Eastern New Mexico middle distance runner Ivar Moinat wrapped up an incredible indoor season with seventh place finish in the 800-meter final at the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field Championships inside the Robert W. Plaster Center on Saturday.
Moinat crossed the finish line in 1:51.25, improving upon his final qualifying mark by 0.15 seconds after running the fourth-fastest time with a 1:51.40 in yesterday’s preliminary heats.
After becoming just the ninth Greyhound to compete at the NCAA Indoor Championships since returning to indoor competition in 2013, Moinat’s seventh place finish ranks as the fourth-best placement by an ENMU competitor in an NCAA Indoor Championship final during that stretch.
The Amsterdam, Netherlands native put together a banner 2019 indoor season by breaking three program records. In the opening meet of the year at the Red Raider Invitational, Moinat set the fastest 400-meter time with a 48.74. He followed it up with a record-breaking performance in the 800-meter at the Texas Tech Open two weeks later when he crossed the finish line in 1:51.00, breaking his own record of 1:51.51 set at the Red Raider Invite.
Moinat had a strong showing at the 2019 Lone Star Conference Indoor Championships as he placed third in the 800-meter, just missing his program-record mark with a 1:51.01 finish. Moinat was a part of a 4×400-meter relay team that broke records all season long, but the Hounds saved the best for last when they shattered the previous record with a 3:15.98 in the LSC Championships. Moinat came away with All-LSC Third Team accolades for the third straight year with his strong performances in the meet.
With the indoor season now concluded, Moinat and the rest of the Eastern New Mexico track and field team will look forward to the start of the outdoor season as the Hounds will open it with their home event, the Greyhound Open, on March 23 at Greyhound Stadium.