MINNEAPOLIS – The UW-River Falls men's and women's track and field teams opened their 2025-26 indoor campaign on Friday at the University of Minnesota Fieldhouse, posting several personal records and promising early-season marks across all events.
MEN'S RECAP
UWRF's multi-event group set an early tone with standout performances in the opening events of the men's heptathlon.
Jacob Balcome put together an all-around start, highlighted by a 6.65m long jump and a 1.97m high jump, scoring 732 and 776 points, respectively. His 60m time of 7.29 added another 782 points.
Jacob Stella recorded a 7.35 60m, 6.18m long jump, and cleared 1.58m in the high jump, finishing day one with a solid slate of marks.
UWRF's throwers opened strong.
Logan Schmidt led the Falcons in the men's shot put, throwing 13.40m, placing 3rd overall.
Jacob Hauer followed with 11.04m, while freshman
Jay Ziebarth debuted at 10.59m.
In the 60m,
Isaiah Juneski (7.18),
Sam Cordie (7.21), and
Theodore Hovde (7.29) placed in the top 20, with all three making strong first-year debuts.
Michael Sieber ran a 7.53, his new personal record. In the 200m, Juneski (23.50) and Cordie (23.55) again led the charge, placing in the top 10.
Tyler Parker delivered UWRF's top 400m performance with a sharp 50.77, placing 5th overall.
The men's distance group hit some impressive marks to start the season. In the mile, both
Levi Miest (4:36.59) and
Nick Aanenson (4:53.86) ran PRs. Falcons put three in the top five in the 5000m, all with personal records:
The men wrapped the day with a strong showing in the 4x400m relay. Team of
Tyler Parker,
Theodore Hovde,
Keegan Patten, and
Logan Munson ran 3:34.33 to finish 4th. UWRF also fielded two other relay squads to open the season with depth, coming in 5
th and 6
th.
WOMEN'S RECAP
The women's pentathletes put together a good multi-event start, highlighted by multiple PRs.
Lauren Machacek and
Elena Fuglestad each recorded personal records in the 60m hurdles, running 9.93 and 10.19, respectively. In the 800m, Fuglestad added another PR (2:34.47).
In the shot put,
Jacklyn Tepley threw 10.18m scoring 541 pentathlon points. In the open shot,
Alexis Koch hit a PR of 12.86m, finishing 5th overall.
Lauryn Schutz continued in similar fashion, breaking the nearly two decade old school record, throwing 17.35m in the weight throw, coming in 5
th.
Freshman and sophomore sprinters set the tone for the women's team.
Brianna Strehlau opened with a strong 27.30 PR in the 200m. In the 60m,
Sidney Gronski picked up a PR with 8.79 while
Bene Smith and
Taylor Matter lead for the Falcons.
The women's team had an incredible showing in the 5000m.
Laina Viere won the women's 5K in 18:06.40, opening her indoor season coming off a cross-country national championship appearance.
Adison Wilde (18:48.60) and
Emma Karnitz (18:49.99) finished 2-3 for UWRF, giving the Falcons a sweep of the top three spots.
Peyton Opsahl (19:15.55) and
Issabella Jeurissen (19:35.07) also placed inside the top seven to round out a dominant early season performance.
The women's 4x400m relay closed out day one with a top-three finish. Team of
Brianna Strehlau,
Taylor Matter,
Sidney Gronski, and
Bene Smith ran 4:27.94, taking 3rd overall.
DAY TWO PREVIEW
UWRF returns to the Minnesota Fieldhouse on Saturday for the conclusion of the M City Classic, with several events still to come for the men. Heptathlon continues with 60m hurdles, pole vault, and 1000m.
