The Valparaiso University men’s and women’s track and field teams started their outdoor seasons on Friday by participating in the Bulls Invitational, hosted by the University of South Florida. The field event athletes maintained the momentum from their stellar performances at the Horizon League Indoor Championships and earned three Top 10 marks.

How It Happened

• For the men, junior Andrew Guzek (Valparaiso, Ind. / Valparaiso) received the top result for the first day of competition for the Crusaders. He had a distance of 151’11” in the hammer throw, capturing seventh place. The standout tossed the discus 138’7” for ninth.
• Freshman Jake Rasawehr (Celina, Ohio/Celina) clipped his teammate in the discus, securing an eighth-place mark with a toss of 141’10”. The rookie had a distance of 131’9” in the hammer throw, a ninth-place effort.
• Junior Montel Hall (Waukegan, Ill. / Waukegan) came close to cracking the Top 10 in the long jump. The jump specialist leaped 21’4 3/4" to earn 11^th and lead Valpo in the event. Sophomore Malik Riley (Romeoville, Ill. / Romeoville), freshman Nick Ricks (St. Louis, Mo. / Lutheran North) and sophomore Aaron Clark Jr. earned 14th, 15th and 19th respectively in the long jump.
• Sophomore Abby Jankowski had the top result for the Valpo women on Day 1, earning 11th in the hammer throw with a distance of 129’1”. Teammate sophomore Nellie Bonham (Palos Hills, Ill. / Stagg) finished two spots behind in the event with a result of 126’7” for 13th.
• Freshman jumper Anne Mou (Bloomingdale, Ill. / Lake Park) landed 16’3 1/4" from the starting point in the long jump, receiving 14th. Freshman Shannon Lahey (Dixon, Ill. / Dixon) took home 16th (15’9 1/2").

Next Up

The Crusaders continue action on Saturday with Day 2 of the Bulls Invitational. The meet begins at 10 a.m. CT in Tampa, Fla. at the USF Track & Field Stadium.