In true track coach fashion, I calculated the team scores for the MIAC conference meet ahead of time. On paper, it was going to be very close between us and Concordia-Moorhead. They have a good team with six guys who were able to win events, and a couple of those could win multiple events.
The meet started off great for SJU. The heptathletes placed 1st, 6th, and 7th. Maguire Petersen (Jr, Hutchinson) scored 5118 points to improve his school record and break the MIAC Championship record. Logan Hennen (So, Prior Lake) and Max Lelwica (Fr, Brainerd) performed well to score some unexpected points. Shortly after the heptathletes finished up on Friday with the 1,000m run, Eli Mollet (Jr, Jefferson, SD) also improved his school record in the weight throw with a toss of 18.18 meters.
From there, the Johnnies kept scoring points. We had multiple events where we scored three athletes in the top-eight and as a team, By the end of day one, we had scored more points than I expected. The second day brought much of the same and really showcased the depth of our team. Not only did we continue to score multiple athletes in many events, but we also had an athlete score points (top 8 finish) in all but one event. Results from the full meet are available at the MIAC Athletics website.
Meets like these are easy to coach. Basically, I just try to stay out of the way and let the athletes perform. I was able to watch more of the meet than any in the last year and got to enjoy the atmosphere. In the end, it turned into a rather decisive win for St. John’s and made for a rowdy bus ride home. A surprising amount of singing for much of the ride ranging from Billy Joel’s Piano Man to the Dropkick Murphys Shipping off to Boston and back to John Denver’s Country Roads.
This weekend is the Wartburg Last Chance Meet. The distance medley relay is going to take a crack at the school record of 10:19 on Friday and we have a handful of guys competing on Saturday to better their spots in the national rankings. After that, we will head to North Carolina for the NCAA National Championships.
Jeremy