The UMD men's and women's outdoor track and field teams will compete in multiple meets this weekend. The Bulldogs will have a select group of field events traveling to La Crosse, Wis. for the Phil Esten Challenge hosted by the University of Wisconsin La Crosse on Friday (April 21) and Saturday (April 22). The remaining Bulldogs will travel down I-35 south on Saturday (April 22) to St. Paul, Minn. for the Holst Invitational hosted by Concordia St. Paul.
Phil Esten Challenge
Holst Invitational
Last Time Out
Several UMD men's and women's outdoor track and field student-athletes competed in the Bryan Clay Invitational last weekend in Azusa, CA hosted by Azusa Pacific. The Bulldogs were highlighted on Friday at the Bryan Clay Invitational by Savannah Schley who ran an NCAA Division II provisional qualifying mark with a 2:11.31 in the women's 800m. Schley finished 12th out of over 100 athletes in the women's open 800m. UMD's Colton Kostynick competed in the discus on Friday and finished in seventh place with a toss of 50.23m. On Saturday afternoon, Kostynick started off the competitive meet day in the shot put. He would finish in 12th place with a toss of 15.16m. UMD's Cailee Peterson capped off the meet in the night heats of the women's 1500m on Saturday. Peterson would run a 4:26.74 as over 150 athletes competed in the 1500m race.
The Bulldogs also saw student-athletes head to Iowa for the Jim Duncan Invitational at Drake University.
Jim Duncan Invitational (Top 10 performances)
- Women's Triple Jump - Emily Jones (8th - 10.18m)
- Men's Triple Jump - William Heydt (2nd - 13.85m)
- Women's Pole Vault - Libby Lommel (6th - 3.05m) and Sabrina Segar (10th - 2.90m)
- Men's High Jump - Jaden Johnson (4th - 1.95m)
- Women's High Jump - Bryn London (9th - 1.55m)
- Women's 4x100m - Gilles, Grell, Fitzgerald, Anderson (4th - 48.21)
- Men's 4x100m - Miley, Westphal, Brisbois, Nelson (5th - 42.33)
- Women's 1500m - Josie Bond (10th - 4:56.23)
- Men's 1500m - Owen Dickenson (5th - 4:00.02)
- Women's 100m Hurdles - Bryn London (7th - 16.27)
- Men's Hammer Throw - Eli Bicek (10th - 50.68m)
- Men's Javelin Throw - Nicholas Westphal (7th - 45.55m)
- Women's Javelin Throw - Kennedy Hawk (7th - 32.50m)
- Women's Long Jump - Lindsey Root (6th 5.41m) and Jacqi Rae (7th - 5.32m)
- Men's Long Jump - Bennett Nelson (7th - 6.39m) and William Heydt (10th - 6.18m)
- Women's 400m - Rachel Boelke (6th - 57.90)
- Men's 100m - Cole Brisbois (10th - 11.43)
- Women's 800m - Franny Seidel (1st - 2:15.60), Haleigh Reindl (4th - 2:16.93), and Alaina Steele (7th - 2:22.13)
- Women's 400m Hurdles - Megan Gilles (6th - 1:04.94)
- Women's 5000m - Lauryn Renier (3rd - 18:20.98) and Eve Anderson (6th - 18:52.22)
- Women's 4x400m - Fitzgerald, Gilles, Reindl, Boelke (5th - 4:02.70)
- Men's 4x400m - Rogers, Nelson, Croston, Loer (8th - 3:24.05)
- Women's 3000m Steeplechase - Anna Palodichuk (8th - 12:10.09)
Nationally Ranked
UMD's Cailee Peterson currently sits 18th nationally in NCAA Division II in the women's 800m run with a time of 2:10.27 and 14th in the women's 1500m with a time of 4:26.74. Savannah Schley also ranks 32nd in the women's 800m in a time of 2:11.31. Peterson's and Schley's times are both NCAA Division II provisional qualifying marks.
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 Holst Invitational
Strong distance performances from Haleigh Reindl and Alexandra Robran pushed the Minnesota Duluth women's track & field team to a solid showing at the Holst Invitational last year. Additionally, UMD also received strong contributions in the field at the meet.
On the track, the senior Reindl turned in a mark of 4:41.92 in the 1500 meter run to earn first place on the individual leader board. Also posting a strong finish in the 1500m run was Mackenzie Hall. Hall took home third place in the event with a time of 4:45.71, just a second off her PR mark of 4:44.53. In the women's 5000 meter run, Robran notched a mark of 18:29.12 to grab first place in the event. In the 3000 meter steeplechase, Lauryn Renier's time of 11:43.15 was good enough for first place on the leader board. In her career, Renier's best mark in the event is 11:29.08, which came at the Bulldog Open in 2021. In the 400 meter dash, Isabelle Brezinka and Savannah Schley noted second and third place finishes. Brezinka posted a mark of 57.44 to grab second, while Schley secured a time of 58.50 to take third. Additionally, UMD's 4x400 meter relay team also came up big on Saturday. The team of Megan Gilles, Schley, Reindl and Brezinka would punch a time of 3:59.60 to take home first place for Minnesota Duluth.
In the field, Emily Jones tallied multiple top five finishes on the day. In the high jump, Jones's mark of 1.55m was good enough for fourth place in the event. Jones would also take home fourth in the triple jump after noting a distance of 10.97m.
The Minnesota Duluth men's track & field team noted multiple first place finishes and personal record times at last year's Holst Invitational in St. Paul.
On the track, Cole Fechner and Christian Leonard would finish first and third in the men's 1500 meter run to get UMD started. Fechner grabbed the top spot after posting a mark of 3:58.14, while Leonard finished third with a time of 3:59.13. In the 400 meter dash, a time of 50.19 from Alex Kulzer was good enough for third place on the individual leader board. Additionally, finishing just one spot behind Kulzer in the 400 meter dash was Bereket Loer. Loer's mark of 50.49 earned himself a fourth place finish in the event and is a new personal record.
A busy day in the field for UMD was led by Colton Kostynick. In the men's discus throw, Kostynick labled a distance of 49.74 meters to grab second place on the leader board. For Kostynick, the distance is a new personal best. In the shot put, Kostynick would note a fourth place finish after securing a distance of 15.36 meters. Mathew Caines stepped up big with a second place finish in the men's triple jump. During the event, Caines tallied a distance of 13.82 meters to earn a podium finish.
Previously in La Crosse, Wis
The Bulldogs last competed in La Crosse, Wis at the Ashton May Invitational in 2016. University of Minnesota Duluth freshman Garret Schleis leaped 42'-04.00" in the triple jump and was two spots ahead of UMD sophomore Zack Vieau (41'-08.00"). Team scores were kept and among the Bulldogs' other individual point getters were senior Kern Wilson in the hammer throw (6th place; 170'-11'), sophomore Darrick Jackson in the 800-meter run (8th place; 1:59.45), freshman Tanner Thode in the shot put (8th place; 43'-10.75"), sophomore Cody Sedbrook (9th place; 9:50.11), and sophomore Frank Deluca in the 200-meter dash (9th place; 22.69). In addition, the Bulldogs' 4 x 100-meter relay quartet of senior Mark Emlaw, freshmen Kyle Kabanuk and Casey Reeves, and sophomore Nick Beattie took fifth with a time of 44.17
Senior Hannah Olson and freshman Danielle Kohlwey were both individual event winners for the University of Minnesota Duluth in La Crosse, Wis. For the second time in as many outdoor meets that season, Olson and Bulldog junior Breanna Colbenson placed 1-2, respectively in the 1,500-meter run. Both also did so again with NCAA Division II provisional-qualifying times -- Olson in 4:32.36 and Colbensen in 4:33.11 -- and those clockings were the 14th and 16th fastest in the nation. Kohlwey claimed her first outdoor collegiate title by coming in at 14.51 in the 110-meter hurdles and also placed sixth in the long jump (16'-09.75"). Other top Bulldog finishes were turned in by freshmen Michaela Hesse in the high jump (4th place; 5'-03.00"), freshman Elizabeth Brunner in the triple jump (5th; 36'-07.00"), sophomore Amber Seidenkranz in the 5,000-meter run (5th; 18:25.95), sophomore Erica Kesseh in the 100-meter dash (6th; 12.69) and senior Erica Seidenkranz in the 5,000-meter run (6th; 18:26.32). In addition, UMD's 4 x 100 relay unit of Kesseh, freshmen Taylor Amundson and Kendra Monpas, and senior Chanel Miller took second in 50.15.
Looking Ahead
The Bulldog teams will head down the familiar I-35 south again to Minneapolis, Minn. for the Running on Hope Invite hosted by the University of Minnesota on Wednesday, April 26. The Bulldogs will also travel select participants to the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa on April 27-29. In between, UMD will host the Bulldog Open on campus on Friday, April 28.
