The UMD Men's and Women's Outdoor Track and Field teams will compete in two separate meets this week. The Bulldogs will feature select participants in the Bryan Clay Invitational on Friday (April 14) and Saturday (April 15) in Azusa, CA hosted by Azusa Pacific. UMD will also see a core of student-athletes heading south to Des Moines, IA for the Jim Duncan Invitational on Friday (April 14) hosted by Drake University.
Bryan Clay Invitational:
Jim Duncan Invitational:
School Records are Meant to Be Broken
UMD's Austin Antony set a new school record in the men's 5000m in a time of 14:40.76 at last weekend's Tomcat Invite. Antony passes Bulldog alum Cody Sedbrook from 2018 (14:45.34).
Last Time Out
The University of Minnesota Duluth men's/women's outdoor track & field teams competed last Friday evening in St. Paul, MN at the Tomcat Invite hosted by the University of St. Thomas. Both the men's and women's teams would see multiple first place finishes.
The Bulldogs were highlighted by a pair of first place finishes in the women's 800m and women's 200m races. UMD's Cailee Peterson led the way with a dominating finish atop the podium in the 800m race with a time of 2:10.27 (also a national provisional qualifying mark and eighth best time in Division II this year). Right behind Peterson was Bulldog Savannah Schley who earned a second place performance with a time of 2:14.02. In the 200m finals, it was a podium top three sweep for UMD with Kate Fitzgerald (1st - 25.78), Megan Gilles (2nd - 25.79), and Emily Anderson (3rd - 26.17). On the men's side, UMD racked up three top spots on the evening. In the 5000m race, Austin Antony ran a 14:40.76 (personal record - school record) to finish first, William Heydt jumped 13.99m (personal record and second in NSIC) in the triple jump for the top spot, and Colton Kostynick continued his shot put success with a top toss of 16.12m (currently first in the NSIC).
Other top performances from the women's team included a variety of events. To start the invite off, UMD saw a big personal record from Lauryn Renier (11:19.75 - currently ranked second in the NSIC) and Morgan Radel (11:45.78) finish back-to-back (2nd and 3rd) in the women's 3000m steeplechase. In the sprint categories, it was Bulldog Megan Gilles with a fourth place finish in the 100m hurdles in a time of 15.24 (currently ranked fifth in the NSIC) and Emily Anderson in the 100m dash in third with a time of 12.55. The pair of Franny Seidel (4th - 4:40.76) and Haleigh Reindl (8th - 4:48.19) both ran strong legs in the women's 1500m. The lone relay team on the women's side competed in the 4x100m and finished third with a time of 50.42 (Chloey Evans, Adalyn Lehman, Jordan Grell, Kate Schmitz). In the field events, UMD turned in strong performances in the pole vault from Libby Lommel (7th - 3.07m), the long jump from Lindsey Root (4th - 5.21m) and Bryn London (5th - 5.17m), and the shot put from Sabrina Segar (10th - 11.37m).
The men's team had a solid evening of competition as well throughout the field and running events. UMD's Jaden Johnson continued his breakout year in the high jump with a third place finish (6-04.75). The throws crew for the Bulldogs continued to impress with a second place finish in the hammer throw from Eli Bicek (50.42m) and sixth place finish from Colton Kostynick (45.70m). Jackson Weston also shined in the men's shot put with a toss of 15.10m to land a third place spot. In the running events, UMD's Jack Van Kempen started off the evening with a second place finish in the 3000m steeplechase (personal record - 9:17.60 - first in the NSIC). In the sprint group, it was Samuel Blomberg in the 110m hurdles with a eighth place finish (15.91), Cole Brisbois in the 100m dash (5th - 10.92), Josh Miley with second place finish in the 200m (22.46), and Ted Rogers in the 400m (9th - 51.17). UMD's Owen Dickenson continued to impress in the 800m with a second place podium spot in a time of 1:55.73 (personal record - first in the NSIC) and in the 5000m, Sam Ringger added a sixth place finish with a time of 15:28.78. The lone relay team on the men's side was also in the 4x100m and Bulldogs Josh Miley, Nicholas Westphal, Cole Brisbois, and William Heydt earned a fourth place spot with a time of 43:36.
Making A Mark
UMD's Cailee Peterson currently sits ninth nationally in NCAA Division II in the women's 800m run with a time of 2:10.27. That mark is currently a NCAA Division II provisional qualifying mark.
Leading the Way
The Bulldogs currently have a number of top five performances in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The following men and women currently are leading the way for the Bulldogs in the NSIC.
Previously at the Bryan Clay Invitational
The Minnesota Duluth men's and women's track and field teams were supposed to compete in the 2020 season but the meet was canceled due to COVID-19.
Previously at the Jim Duncan Invitational
The Minnesota Duluth men's track and field team battled in the Jim Duncan Invitational last year in Des Moines, IA.
Minnesota Duluth's best effort of the day came from Cole Fechner in the men's 800 meter run. Fechner rolled off a personal record mark of 1:52.23 to finish first place in the event. Additionally, senior Christian Leonard took home sixth place in the 800m after finishing with a time of 1:55.51. For the Bulldogs, another strong performance came from Jack Van Kempen in the men's 3000m steeplechase. Van Kempen posted a new personal best 9:28.87 to garner first place on the individual leader board.
In the field, senior Avery Hunt's mark of 6.42 was good enough for a second place finish in the long jump. In the shot put, sophomore Colton Kostynick grabbed third place in the event after securing a distance of 15.94. Additionally, fellow sophomore Eli Bicek finished the event in sixth place after noting a mark of 14.25.
The University of Minnesota Duluth women's track & field squad had a strong showing at the event with multiple personal records and NCAA provisional times falling on the day.
Minnesota Duluth's best performance on the day came in the women's 800 meter run from 5th-year senior Isabelle Brezinka. Brezinka notched a new personal best time of 2:11.36 to earn first place in the event. UMD would sweep the podium in the 800 as Haleigh Reindl and Savannah Schley finished two and three behind Brezinka. In the 100 meter hurdles, Megan Gilles used a new PR mark of 15:56 to grab third place on the individual leaderboard. Additionally, Bryn London took home fourth place in the event with a PR time of 16:02. In the field, Lindsey Root noted a second place finish after tallying a distance of 5.07m. Additionally, sophomore Adrianne Thompson took home third place in the shot put, before noting a personal record mark of 27.57m in the discus throw.
Looking Ahead
The Bulldog teams will head down the familiar I-35 south to St. Paul, MN as Concordia St. Paul will host the Holst Invitational on Saturday, April 22.
