Photo courtesy of Hannah Robb, St. Olaf Athletics.
ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The Gustie track & field teams wrapped up competition at the MIAC Outdoor Championships, with the women finishing first and the men eighth. The Gustie women collected the program’s second-ever and second-straight MIAC Outdoor Championship, winning the title last season as well. The women finished with 154.5 points, followed by St. Olaf with 143 and Saint Benedict with 127.5. Saint John’s won the men’s competition with 216 points, 40 more than the next team.
If there was any doubt on who would win the 100-hurdles between Birgen Nelson (Sr., Edina) and Bethel’s Kelsie Sealock, Nelson certainly erased it Saturday, bettering Sealock’s top time from the day before with a time of 13.37 to win the event. The mark is the second fastest all-conditions time in DIII history — only to her own 13.32 earlier in the season.
Nelson won two more individual events before the end of the day, finishing first in the 100-meter and 400-hurdles. Nelson’s 11.71 in the 100 is the fourth fastest in NCAA DIII this season, while her 400-hurdles mark is a new school record and beats out her own spot on the NCAA leaderboard for second-fastest this season.
Danielle Miller (Jr., Waconia) and Lauren Dimler (Fy., Janesville) also picked up points in the 100-hurdles for the Gusties, finishing fourth and fifth, while Kate Carlson (So., Inver Grove Heights) finished fourth in the 100-meter with a time of 12.05 for five points and All-Conference Honorable Mention. In the 400-hurdles, Makenna Huetten (So., Eagan), Lauren Rocheford (Fy., Inver Grove Heights), and Dimler finished fifth, sixth, and seventh behind Nelson.
Megan Geraets (So., Mankato) added a conference title to her résumé, finishing first in the 400-meter with a time of 58.14. Carlson and Geraets finished second and fourth in the 200-meter as well. The women’s 4×100 relay of Miller, Nelson, Geraets, and Carlson smashed the facility, school, and conference record with a time of 47.15 to finish first with the NCAA’s 17th best time this season.
Women’s 4×100 winning relay team
In the field, Madi Kes (Jr., Jordan) took second in the triple jump with a distance of 38-11.75, just shy of her school record from earlier in the year. Ally Rakow (Jr., Bloomington) picked up All-Conference honors in the high jump, clearing a mark of 5-01.25 to finish second and earn the Gustie women eight points. Annika Poe (Sr., Big Lake) added a second-place finish in the discus throw with a toss of 133-03.
On the men’s side, Wyatt Quiring (Sr., Fairmont) finished sixth in both the 400-meter (49.25) and the 200-meter (22.18), while Sam Schulze (So.) added a seventh-place finish in the 400-hurdle finals with a time of 56.71. The Gustie men’s 4×100 relay team of Matthew Skelly (Jr., Le Sueur), Quiring, Seth Zeitchick, and Isaiah Subah (Jr., Bloomington) finished sixth with a time of 43.02. The 4×400 relay also posted a sixth-place finish, as Zeitchick, Quiring, Markus Rupnow (So., Mankato) and Noah Stageberg (So., Stewartville) finished with a time of 3:22.18.
Complete List of Gustie Event Winners
Women
4×100 relay — Miller, Nelson, Geraets, Carlson (47.15)
100-meter — Birgen Nelson (11.71)
100-hurdles — Birgen Nelson (13.37)
400-meter — Megan Geraets (58.14)
400-hurdles — Birgen Nelson (59.87)
Shot put — Annika Poe (48-10.75)
Men
Hammer throw — Josh Beiswanger (183-02)