April 23, 2023 – Just one week after falling out of the top spot in the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) ratings, third-ranked Loras College men's track & field got back to form by winning the Augustana College Meet of Champions over the weekend.

The Duhawks finished with 137.5 total team points to edge out second place and 12^th-ranked University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Both teams also finish ahead of Division I University of Northern Iowa in third place.

Senior Mike Jasa helped lead the charge yet again as he had a hand in two of Loras' three event victories at Augustana. Jasa's race-winning 400-meter time of 47.94 marks the first time he has broke the 48-second threshold in his career and ranks ninth in program history. It is also just inside the top-20 nationally.

Jasa was also the final leg of the 4x400-meter relay team that took the top spot out of 21 relay squads. Junior Ted Kruse, senior Carter Oberfoell, and junior Carson Vaske led off for Jasa as the group clocked a 3:21.31 to secure the top spot.

Freshman Matt Kruse notched the third and final Duhawk win as he claimed the 400-meter hurdles event with a time of 53.96. His contributions didn't end there as he also took home fourth place with a 15.09 time in the 110-meter hurdles.

A slew of notable top-three finishes is highlighted by a runner-up effort for senior Wyatt Kelly. Kelly's career-best 800-meter time of 1:52.68 was almost enough for the win, but Millikin University's Jake Shumaker narrowly edged him out with a 1:52.60 at the line. Junior Ryan Harvey was among the group of leaders at the finish line as he claimed a fifth-place finish with a 1:53.74.

Junior Derik Bunten went second in the long jump with a best mark of 7.22 meters while junior Holden Murphy also earned a runner-up finish with a 56.66-meter toss in the hammer throw. Murphy also took fourth in the shot put and seventh in the discus.

Loras also saw third-place finishes from Ted Kruse in the 400-meter hurdles, freshman Ryan McGrath in the 5k, and sophomore Julian Watson in the 3000-meter steeplechase. In just his second collegiate outdoor 5k, McGrath shaved nearly 10 seconds off his time from a week ago to clock a 15:46.97 while Watson notched his second straight 3k steeplechase top-three with a 9:36.35.

Two other Duhawks were in action at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse's Phil Esten Challenge, highlighted by senior Luke Guttormson's sixth-place finish in the 10k. Guttormson's time of 30:43.81 is a personal record and ranks seventh all-time at Loras.

Loras is in action again next weekend at the famed Drake Relays from Thursday-Saturday, April 27-29, in Des Moines, Iowa.