SJU track and field reaches midpoint of regular season
The Johnnie track and field team is gearing up for the outdoor conference championship meet.
St. John’s University track and field has their sights set on the MIAC championship meet. They started their spring season with their home invitational on March 28, and the team most recently competed at the Minnesota State Open in Mankato on Monday, where they captured 12 top-five and 21 top-ten finishes.
The team had a few meets get moved around or cancelled due to unpredictable weather. Head coach Jeremy Karger-Gatzow spoke about the impact cancellations have on their schedule and training programs.
“The early outdoor season is dependent on the spring weather,” Karger-Gatzow said. “We managed to squeeze in our home meet two weeks ago, and the distance runners were able to compete this past weekend. Training has been going well, and we are all excited to compete in some improved weather.”
The team has been seeing results from their experienced athletes but are focused on developing their younger runners as well. Junior Cole Stencel, an All-American in the mile run during the indoor season, recently set a PR in the 5k on April 10. Freshman Aiden Jones ran a PR of 10.92 seconds in the 100-meter dash at the Minnesota State Open.
“I have been impressed with the junior varsity team,” Karger-Gatzow said. “The JV captains stepped up and are leading a strong group who will hopefully be contributing to the team’s success in the future.”
Senior Owen Montreuil currently ranks third in the conference in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:55.34. He talked about the competitive nature of track and field.
“My favorite part about competing is going to the meets and lining up against guys that will push you and make you better. Track is kind of a personal sport; you are always trying to beat your own PR, and competing against good guys every week pushes you to better yourself,” Montreuil said.
The sixth-place finisher in the 800-meter run at the indoor conference championships this year, Montreuil has been focusing on his mentality as he makes the transition to the outdoor season.
“We have a very good middle distance conference, and I think just not comparing myself to others and focusing on myself and my own development is kind of what I’ll be doing this outdoor season,” Montreuil said.
Montreuil was a member of the 4×800 relay squad that broke the Johnnies’ school record at the Drake Relays meet last year. Two of his relay mates from that race, senior Nick St. Peter and junior Max McCoy, are returning this year.
“Drake Relays is coming up next week. Me and some of my teammates are going down there and we hope to put a good time in the 4×800 relay,” Montreuil said.
Junior Cooper Smith recently set a new PR in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 53.27 seconds, a mark that ranks him 15th in the nation for Division III. He talked about the early season performances from the team at their home opener.
“I think throughout the team there were a lot of meet records. It’s the first meet and the meet records aren’t anything crazy, but it’s good to see that we’re doing better than we’ve done in past years to open. I think we’ve got a lot more left to see though,” Smith said.
Smith was last year’s fourth place finisher at the conference meet in the 400-meter hurdles and currently sits in first place in the event at the midpoint of the regular season. He highlighted the difference in training between the indoor and outdoor seasons.
“It’s really nice to just get outside. Indoor the curves are so tight, and it’s tough on the body. I just love getting outside; it feels good in the sun and all that,” Smith said.
The Johnnies’ next slate of meets includes a home invitational on April 16, a meet hosted by the University of Minnesota on April 22 and the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, from April 23-25.
