While there is not much track and field left in the year, I consider mid-April as the turning point of the season. The coaching staff is getting excited about the improvements athletes are making and looking forward to the upcoming MIAC conference meet. The athletes are adjusting to being outside, the weather is improving, and injuries are healing. We are also looking ahead as we are finally getting a glimpse of next year as our recruits are posting good results during their senior year.
Last week’s Macalester Twilight Meet proved to be the season turning point, as plenty of athletes posted good performances. The obvious highlight or redemption tale of the meet was the 4x100m relay team. After squandering the good California weather; Brady Labine, Drew Schoenbauer, Jack Young, and Ryan Miller ran 41.53s for the second fastest time in school history and are currently ranked 12th in the country. Our anchor leg, Ryan, followed that up with a 10.58s in the 100m and is currently ranked 6th in the country.
Performances like these often overshadow other notable events that might not be talked about in the “box score”. I get just as excited for the athletes who may not have made finals or moved up on the SJU top ten list, but had a breakthrough meet and personally moved up in the conference standings. While I spend most of my time coaching the throwers and sprinters during a meet, I try to see snippets of every event. Consider these the “Coach’s Highlights”:
After Dillon Diekmann spent part of cross country and indoor track injured, he finished strong in his debut 5k and I am excited to see him race again.
Our three steeplechase runners (James Mathison, Dan Allen, and Nate Meyer) all had nice improvements and are getting better at clearing the barriers.
Randy Clintsman’s (Junior) hard work continues to pay off. Because of his dedication the past two seasons, he has steadily improved and become a consistent conference qualifier in the 100m dash.
Senior hammer thrower, Ryan Reiter, reached a great performance at the meet, hitting a mark five meters better than last year’s personal best. More importantly, Ryan has nourished the throwers with his grill-master skills and insightful political debates at practice.
Ryan Thompson ran his first 400m dash of the year in a strong 51.86s to set himself up well for this week’s decathlon.
This weekend is our last chance to qualify for the MIAC Outdoor Championships and the MIAC Decathlon Championship. Ryan Thompson will be competing in the decathlon on Thursday and Friday at Carleton. The rest of the team will be at SJU for our turn to host the Meet of Saints. Remember, we will be dedicating the track to honor Tim Miles after the meet. Register here for the event or even check out who will be attending: Miles Track Naming Ceremony. Hope to see you all there!