Four School Records Fall As Michigan Tech Runs at Dr. Keeler Invitational
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Riley Roquet, Emily Byrd, Clayton Sayen, and Liz Bloch all set school records or improved their standing on the NCAA provisional qualifying list as the Michigan Tech track & field team wrapped up their regular season at the Dr. Keeler Invitational, hosted by North Central University. It was the last chance for Michigan Tech track & field athletes to qualify for the 2019 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Texas A&M - Kingsville.
A native of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, Roquet finished third in Friday's men's pole vault. The junior vaulter cleared a height of 4.78 meters (15' 10") on his first attempt, beating the previous record of 4.76 meters (15' 7.5") originally set by Jake Jurkowski in 2017.
Byrd, who already broke the school record in the 5000m this year at the Bison Outdoor Classic, broke it again when she crossed the tape with a time of 17:02.57 in a third-place finish. Byrd, who is also ranked in the top 15 nationally in the 10,000m, currently ranks 26th in the country in the 5000m.
The two-time defending GLIAC champion in the 1500m and the school record-holder in the same event, Bloch topped her own record with a blistering time of 2:09.57, placing her third in the event. Bloch, who competed in the 1500m at the 2018 NCAA Division II National Championships, improved her national ranking to 14th in the event to put herself in an excellent position to qualify once again.
A freshman middle distance runner from Houghton, Michigan, Sayen set an NCAA provisional qualifying time in the 800m as he crossed the finish line at 1:51.27. Sayen, who missed out on breaking the school record by 0.25 seconds, ranks 26th in the country after his run.
Also competing for Michigan Tech at the Dr. Keeler Invitational was Michael Frahm (14th, 41.64m) in the discus, Emily Vigil (21st, 18:10.10) and Julia Manzano (36th, 18:42.48) in the 5000m, Robert Beggs (60th, 15:42.01), Bernard Kluskens (74th, 16:05.59), Ben Holland (86th, 16:25.98) and Jon Gietek (90th, 16:40.10) in the 5000m, Cory Burkwald (59th, 10:34.40) in the 3000m Steeplechase, and Carly Huggins (15th, 11:07.54) in the 3000m Steeplechase.
The list of qualifiers for the 2019 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be released on Sunday.