MOORHEAD, Minn. -- The 2015 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Indoor Track and Field Championships began Thursday. The meet is hosted at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., but Thursday's results gave the fans in Northfield, Minn., the most to cheer about, as St. Olaf's Dani Larson claimed her second career victory in the women's pentathlon, and Carleton's Colby Seyferth surged into the lead in the men's heptathlon through the first four events.

Larson came full circle in the pentathlon, as she won the event in 2012 as a rookie, and now returned to the top of the standings in 2015 as a senior. She won with a score of 3,370 points to claim her victory by more than 500 points. She posted the best result in three of the five events, and was second and sixth in the other two.

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Concordia's Anna Skow-Anderson delighted the hometown fans by finishing second in the pentathlon with a score of 2,800 points, and Hamline's Gabby Koel also earned All-Conference (top three) honors in the event with 2,717 points to come out on top of a tight battle for third. Carleton's Emma Grisanzio (2,705) was fourth and another Cobber, Mikayla Forness (2,701), rounded out the top five.

St. Olaf's Dani Larson celebrates her win in the pentathlon Thursday. (Photo courtesy of Concordia Sports Information)

Larson led wire-to-wire to capture her second career win in the event. She was first in the 60-meter hurdles (9.43) seconds and the high jump (5-5.75) to get out to an early lead, then she was sixth in the shot put (29-8.75), second in the long jump (15-6.75) and she wrapped up the title with a first-place finish in the 800-meter run (2:23.93).

St. Thomas' Libby Lange recorded the top throw in the shot put (37-11.5) and Carleton's Zoe Peterson had the best mark in the long jump (16-2.5). Skow-Anderson was second in both the high jump and shot put to lead to her runner-up finish, and Koel was third in the shot put and was in the top eight in three of the five events to help her also finish in the top three. 

A year ago, Carleton then-sophomore Amelia Campbell delivered the MIAC's top indoor highlight with her MIAC and NCAA Division III record score of 3,914 points en route to a national title in the event. However, the junior has been limited by an injury this season wasn't able to defend her title, as she'll only compete in the shot put at the 2015 MIAC Indoor meet.  

The men's heptathlon also opened with four of the seven events on Thursday, and it will conclude with the final three events on Friday. Seyferth - who was seeded first heading into the MIAC Championships - staked his lead through four events with a total of 2,747 points and a 325-point lead. Seyferth was named the MIAC Men's Indoor Track Athlete-of-the-Week three times this season, and he's also seeded first in the 200- and 400-meters.

St. Thomas' Preston Huddleston heads into the second and final day in second place with a total of 2,422 points, and two more Carleton teammates - Jack Buckner and Evan McNeil - sit in third and fourth with 2,393 points and 2,355 points, respectively. Concordia teammates Gabe Wright (2,345) and Joe Hendrickson (2,280) gave the Cobber fans something to cheer about, as they both rank in the top six as well after four events. 

Seyferth's quest for a multi-event title got off to a great start, as he posted the best mark in each of the first three events and was third in the other. He started with a win in the 60-meter dash thanks to his time of 7.26 seconds, had the best distance in the long jump (20-7.75), and the top mark in the shot put (40-5.25). Seyferth's high jump height of 6-1.25 also ranked third, with Concordia's Wright leading the way with a mark of 6-4.75. Huddleston finished in the top five in three of the four events, and Buckner was in the top three in two events and top eight in another. 

The action continues Friday, starting with the completion of heptathlon at 10:30 a.m. Friday afternoon will bring the first full track and field session of the meet, with field events set to start at 2 p.m. and track to follow at 4 p.m. Saturday's final session starts with 10:15 a.m. field events and 12:30 p.m. track events.
 
Saturday's final event begins at 3:40 p.m., and there will be a short awards ceremony following the conclusion of the meet to honor both team champions. The top three individuals in each event and the first-place relay team will automatically earn All-Conference honors, and the 4th-through-6th place finishers in each open event and 2nd-through-6th place relay teams will all be named All-Conference Honorable Mention.

The MIAC has a home page dedicated to the 2015 Indoor Championships, complete with venue and admission information, the event schedule, entries, heat sheets and links to follow the results live (Men - Women). Results, recaps, and multimedia coverage of the championships will be available throughout the event. There will be live results available for all events courtesy of Apple Raceberry Jam, and fans can also find entries and heat sheets on the MIAC's event page as they become available. Also, connect to the conference on its Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube pages throughout the Championships using the hashtag #MIACITF.

Admission for the event is $7 for adults and $3 for students per day, with children ages 5 and under admitted free. MIAC passes will be honored. The MIAC would like to thank Concordia College and their coaches and staff for their efforts to host the event.

| 2015 MIAC Indoor Track and Field Championships |