EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan Tech outdoor track and field finished two days of competition in the Spartan Invitational, hosted by Michigan State University Saturday afternoon at Ralph Young Field. Through chilly conditions, the Huskies posted strong showings in multiple events.
"Overall, we had a great day today," said head coach Kristina Owen on Saturday. "There were a number of fantastic performances to highlight and I was pleased with how we competed."
Michelle Bollini continued her impressive start to outdoor season and dropped 16 seconds from her previous 5000-meter race, crossing in 17:41.87. She took second place in a field of 20, six seconds short of Hannah Adler (Aquinas) for the top spot.
"Michelle ran a very tactically sound race with the field, and we're incredibly pleased to see her continue to improve," said assistant coach Robert Young.
In middle distance, Junior
Jesse Jacobusse had a breakthrough day, running a time of 2:13.47 in the 800 meters, which was first in the second heat and first overall by more than three full seconds.
"This woman can fly and it is so fun to see her put it all together," Owen said.
Ryan Schwiderson and
Jacob Pilon set personal records for the Huskies in men's sprints. Schwiderson took third in the 200-meter finals (22.22 seconds) and Pilon crossed sixth in the same event (22.51 seconds).
"We're not generally known as sprint school but
Ryan Schwiderson and
Jacob Pilon keep showing that we deserve some recognition there as well," said Owen.
MTU is looking to bolster its lineup in steeplechase and got off to a good start Saturday. Both
Ella Merklein and freshman
Stephen Loparo pinned down fourth places finishes in their first attempts of the season.
"Stephen and Ella both crushed their first ever steeplechases to take fourth," Young said. "In such a technical event, we're seeing a lot of room for continued growth and for them to grow into serious contenders in this event."
Distance running continued to be a strength for the Huskies, which showed its lineup depth at the Spartan Invitational. Tech seized positions one through four in the men's 5,000 meters, with
Luke Moore atop the podium with a time of 14:41.78.
Tucker Ringhand came in second with a time of 14:45.30.
Nick Niemi was third (14:46.81) and
Sam Lange was fourth (15:00.32).
"Our men keep feeding off each other and the strength of their pack is definitely starting to turn heads," Owen said. "New personal records from Luke (Moore), Tucker (Ringhand), Nick (Niemi), Sam (Lange), Nick (McKenzie), Robbie (Watling), Ben (Holland), and Lucas (Betzoldt), with a season best by Kenny (Abraham) was encouraging to see."
Tech was up against a wide of NCAA schools and community colleges Saturday, including fellow GLIAC rivals, Lake Superior State, Saginaw Valley State, Northwood, Ferris State, and Davenport. The team travels to De Pere, Wisconsin next on April 14 for the St. Norbert College Twilight., hosted by St. Norbert College.
