Men's Track and Field | 04/22/23 | 11:40 PM
Missoula, Mont. – Saints Track & Field had another strong showing at the Montana Open this Friday and Saturday.
On Saturday, five Carroll athletes raced the 3000m Steeplechase as part of the Frontier Conference Championships. The men's race was a highlight of the day with Brycen Gardner out-kicking the competition down the homestretch to win the race, secure the NAIA Qualifying B Standard, and earn the Frontier Steeplechase Championship. In the women's race, Erika Arthur ran a personal record and placed 3rd out of Frontier athletes winning her All-Conference honors. Hannah Sempf also scored Conference points for the Saints placing 4th in the Frontier.
The meet included three NCAA Division I teams in Eastern Washington, University of Montana, and Montana State making the event competitive overall. For the women's team, the Saints recorded one Top 3 finish - Paige Baxstresser at 3rd in the 200m. She had personal records in both the 200 and 400m races. Kayla Botkin threw a lifetime best in the Discus. For the distance races, Natalie Yocum and Sydney J Lamb ran lifetime bests in the 800m, Nicole Morgen ran her fastest time ever in the 1500m, and Kyle Olson registered a personal best in the 5000m.
On the men's side, Van Gottwals (800m) and Tate Kauffman (Triple Jump) both earned 2nd place finishes. Tim Sellars set a personal best in the Hammer as did Elias Hill in the 400m. In distance events, Kaiden Romney set a lifetime record in the 800m and Connor O'Hara ran his fastest time in the 1500m. Josh Smalley neared the NAIA B Standard in the Pole Vault.
"We continued to show consistency and improvement today which is exactly what we want heading into the Frontier Championships," said Head Coach Harry Clark. "It's fun to see the hard work pay off and we're excited to see how the team comes together for the end of the season," he added.
In Orange City, Iowa, Brett Glaser set a personal record over Friday and Saturday's Decathlon despite difficult weather conditions. He won the event and moved himself up to 3rd in the NAIA, setting himself up well to qualify for the Outdoor National Championships.
Results for the Montana Open are available at the following link:
https://www.tfrrs.org/results/77154/Montana_Open
Photo Gallery for the Montana open is linked here:
https://carrollathletics.com/galleries/mens-track-and-field/montana-open-2023/197
Glaser's Results for the Red Raider Open are available below:
https://www.tfrrs.org/results/79542/4853462/Red_Raider_Open_2023/Mens-Decathlon
Next week the Saints will compete at the Frontier Conference Championships in Billings, Mont. on Thursday and Friday.
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