Three New School Records Set at 2019 Raleigh Relays
RALEIGH, N.C. – Three school records fell and a number of NCAA Provisional qualifying times were met on Friday as the Michigan Tech track & field team opened their 2019 season at the Raleigh Relays.
Hosted by North Carolina State, Michigan Tech runners Liz Bloch, Matthew Pahl, Emily Byrd, and Braden Reichl all set NCAA provisional qualifying times in their respective races, meaning they have been placed on a descending-order list and will be selected to compete at the 2019 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field National Championships at the end of the year by the national committee.
In addition to hitting NCAA qualifying times, Pahl, Byrd, and Reichl all broke school records. An All-American during the cross country season, Byrd finished the women's 10,000m Invitational with a time of 35:29.30 to place fourth, breaking the school record of 37:23.06 set by Sophia Farquhar in 2016 and finishing within the provisional qualifying standard by 1:06.67.
In the men's 10,000m Invitational, Pahl broke his own record from 2017 as he finished 31st in Raleigh with a time of 29:46.89. The senior from Canton, Mich. broke his own record by 6.35 seconds and met the NCAA provisional standard for the event.
Reichl, a sophomore who also finished as an All-American during the cross country season, broke the school record in the 5000m with a time of 14:27.24. Reichl, who finished 63rd in the race and met the provisional standard by 5.56 seconds, broke the school record of 14:31.64 set in 2015 by Sean Pengelly.
Although she didn't set a school record, Bloch made it four Huskies on the night to hit an NCAA qualifying standard. Bloch, who represented the Huskies in the 1500m at the 2018 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hit the NCAA provisional time as she finished 44th in the 1500m with a time of 4:31.64. Bloch's time was good enough to break the provisional standard by 1.60 seconds.
"All our Raleigh athletes got national marks, and I feel great about where we are right now," said head coach Jake Isaacson. "I think the success here will trickle down to the rest of our team as the season progresses."
Michigan Tech continues their opening weekend of competition from De Pere, Wisconsin as they compete in the St. Norbert's College Quad Meet.