The Minnesota Duluth men's track & field team opened their outdoor season with a four place finish at the Wartburg Outdoor Select in Waverly, IA on Friday afternoon. As a team, the Bulldogs posted a total of 71 points to finish fourth out of ten schools. 

"We were working through this first meet of the outdoor season and had an opportunity to take another step in the right direction with our training," said Head Coach Karly Brautigam. "I was impressed with how we competed and was particularly excited to see some new faces competing in outdoor events."

On the track, the Bulldogs got third place finishes from both Matthew Trutna and Christian Leonard. In the men's 5000 meter run, Trutna's mark of 14:56.31 was good enough for a podium finish. In the 1500 meter run, Leonard notched a time of 3:58.59 to also grab third place. Additionally, UMD's 4x400 meter relay team of Bereket Loer, Alexander Croston, Owen Dickenson and Leonard posted a time of 3:28.47 to finish fourth out of 14 teams. 

In the field, Eli Bicek stepped up in the hammer throw, noting a distance 49.78m to earn second place on the leader board and getting UMD eight total points. Colton Kostynick also took home second in the shot put, after securing a distance of 14.89m. Kostynick would also note a third place finish in the discus throw, tallying a distance of 45.87m. Lastly, Shea Alto's height of 4.35m in the pole vault was good enough for third place in the event. 

Up Next
The Bulldogs will continue their outdoor season next weekend at the Minnesota State Open & Multi in Mankato, Minn.