The University of Minnesota Duluth men's/women's outdoor track & field teams competed on 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 highlight of the evening was UMD's Austin Antony setting a new school record in the men's 5000m in a time of 14:40.76. Antony passes Bulldog alum Cody Sedbrook from 2018 (14:45.34).



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.


Coach Brautigam's Thoughts:
"It was one of the best meets all year start to finish. Our people have proven in the first couple meets of the season that they are ready to take advantage of any opportunities no matter the elements."

Up Next
The Bulldog teams will have a group of individuals heading to Azusa, CA to compete in the Bryan Clay Invitational next week hosted by Azusa Pacific. UMD will also have student-athletes competing in Des Moines, IA at the Jim Duncan Invite hosted by Drake University.