AMES, Iowa – The University of Iowa track and field team grabbed three first-place finishes on the final day of the Bill Bergan Invitational on Saturday. The men’s team tallied 96 team points to finish third, while the women did not send their entire team. The meet was held at the Lied Recreation Center on the campus of Iowa State University.
Gabe Hull claimed the first title of the day for the Hawkeyes. The junior recorded a personal-best shot put mark of 58-5 ¼ (17.81m). His mark ranks ninth all-time at Iowa. Senior Courtney Fritz also earned her way into the shot put record book. Fritz recorded a personal-best mark of 46-2 (14.07m) to finish eighth in the women’s event. Her mark ranks ninth all-time at Iowa. Freshman Alexa Hunt earned a ninth-place finish in the event with a personal-best mark of 44-11 ¾ (13.71m), while senior Rachel Curry (44-6; 13.56m) finished 10th.
Senior Tevin-Cee Mincy grabbed his third 60 meters title on the season. Mincy crossed the line in a personal-best time of 6.73. His mark ties for second all-time at Iowa. Sophomore James Harrington (6.92) and freshman O’Shea Wilson (6.93) finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the event. Sophomore Lake Kwaza and freshman Brittany Brown competed in the women’s 60 meters. Kwaza finished third with a time of 7.47, while Brown crossed the line in 7.50 to finish fourth.
James Harrington took the men’s 200 meters title. The sophomore clocked a personal-best time of 21.41. His time ranks ninth all-time at Iowa. Junior Keith Brown (21.92) finished third in the event, while Wilson (22.09) came in sixth. The Hawkeye women finished fifth through eighth in the 200 meters. Freshman Elexis Guster (24.401) crossed the line just ahead of Brown (24.408), while Kwaza (24.57) and freshman Alexis Hernandez (24.72) finished seventh and eighth, respectively.
“We had several outstanding individual performances with several people moving into the top ten in various events,” said director of track and field Larry Wieczorek. “Neither team really performed the way I wanted to see them perform in our third meet of the season. We have some work to do moving forward.”
Freshman Aaron Mallett sprinted to a second-place finish in the men’s 60-meter hurdles. Mallett clocked a time of 8.03. Keith Brown finished seventh in the event with a time of 8.23.
Sophomore MonTayla Holder and Hernandez finished fourth and fifth, respectively, in the women’s 400 meters. Holder recorded a personal-best time of 54.37. Her time ranks fifth all-time at Iowa. Hernandez’s also clocked a personal-best time ( 54.91) to move her into sixth-place on Iowa’s all-time list. Senior Ethan Holmes (48.60) finished fifth in the men’s 400 meters, while freshman Jared Ganschow recorded a personal-best time of 48.79 to finish seventh.
Freshman Mahnee Watts ran into the record book with her performance in the women’s 800 meters. Watts clocked a time of 2:09.90 to finish sixth. That time ranks seventh all-time at Iowa. Sophomore Will Teubel finished seventh in the men’s 800 meters. He crossed the line in a personal-best time of 1:52.58.
Sophomore Caleb Wilfong and freshman Brook Price finished second and third, respectively, in the men’s 1,000 meters. Wilfong clocked a time of 2:30.17, while Price crossed the line in 2:31.79.
Ben Witt recorded a personal-best time of 4:12.52 in the men’s mile. His time earned him a seventh-place finish. Junior Shannon Maser (4:57.80) finished fifth in the women’s mile, while Jocelyn Todd (5:12.17) came in seventh.
The Hawkeyes captured two fifth-place finishes in the 1,600-meter relay. The women’s team of Kwaza, Holder, Watts, and Guster clocked a season-best time of 3:41.57. That time ranks sixth all-time at Iowa. The men’s team also recorded a season best time. The quartet of Ganschow, Teubel, Harrington, and Holmes crossed the line in 3:14.11.
Tayo Oladele-Ajose took sixth in the women’s high jump. The sophomore cleared a height of 5-6 ½ (1.69m).
“We had a number of individual highlights across a variety of events,” said head track and field coach Layne Anderson. “We look to regroup this week, and prepare for another significant challenge at Nebraska.”
The Hawkeyes travel to Lincoln, Neb., for the Husker Invitational on Feb. 7-8.
