Gustavus Hosts Drake Alternative

Jeffrey Dubose hands the baton to Blair Riegel. Photo courtesy of Jeff Hunt.

by Ethan Armstrong

The Gustavus Adolphus hosted 21 regional teams that spanned Divisions I, II and III at the Drake Alternative held at the Gustavus Outdoor Track and Field complex on Saturday.  Leading the way for the Gustie men was Isaac Tapp (So., Stewartville, Minn.) and Ryan Ness (Sr., Inver Grove Heights, Minn.).  Tapp cleared 6-feet 6-inches to win the high jump, and Ness recorded a throw of 176-feet 5-inches to win the javelin.

Also in the field events, Brody Ziegler (Fr., Mankato, Minn.) placed fourth in the high jump with a height of 6-feet 4-inches, and Naga Rumicho (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn.) finished behind him in 10th with a height of 6-feet 2-inches.

Ryan Obele (Jr., Le Sueur, Minn.) led the Gustie throwers with eighth place finishes in both the discus (147’ 6”) and hammer throw (160’ 5”).  Cameron Clause (Jr., Mankato, Minn.) rounded out the field competitors in eighth after a toss of 145-feet 2-inches in the javelin.

Blair Riegel (Jr., Lakeville, Minn.) turned in a sixth place finish in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.18 and also registered a leap of 21-feet 4-inches in the long jump to finish fourth.

Phillip Butler finished one place ahead of Riegel in the 100-meter dash, crossing the finish line in 11.16.

Sam Fransen (Jr., Jackson, Minn.) placed fifth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:21.19.  Preston Tomlinson (Sr., New Prague, Minn.) came across behind Fransen in sixth (10:27.36), while Dakota Darkstar (Jr., Minneapolis, Minn.) finished eighth in 10:54.36.

Matt Flotterud (Jr., Cannon Falls, Minn.) was Gustavus’s final top 10 performer on the track, taking ninth with a time of 16.01.

Gustavus’ top women's performer on the track was senior Beth Hauer (Little Falls, Minn.).  Hauer ran an 18:25.59 to finish runner-up in the 5,000-meter run.

Erica Hett (Sr., Burnsville, Minn.) also posted a finish on the podium by taking third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:52.23.  She also added a sixth place finish in the 1,500-meter run with a time of 5:00.76.

Beth Hauer

Rebecca Hare (So., Albany, Minn.) and Caitlin Fermoyle (So., Mendota Heights, Minn.) rounded out the squad’s top competitors on the track.  Hare placed fourth in the 1,500-meter run (4:57.79) and Fermoyle took fourth in the 5,000-meter run (18:51.33).

Senior Ally Voss (Wausau, Wis.) paced the Black and Gold in the field events.  Voss took runner-up in the pole vault after clearing 11-feet 6.5-inches.

Lauren Rothschiller (Sr., Chaska, Minn.) turned in a pair of podium finishes in the jumps.  She placed third in the long jump after a leap of 16-feet 8.50-inches and third in the triple jump with a mark of 36-feet 8.50-inches.  Nevada Wendlandt (Jr., Maplewood, Minn.) contributed a fourth place finish in the high jump (5-1.75) and a ninth place showing in the pole vault (10-6.75).

Elizabeth Weiers (So., Le Center, Minn.) led the Gusties in the throws with a thirf place performance in the hammer throw with a toss of 159-feet 3-inches.  Hayley Solheim (Fy., Crookston, Minn.) finished fourth in the shot put with a throw of 40-feet 11.75-inches, and Rachel Colter (So., North St. Paul, Minn.) came in fourth in the javelin with a throw of 112-feet 10-inches.

The Gustavus track and field team will be in action next on Wednesday, May 1 when it takes part in the Mankato Twilight Meet in Mankato, Minn.  Full results for the Drake Alternative are HERE.  Photo gallery is HERE.