RESULTS

RIVER FALLS, Wisc. - The Royals won the men's team title at the UW-River Falls Falcon Invite on Saturday with 183 team points. The meet was highlighted by the Royals winning 7 events, including a school record by Gabe Irons in the hammer throw. 

Irons showed that he is one of the elite throwers in Division III winning two throwing events with marks that place him in the top-5 in the nation. Irons won the hammer throw with a program record 55.39m / 181'9", which ranks him 5th in Division III. He also won the discus with a season best toss of 50.77m / 166'7", the 2nd best throw in Division III this year. To top it off, Irons was also the top collegiate finisher in the shot put with a throw of 15.10m / 49'6.5", placing him 2nd overall.

Bethel won 3 sprint events thanks to freshmen Godsword Simon and Jayson Ekiyor, as well as sophomore Jacob Parent. Simon won the 100m in 11.34 seconds in his first outdoor race of the year. Ekiyor - the reigning MIAC champion in the 60m hurdles - won the 110m hurdles in a MIAC leading time of 14.77, which also ranks 12th in Division III. Jacob Parent won the 400m with a season best time of 48.91, which stands as the 10th fastest in Division III this year. Bethel also earned points in the sprints from Josh Lee's 2nd place finish in the 110m hurdles in a season best 16.52, while Albert Smith was 5th in the 100m in 11.67. Tyler Sealock took 3rd in the 400m with a time of 49.74 and Joel Smith was 5th in 49.98. Abe Schlegel took 3rd place in the 200m with a lifetime best 22.97. 

The Royals showed strength in the distance events on Saturday, winning both the 5000m run and the 3000m steeplechase. Ike Mendel won the 5000m race convincingly as he covered 12.5 laps in 15:34.10, winning by 35 seconds. Aidan St. George was 4th in the 5000m with a time of 16:32.83. The Royals took the top 2 spots in the 3000m steeplechase with Reese Thompson winning in a personal best 9:56.55 - a time that also stands as the 8th best in program history. Noah Meissner was 2nd in 10:21.74. Bethel also had two freshmen place in the top-5 of the 800m run. Grant Graber (2:01.62) out-leaned Gabe Kuecker (2:01.63) by just 0.01 seconds as the finished with personal best times and placed 4th and 5th, respectively. 

The Bethel quartet of Levi Korum, Albert Smith, Josh Lee, and Alec Braun took 3rd in the 4x100m relay with a time of 43.86. Braun also scored points for Bethel in the high jump as he took 2nd place with his leap of 1.85m / 6'0.75". Sam Gardeen took 2nd place in the pole vault, while Lukas Walton took 3rd as they both cleared 4.05m / 13'3.5". Gael Ramirez was 5th with 3.35m / 10'11.75". Senior Sean Bjork had a season best leap of 6.40m / 21'0" in the long jump to take 3rd place. Freshman Harrison Nistler was 4th in the long jump with a personal best 6.23m / 20'5.25". Nistler also had a personal best in the triple jump of 12.95m / 42'6" to take 3rd place. 

Along with Irons' two victories in the throws, Bethel earned points from Evan Larson and Hunter Tanem in the shot put. Larson took 3rd with 13.65m / 44'9.5" and Tanem was 4th with 13.21m / 43'4.25". Larson added a 4th place finish in his first ever hammer competition, throwing 41.90m / 137'6". Abe Schlegel set a personal best in the javelin throw by more than 16 feet, as his toss of 43.57m / 142'11" placed him 5th overall. 

The Royals will take a week away from competition during Easter week. Bethel continues their outdoor season at Concordia St. Paul on Saturday, April 23rd.