By Carly Fehler, UWEC Sports Information
WAVERLY, Iowa (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire track and field teams competed in day one of the NCAA Division III National Championships on Thursday, with the women in 16th and men in 13th after four scored events.
After a hot and humid day at the track in Waverly, Iowa, the Blugolds had a very promising day one of competition.
On the men's side, Alex Mess (Sr.-Lake Mills, WI/Green Bay Notre Dame) tallied points for Eau Claire in the discus, finishing fifth to earn All-American honors. His mark of 52.66 was a personal best by nearly three meters. He moves to second all-time in Blugold history with that mark. He came into the meet seeded 13th.
The big throws continued all day, with Sam Anderson (Jr.-Forest Lake, MN) showing her strength in the discus as well. She came into the meet ranked 10th, but would throw a bomb of 48.33 to finish fifth, and become an All-American. Her mark was also a personal best by two meters. It was an exciting day to be a thrower, and both Mess and Anderson will throw again in the next couple of days.
Tommie Brenner (Fr.-Reedsburg, WI) made her first debut at the National meet in the pole vault, and performed very well. She would clear an array of heights--3.50, 3.65, and 3.75--but would miss 3.80 (12'6") to finis 13th.
Darin Lau (So.-Eau Claire, WI/Immanuel) made it through a brutal 10K with temperatures at about 85 degrees, and remained strong for the Blugolds. After some ups and downs in the race, he finished eighth with a time of 31:35.99. He scored a point, a very important point for the team standings that will be razor close come Saturday, and became an All-American in that event.
Jimmy Paske (Jr.-Minnetonka, MN/Hopkins) finished 11th in the 200 meter dash with a time of 21.88. He would then anchor the men's 4x400 meter relay team.
The team of Will LaJeunesse (Sr.-Belle Plaine, MN), Brandon Christnovich (Fr.-Holmen, WI), Kevin Brooks (Sr.-Roseville, MN) and Paske have advanced to the finals on Saturday for the 4x400 meter relay. They won their heat with a time of 3:11.73, and are seeded second for the final, but technically have the fifth best overall time from the prelims.
The Blugolds will continue competition on a rainy day Friday with a number of athletes continuing to compete. Look for results tomorrow for Mess in the shot put, Paske in the 400, and Kelsey Woracheck (So.-Appleton, WI/Xavier) in the 100.
Links to the live results and video can be found on Blugold Gameday.
