ST. PETER, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s track & field competed well at the 18th Annual Drake Alternative meet on Saturday as the team turned in four top finishes and many other notable performances.
“It felt fabulous to not only have a good day but a gorgeous day,” said Head Coach Dale Bahr. “It was just paramount for us to go out and compete well. Anytime were going against the DII schools, holding our own against them, and brining home some individual champions and solid performances, it’s a lot of fun to see.”
A personal record hammer throw from Michael Hensch (Jr., North Branch, Minn.) headlined the team’s performance. Hensch finished first with a throw of 185-3, besting his previous career best by two feet and finishing over ten feet past the next closest competitor. Hensch also placed third in the shot put at 50-1.25.
Andrew Stumbo (Fy., Boone, Iowa) paced the Gustie distance runners, clocking at 15:22.37 in the 5,000-meter run for first place.
Taylor Rooney (Fy., Andover, Minn.) earned another top time, finishing first in the 110-meter hurdles at 15.01. He also posted a season-best leap of 6-4.75 in the high jump to claim a runner-up finish.
Additionally, the 4×400-meter relay team of Jack Blaney (Jr., Lake Elmo, Minn.), Bobby Verchota (Jr., Hastings, Minn.), Brennan Gustafson (Fy., Kasson, Minn.) and Ben Madigan (Jr., Kohler, Wis.) finished first with a time of 3:24.94.
Gustafson and Madigan also finished side-by-side in the 800-meter run. Gustafson was the runner-up at 1:56.57, followed by Madigan at 1:56.91.
Another notable finish came from Bridger Pavelka (So., Minnetonka, Minn.) in the 1,500-meter run as he achieved an impressive personal best time of 4:04.88, 11 seconds better than his previous best and good four fifth place.
“This is truly one of my favorite track meets of the year,” Bahr commented. “A lot of work goes into hosting a meet and a lot of thanks goes to my athletes. We have such a great event for the alumni and just having that many come back and enjoy the day with us is a great thing and I think it speaks volumes to our program.”
Up Next
Gustavus next prepares for the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Multis next Thursday-Friday in Northfield, Minn., along with the Minnesota State Twilight meet next Friday in Mankato, Minn.