WICHITA – The Wichita State track and field team's 15 new male and 19 new female athletes logged their first practice at Cessna Stadium on Monday afternoon.
 
"These recruiting classes come together over time, and you don't realize until you sit in front of them in a newcomers meeting that, 'son of a gun, this is a heck of a group,' and it really is," director of track and field/cross country Steve Rainbolt said.
 
Of the 33 newcomers, 24 are freshmen and nine are transfers, with the majority of new athletes joining the distance and sprints/hurdles groups.
 
"Coach Hunter really brought in a terrific group of distance runners," Rainbolt said. "I'm super excited about that bunch."
 
Adrian Diaz-Lopez, a two-time NJCAA national indoor champion in the 3,000 meters and the 2021 NJCAA Division II Cross Country champion, will be a huge addition to the distance squad.
 
"He's such a successful, talented athlete, and he's done some things already that nobody's done," distance coach Kirk Hunter said. "We'll need him to be hitting on all cylinders because he'll be significant for our whole track team."
 
Iestyn Williams, Jacob Meyers and Farrah Miller also have the potential to step in and immediately contribute on the track.
 
For the sprints/hurdles group, Toby Penner and Savannah Simmons bring eight combined years of competitive collegiate experience to the team, with Penner being a graduate transfer from Tabor College and Simmons joining the Shockers after graduating from Missouri Western.
 
"Savannah Simmons is a veteran that has run well in college, so she's certainly somebody that will fill a void as a relay leg," assistant director of track and field John Wise said. "She will have an immediate impact in our group."
 
Penner enters his final year of eligibility with a 400-meter hurdles personal best of 52.23 and is joined by freshman Bryan Haney from Lee's Summit, Mo., who also looks to make an impact in the event. Haney enters college with personal bests of 22.05 in the 200 meters, 14.5 in the 110-meter hurdles and 38.01 in the 400-meter hurdles.
 
Rainbolt is excited about the addition of Mattelyn Swartz and his group of new female multi-event athletes. Swartz is a high jumper from Anthony, Kan. who has a personal best of 1.73m/5'8".
 
"I'm particularly excited about Mattelyn Swartz in the high jump," Rainbolt said. "I think that she's really good, and I think she's even better than what it appears."
Rainbolt compares his new group of female multis to the 2013 incoming class of Nikki Larch-Miller, Gavyn Yetter and Breanne Borman, who racked up three All-America and 28 all-conference honors between them.
 
"I have looked forward, since they all committed to coming here, to working with them as much as any group I've ever had," Rainbolt said. "Nikki Larch-Miller, Gavyn Yetter and Breanne Borman all came in together, and that was a really fun group to have, and I'm excited about this group like I was that group."
 
With big shoes to fill in the throws group after losing All-Americans Michael Bryan and Taran Taylor to graduation, throws coach John Hetzendorf will look to his younger throwers to lead his three incoming athletes. Hetzendorf brought in two javelin throwers, Blake McCormick and Emma Bezdek, and one versatile thrower, Beau Kerschen, all hailing from Kansas. McCormick was a multi-sport athlete in high school who got looks to play college football but will have his first chance to focus solely on throwing. Bezdek, who played softball all through high school, took her first stab at the javelin this spring as a senior and went on to win the regional meet and place fourth at the state meet.
 
"Being multi-sport athletes, they had limited exposure to the javelin, which is a good thing now that we're focusing on it, and I think they can do great things for us," Hetzendorf said. "[The potential for growth] is super exciting to me."
 
Pole vault coach Pat Wilson added three men and one woman to his training group. Malakai Schaad comes in with the top mark, having cleared 4.88m/16'0" as a junior, and Kinslee Stokely will join the women's vault squad that is led by Margaux Thompson.
 
"Malakai, with already having a mark that could potentially score in our conference, just hitting the ground running, I'm excited to see him," Wilson said, "And Kinslee comes in with a very solid coaching and technical background, so she could be a dark horse."
 
In the horizontal jumps, Washington and Vazquez will join Zarrey Sams and Harry Barthelemy, who came to Wichita in January, in making their Shocker debuts.
 
Horizontal jumps coach Heidi Benton sees a lot of talent in her group and is excited to work with them and watch them become contributors.
 
The Shockers welcome athletes from six different countries and 10 states, including 12 Kansans.
 
Rainbolt noted that it was extremely valuable to be able to bring recruits to campus again after COVID-19 restricted recruiting the prior year.
 
"[I was] able to bring recruits, meet with them in my office, ask them to sign and invite them to come be on our team in person," Rainbolt said. "That's my style. I value being able to have those personal interactions with recruits, and I really felt good about getting back to normal that way."

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Sprints/Hurdles
Bryan Haney – FR/FR – Lee's Summit, MO – Lee's Summit West HS
HS: 200m 22.05, 110h 14.5, 300h 38.01
 
Toby Penner – SR/SR – Whitewater, KS – Berean Academy HS – Tabor College
TAB: 400m 50.35, 600y 1:13.13, 600m 1:20.23, 800m 1:55.85, 1000m 2:37.40, 60h 8.52, 110h 15.02 (14.90w), 400h 52.23
HS: 110h 14.9, 300h 39.56
 
Trace Spires – FR/FR – Alachua, FL – WT Loften HS
HS: 200m 22.62, 400m 48.87, 800m 1:59.58
 
Nikko Vazquez – FR/FR – Wichita, KS – Wichita West HS
HS: 60m 7.07, 100m 10.74, 200m 22.09, LJ 6.44m/21-1.5
 
Cali Kerschen – FR/FR – Andale, KS – Andale HS
HS: 100h 14.74, 300h 48.02
 
Savannah Simmons – SR/SR – Newton, KS – Newton HS – Missouri Western University
MWU: 60m 7.61, 100m 11.78, 200m 24.74
HS: 100m 11.9, 200m 24.5
 
Kennady Washington – FR/FR – Kansas City, MO – North Kansas City HS
HS: 100m 12.10, 200m 26.08, LJ 5.77m/18-11.25
Courtney Wilborn – FR/FR – Aurora, CO – William C. Hinkley HS
HS: 100m 12.1, 200m 25.2, 100h 14.7
 
Diondra Wilborn – JR/JR – Aurora, CO – William C. Hinkley HS – Garden City CC
GCCC: 200m 25.82, 60h 8.80, 100h 14.12, 400h 1:05.45
HS: 100h 14.86
 
Jumps
Caden Carlson – FR/FR – Aurora, NE – Aurora HS
HS: PV 4.50m/14-9
Malakai Schaad – FR/FR – Geneseo, IL – Geneseo HS
HS: PV 4.88m/16-0
 
Weston Hulse – FR/FR – Broken Arrow, OK – Broken Arrow HS
HS: PV 4.76m/15-7.5
 
Kinslee Stokely – FR/FR – Princeton, MO – Princeton HS
HS: PV 3.20m/10-6
 
Mattelyn Swartz – FR/FR – Anthony, KS – Chaparral HS
HS: HJ 1.73m/5-8
 
Throws
Beau Kerschen – FR/FR – Andale, KS – Andale HS
HS: SP 16.76m/55-0, DT 45.12m/148-0, HT 48.76m/160-0
 
Blake McCormick – FR/FR – Maize, KS – Maize South HS
HS: JV 57.92m/190-0
 
Emma Bezdek – FR/FR – Wichita, KS – Kapaun Mt Carmel HS
HS: JT 37.24m/122-2
 
Distance
Adrian Diaz-Lopez – SO/SO/SO – Cazorla, Spain – Cowley County CC
COW: 800m 1:56.43, 1000m 2:34.77, 1500m 3:48.13, Mile 4:07.30, 3000m 8:01.33, 5000m 14:04.20
COWXC: 8k 24:40
HS: 800m 2:02, 1500m 3:59.69
 
Jacob Meyers – FR/FR/FR – Festus, MO – Festus HS
HS: 800m 1:54, Mile 4:10, 3200 9:09
 
Aidan Reyna – FR/FR/FR – Olathe, KS – Olathe West HS
HS: 800m 1:56, 1600m 4:17, 3200m 9:20, 5k 15:36
 
Lukaas Simonson – SR/SR – Hastings, NE – Hastings HS – Nebraska Kearney
UNK: 600y 1:16.34, 600m 1:23.33, 800m 1:53.83, 1000m 2:39.02, 1500m 3:58.93, Mile 4:43.06, 400h 59.52
UNKXC: 4m 23:00, 8k 28:22
HS: 800m 1:56.98
 
Iestyn Williams – JR/JR/JR – Llangadog, UK – Cardiff Metropolitan University
CAR: 400m 48.7, 800m 1:50.64, 1500m 3:54.13, 3000m 8:38.58
HS: 800m 1:58
 
Sarah Bertry – SO/SO/SO – Alpes, France – North Iowa Area CC – New Mexico CC
CC: 800m 2:23.76, 1000m 3:06.16, 1500m 4:57.02, Mile 5:20.76, 3000m 10:51.84, 5000m 18:21.62, 10k 40:01.47
CCXC: 5k 18:01, 6k 23:29
 
Lea Brückner – JR/JR/JR – Munster, Germany
HS: 5k 17:55, 10k 35:01
 
Farrah Miller – SO/SO/SO – White Plains, NY – Monroe College
MON: 200m 26.39, 400m 56.08, 500m 1:16.93, 600m 1:34.20, 800m 2:12.83, 1000m 3:12.33, Mile 5:33.49
MON XC: 5k 21:03, 6k 30:16
HS: 200m 25.6, 400m 56.3
Amanda Treptow – FR/FR/FR – Dunkerton, IA – Jesup HS
HS: 800m 2:19, 1500m 4:55, 5k 19:09
 
Nadine Visser – FR/FR/FR – Capetown, South Africa
HS: 800m 2:19, 1500m 4:42, 3000m 10:09, 5000m 17:50, 3000st 11:11
 
Multis
Luke Porter – FR/FR – Wichita, KS – Kapaun Mt Carmel HS
HS: 400m 51.92, 1500 4:40, HJ 1.78m/5-10, LJ 6.16m/20-3, DT 33.01m/108-4, JT 49.35m/161-11, Dec 5806
 
Abby Klipstein – FR/FR – Keller, TX – Fort Worth Christian HS – University of Nebraska
NEB: 60h 9.07, 100h 15.20, 800m 2:36, LJ 5.27m/17-3.5, Pent 3129
HS: 100h 15.03, 5.32m/LJ 17-5.5, SP 10.38m/34-1, JT 29.60m/97-1
 
Sadie Millard – FR/FR – Omaha, NE – Millard West HS
HS: 200m 25.69, 400m 56.8, LJ 5.56m/18-3
 
Lily Morrison – FR/FR – Ft. Collins, CO – Liberty Commons HS
HS: 200m 26.34, 400m 57.36
 
Tess Roman – FR/FR – Prairie Village, KS – Shawnee Mission East HS
HS: 100h 15.51, 1.62m/HJ 5-4, 5.43m/LJ 17-10, 11.22m/TJ 36-10
 
Emily Whorton – FR/FR – McPherson, KS – McPherson HS
HS: 200m 27.7, 400m 1:00.9, 800m 2:34, HJ 1.52m/5-0