Feb. 20, 2016
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SOUTH BEND, Ind. — At the Alex Wilson Invitational, the last meet before the Big Ten Championships and the NCAA Indoor Championships, the University of Iowa track and field team registered four first-place finishes, 10 career bests, and two nationally-ranked performances on Saturday. No team scores were kept.
“I am extremely pleased with today,” UI director of track and field Joey Woody said. “Even though we brought a small group, this is probably one of the best meets we’ve had in the history of Iowa. This meet gives us great momentum and great excitement across our whole team going into the Big Ten Championships next week.”
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In the men’s 800 meters, senior Will Teubel clinched the win over LSU’s Blair Henderson (1:47.86) in a collegiate-best 1:47.74. Teubel is one of two Hawkeyes in school history to run under 1:48, landing second all-time behind All-American Erik Sowinski (1:47.62).
Teubel stands third in the Big Ten and 13th nationally.
“Will is a competitor, and we knew he had it in him because he’s been training side-by-side with teammates Carter Lilly and Pavlo Hutsalyuk,” Woody said. “A lot of credit goes to [sophomore] Ryan Dorman, who was the rabbit, because he set up the race perfectly for Will to have a phenomenal finish.”
Hutsalyuk placed fourth in the men’s 800 meters, ending with a collegiate-best 1:48.97. He holds the third-fastest time in school history and slots seventh in the conference.
“That was an unbelievable performance for a freshman,” Woody said. “He has improved from the beginning of the year to now, taking off over a second from last meet and having another PR from the week before.”
Sophomore Jahisha Thomas (2nd) started the day with a personal best in the women’s 60-meter hurdle prelims (8.50). She improved on that time in the finals (8.46), running under 8.50 for the first time in her career and updating her sixth-place ranking on Iowa’s all-time list.
Thomas (18-11 3/4, 5.78m) was the sole competitor in the women’s long jump.
“She was tired by the time she reached the hurdle finals, so I was proud of her for the way she came back and competed,” Woody said. “She didn’t have the best technical race, but she fought hard at the end and got a personal best. There’s no doubt in my mind that she’s going to continue to put up big performances next week.”
Redshirt freshman Reno Tuufuli (3rd) posted a string of impressive marks in the men’s shot put. His final attempt resulted in a collegiate-best 60-3 1/4 (18.37m), a mark that ranks sixth all-time at Iowa and ninth in the Big Ten.
“Reno had a big meet,” Woody said. “He had four PRs out of the six throws and ended with a one-meter improvement on his personal best. All of a sudden, that puts him up there as one of the best throwers in the history of our program and one of the best in the conference.”
The men’s 1,600-meter relay (3rd/3:07.58) of junior Mitch Wolff, senior Brendan Thompson, junior Jared Ganschow, and freshman Mar’yea Harris ran the fourth-fastest time in program history to conclude the meet.
The quartet’s time ranks third in the Big Ten and 11th nationally.
“Our 4×400 was impressive,” Woody said. “Mar’yea split 45.1 on the anchor. That was an extreme highlight for our team. They executed well and kept fighting all the way through. Even though they didn’t win, they beat some good teams, and this sets them up well next week.”
The Big Ten Championships will be contested from Feb. 26-27 at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.
Additional Collegiate Bests:
Men’s 60 meters:
Jr. Vinnie Saucer, Jr. (1st/6.75) — ties for 5th all-time and in Big Ten
Fr. Christian Brissett (2nd/6.78) — 7th all-time
Men’s 60-meter hurdles:
Fr. Chris Douglas (1st/8.06) — 9th all-time
Men’s 200 meters:
Brissett (2nd/21.43) — 10th all-time
Men’s 400 meters:
Fr. DeJuan Frye (6th/48.22)
