Mankato, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Duluth men's track & field squad tallied a number of top three finishes at the Deb Schulz Open on Friday afternoon in Mankato, Minn. The meet in Mankato served as the final tune-up for the Bulldogs before they head to Aberdeen, SD on Thursday for the NSIC Outdoor Championships. 

"We had some break through performances in the sprints today for our men," said Head Coach Karly Brautigam. "I'm looking forward to next week and seeing how we put it all together. We should head into the conference meet with a lot of confidence across the board."

On the track, Bereket Loer and Alex Kulzer finished first and second in the men's 400 meter dash. In the event, Loer notched a new personal best mark of 49.50, while Kulzer finished just behind with a time of 49.70. In the men's 1,500 meter run, Owen Dickenson earned himself a third place finish with a mark of 4:01.23. For Dickenson, the time is a new PR. Josh Miley also found himself with a third place finish in the 200 meter dash after rolling off a time of 21.72, which is also a new personal best as well. Miley, Loer, Nicholas Westphal and Avery Hunt would enjoy a second place finish in the 4x100 relay after they put together a time of 43.44. 

In the field, Colton Kostynick and Eli Bicek each tallied third place finishes in their respective events. For Kostynick, his distance of 48.43m in the men's discus throw earned himself third place on the event's leader board. In the hammer throw, Bicek grabbed third after noting a distance of 51.17 meters. 

Up Next
The Bulldogs will head to the NSIC Outdoor Championships on Thursday, May 12 in Aberdeen, SD.