LA CROSSE, Wis. – Perfect weather today for the Falcons in La Crosse for the Phil Esten Challenge. Day one had a full schedule of events across the track and field.
Action kicked off in the afternoon with a rolling schedule of field events alongside a packed track schedule. The opening day also saw the start of the decathlon and heptathlon competitions.
Leading the way for the Falcons, Jacob Balcome sits in second place by just five points in the men's heptathlon after day one, totaling 3,723 points Balcome. In the 400m, Balcome ran a 49.77, placing him ninth all-time in program history.
In the field events, Alexis Koch delivered one of the top performances of the day with a throw of 50.78 meters in the hammer, moving herself into the No. 2 all-time spot at UW-River Falls. Ali Clifford also climbed the record book in the shot put with a mark of 12.99 meters (No. 4 all-time). Georgia Mundt added a 12.35-meter toss to break into the top-10 list along with a second place finish in the discus with a 45.66m PR toss.
Tyler Parker highlighted the mid-distance with a PR of 1:54.03 in the 800m, good for seventh all-time. The distance crew showed up with Ryan Pierson posting a 53-second personal record in the 10,000m (31:34.32) to move to No. 4 all-time, while Jack Richter's 32:12 ranks eighth all-time.
In the women's 1,500m, Adison Wilde & Issabella Jeurissen both turned in top tier marks (4:43.54, No. 4 all-time // 4:51.71, No. 7 all-time). Wyatt Johnson joined in with a finish at 4:01.46 to move into sixth all-time.
The Falcons had a strong day of performances across the board, Isaiah Juneski's 22.17 in the 200m, good for No. 8 all-time and a 42.06 finish from the men's 4x100 relay team of Theodore Hovde, Isaiah Juneski, Ryan Pidgeon, and Ben Johnson, placing them in the No. 2 position in program history. Franklin Doncavage and Taylor Matter each added season-best efforts in the 400m, while Alex Pazdernik, Bryant Motzer, and Ali Jeurissen each recorded PRs in the 800m.
Falcons had strong performances across all event groups this afternoon in sunny La Crosse afternoon. Balcome and others have positioned themselves well heading into Friday's final day of competition in La Crosse.
