MANKATO, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s track & field team returned to action on Wednesday, competing at the Minnesota State University Spring Invitational, turning in several top finishes.
The duo Taylor Rooney (Fy., Andover, Minn.) and Michael Hensch (Jr., North Branch, Minn.) led the Gusties, each with top finishes.
Rooney finished first in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 14.82 and also had high jump of 6-0.5 for first place. Nelson Finne (Jr., Elgin, Minn.) finished behind Rooney in the high jump at 5-10.5. Finne also was the runner-up in the javelin at 127-4.
Hensch led the Gustavus throwers, finishing first in the hammer throw at 178-11 and second in the shot put at 46-9. His discus throw of 141-1 was good for fourth place, his second best throw of his outdoor career.
Other Gustie standouts included a third place finish from Bobby Verchota (Jr., Hastings, Minn.) in the 400-meter dash at 52.02, an outdoor career-best.
Brennan Gustafson (Fy., Kasson, Minn.) and Ben Madigan (Jr., Kohler, Wis.) finished in third (2:01.01) and fourth (2:02.02), respectively, in the 800-meter run.
Matthew Montplaisir (So., Buffalo, Minn.) had an outdoor career-best long jump at 19-7, good for fourth place.
In the 5,000-meter run, a pack of Gusties finished second-fifth, with a trio of first-years within the top-five. Jeremy Gilbertson (Maple Grove, Minn.) was clocked at 15:45.35, followed by Nick Kerbeshian (Plymouth, Minn.) at 15:47.54, and Andrew Stumbo (Boone, Iowa) at 15:47.65. Alex Wischnack also finished fifth 15:48.60.
Next up, the Gusties are set to host the Gustavus Invite next Saturday. Events are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.