(W) Shot Put Invitational: Abby Veld was victorious with a 13.76m 45-01.75 mark, which moves her up to seventh on the program's top 10 list. Additionally, Veld now stands ninth on the TFRRS list for this season. Olivia Rowedder earned a top five finish with a 11.66 38-03.25 mark.

(M) Weight Throw Invitational: Eli Keahna was the lone competitor for the Knights and finished fifth with a 15.96m 52-04.50 mark.

(W) Weight Throw Invitational: Ana Glawe led the Knights to place seventh with a 14.83m 48-08.00 mark.
 
RUNNING EVENTS
(M) Heptathlon (60m): Mitchell Darst was victorious with a time of 7.02. Daniel Zietlow earned a top five finish with a time of 7.47.

(W) Pentathlon (800m): Caitlin Benesh (2:33.47) and Grace Braden (2:38.46) were the top two performers for the Knights to lead the entire field.

(W) Pentathlon (60m Hurdles): The Knights had the top two finishes. Grace Braden was victorious with a time of 8.88, which stands 15^th on the TFRRS list for this season. Caitlin Benesh placed second with a time of 9.28.
 
RELAYS
(M) 4x400m: The Knights had two relay teams that finished first and second, respectively. Jeffrey Oestreicher, Alex Kerr, Hutton Edney, and Jimmy Weispfenning represented the top Knights relay team with a time of 3:20.0. This time stands 15^th on the TFRRS list for this season. David Williams, Benjamin Roussell, Cayden Schellhorn, and Caleb Campbell led the Knights to a second place finish with a time of 3:23.7.

(W) 4x400m: The Knights had two relay teams in the field. The relay team of JoJo Tyynismaa, Natalie Bork, Olivia Tollari, and Haley Meyer finished second with a time of 3:50.4. Their time ranks eighth on the program's top 10 list and fourth on the TFRRS list for this season. Ryann Decker, Taylor Burns, Hannah Ramsey, Leah Cherry finished third with a time of 3:59.3.
 
2025-26 Wartburg School Records:
Anthony Weaver Jr, 14.71m (48-03.25) – (M) Triple Jump
Haley Meyer, 2:55.24 – (W) 1000m
AJ Wright, 6.83 – (M) 60m
Tyler Schermerhorn, 8:12.34 – (M) 3000m
Grace Braden, 3421 points – Pentathlon
 
Top 10 Wartburg Pentathlon

1. Grace Braden – 2026, 3421 points
2. Camesha Goods – 2012, 3393 points
3. Caitlin Benesh – 2026, 3315 points
4. Mia Purnell – 2014, 3264 points
5. Marissa Nolan – 2020, 3259 points
6. Courtney Sowle – 2017, 3253 points
7. Brittnay Melloy – 2011, 3188 points
8. Tatiana Silva – 2014, 3182 points
9. Jaclyn Stoakes – 2016, 3019 points
10. Becca Fagerlind – 2009, 3013 points

 
Up Next:
The Knights will be back competing tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. for day two of the Wartburg Indoor Select in Waverly.