NEW ORLEANS — The U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) announced the All-Region honorees for the 2016 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field season and five Gustavus athletes earned recognition as part of the All-Central Region Team. On the men’s team, Michael Hensch (Fy., North Branch, Minn.) and Sam Fischer (Sr., Sauk Centre, Minn.) were honored as All-Region, and on the women’s team, Mallory Butchko (Fy., Elko, Minn.), Marit Sonnesyn (Sr., Plymouth, Minn.), and Sarah Swanson (Sr., Fairbanks, Alaska) were named All-Region.
Hensch posted a season-best throw in the javelin with a distance of 180-1, while Fischer’s season-best in the hammer throw reached 176-6. For the women, Butchko cleared a height of 11-3.75 in the pole vault, Sonnesyn ran a school record time of 36:10 in the 10k, and Swanson’s season-high in the shot put landed at 44-8.25.
To be named All-Region, an athlete must either be ranked in the top-5 of an individual event in the region according to final TFRRS data or be part of a top-3 relay team.