Michigan
B1G Husker Invitational
Distance Crew, Owens Excel on First Day of Split-Squad Weekend
4/16/2021 10:34:00 PM | Men's Track & Field
The University of Michigan men's track and field team on Friday (April 16) posted historic distance marks at the B1G Indiana Invitational #3 and got off to a strong start in the sprints and field events at the neutral-site B1G Husker Invitational in Prairie View, Texas.
Distance Crew Fires on All Cylinders at Indiana
Site: Bloomington, Ind. (Robert C. Haugh Track & Field Complex)
Event: B1G Indiana Invitational #3
U-M Result: No team scoring
Next U-M Event: Saturday, April 17 -- B1G Husker Invitational - Day 2 (Prairie View, Texas), 10 a.m. CDT
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Michigan's distance squad was in postseason form on Friday at the B1G Indiana Invitational #3, posting a pair of wins and numerous historic performances.
Nick Foster was victorious at 1,500 meters to move to No. 4 in school history, Tom Brady won his debut effort at 10,000 meters and checked in at No. 6 all-time, and Joost Plaetinck broke 14 minutes for the 5,000 meters to just miss the all-time top-10 in the event.
Foster clocked 3:41.45 to claim the 1,500-meter title, bettering his personal record from earlier this month by a one and a half seconds. That improvement was enough to bypass the likes of Alan Webb and Nate Brannen on the all-time U-M 1,500 meters list.
Foster led a strong crew in the metric mile, as sixth-place Anthony Berry and seventh-place Oli Raimond both also cracked 3:45 in career-best fashion in 3:44.56 and 3:44.59, respectively.
Foster went a long way toward clinching a spot to the NCAA East Preliminaries next month with the performance, and both Berry and Raimond put themselves on the bubble for qualification. The East Prelims serve as the opening rounds for the NCAA Outdoor Championships to be held in Eugene, Ore., in June.
Next up was Plaetinck, who followed his breakthrough steeplechase from earlier this month with another breakthrough at the 5,000-meter distance. He took sixth overall in 13:53.95, just missing the all-time U-M top-10 at No. 12. He now is on the bubble of NCAA East Prelims qualifying in both events.
Michigan closed the day in style as Brady won the 10,000 meters in a final-lap sprint in 28:46.83, making the most of his collegiate debut in the event. Running with a lead pack of three at the bell, Brady sprinted away to seal the victory and the No. 6 spot in school history.
Just missing the all-time top-10 was Devin Meyrer in 29:08.51, who finished fourth on the day and checked in at No. 12 in school history.
Brady is almost certainly in the East Prelims with his performance, and Meyrer is in a strong position to join him.
Full Michigan Results by Event
Q = automatic qualifier to final; q = at-large qualifier to final
1,500 meter run
Final
1. Nick Foster / 3:41.45 [New PR]
6. Anthony Berry / 3:44.56 [New PR]
7. Oli Raimond / 3:44.59 [New PR]
13. Anthony DeKraker / 3:54.40 [New PR]
19. Tom Dodd / 4:06.47
5,000 meter run
Final
6. Joost Plaetinck / 13:53.95 [New PR]
15. Christian Hubaker / 14:09.72 [New PR]
17. Jacob Lee / 14:11.18 [New PR]
25. Jack Spamer / 14:31.31
30. Joe Meyers / 14:58.14
10,000 meter run
Final
1. Tom Brady / 28:46.83
4. Devin Meyrer / 29:08.51 [New PR]
6. Zach Stewart / 29:58.08
Owens Out to the Lead in the B1G Husker Invite Decathlon
Site: Prairie View, Texas (Prairie View A&M Track & Field Stadium)
Event: B1G Husker Invitational (Day 1 of 2)
U-M Result: No team scoring
Next U-M Event: Saturday, April 17 -- at B1G Husker Invitational - Day 2 (Prairie View, Texas), 10 a.m. CDT
• Complete Results (PDF)
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas -- In his long-awaited decathlon debut at Michigan, Ayden Owens has so far availed himself well to headline the first of two days of competition at the neutral-site B1G Husker Invitational held at Prairie View A&M just outside of Houston.
In his first decathlon as a Michigan Wolverine, Owens is the midway leader at 4,155 points through five of 10 events. With the right performances on the second day of competition, Owens could be well within striking distance of the school record of 8,015 points by Steven Bastien in 2017.
Owens posted the best marks of the day at both 100 meters in 10.56 seconds and 400 meters in 47.69 seconds, and was top-five in all five events in the first half of the decathlon.
Multiple-time Big Ten Indoor Championships heptathlon scorers Heath Baldwin and Mason Mahacek also are off to solid starts in their first-ever decathlons, sitting in eighth and 10th with 3,764 points and 3,670 points, respectively.
Michigan also picked up a pair of fifth-place results in the hurdling events. Roland Amarteifio took fifth in the 400-meter hurdles final in 52.63, while Josh Zeller booked a trip to the 110-meter hurdles final on Saturday with his 14.10-second (-1.6m/s) fifth-place effort in the prelims.
Out in the field, Michigan posted a pair of top-19 finishes as Andrew Liskowitz took sixth in the discus with a heave of 50.24m (164 feet, 10 inches) and Cassidy Henshaw landed exactly one legal jump of 6.88m (22-6.75) to take ninth in the long jump.
Action resumes in Texas on Saturday morning (April 17) starting at 10 a.m. CDT.
Full Michigan Results by Event
Q = automatic qualifier to final; q = at-large qualifier to final
100 meter dash
Prelims
18. Noah Stallworth / 11.03 (-0.9m/s) [New PR]
29. Bera Ajala / 11.39 (-1.9m/s)
110 meter hurdles
Prelims
5. Josh Zeller / 14.10 (-1.6m/s)q
9. Job Mayhue / 14.37 (-1.4m/s)
10. Roland Amarteifio / 14.42 (-1.6m/s)
400 meter hurdles
Final
5. Roland Amarteifio / 52.63
19. Leo Gabaron / 56.17
Long Jump
Final
9. Cassidy Henshaw / 6.88m (22-6.75) ()
Discus
Final
6. Andrew Liskowitz / 50.24m (164-10)
19. John Meyer / 45.02m (147-8)
Decathlon
1. Ayden Owens / 4,155 points
100 meter dash / 10.56 (+0.2m/s) (961 pts) / Place: 1
Long Jump / 7.23m (23-8.75) (+0.4m/s) (869 pts) / Place: 4
Shot Put / 13.62m (44-8.25) (705 pts) [New PR] / Place: 5
High Jump / 1.88m (6-2) (696 pts) / Place: 4
400 meter dash / 47.69 (924 pts) / Place: 1
8. Heath Baldwin / 3,764 points
100 meter dash / 11.56 (+0.0m/s) (740 pts) / Place: 13
Long Jump / 6.66m (21-10.25) (+0.5m/s) (734 pts) / Place: 11
Shot Put / 14.20m (46-7) (741 pts) / Place: 3
High Jump / 2.00m (6-6.75) (803 pts) / Place: 1
400 meter dash / 51.51 (746 pts) / Place: 11
10. Mason Mahacek / 3,670 points
100 meter dash / 11.22 (+0.9m/s) (806 pts) / Place: 8
Long Jump / 6.77m (22-2.5) (+0.8m/s) (760 pts) / Place: 9
Shot Put / 11.17m (36-7.75) (556 pts) / Place: 16
High Jump / 1.91m (6-3.25) (723 pts) / Place: 3
400 meter dash / 49.91 (819 pts) / Place: 5
Players Mentioned
