Alumni, record holders honored and first home track meet
(Ann Arbor, Mich.) Cardinals Track & Field hosted the Legacy Invitational on Saturday, the first home meet since opening the Thunder Sports Complex in 2019. The event featured a full day of activities that started with a special ceremony recognizing former track and field alumnus, record holders, and hall of fame members. The event also honored Kay Thunder Haab who generously enabled the Thunder Sports Complex to come to fruition.
On the men's side, Avery Sanchez (Allen Park, MI) took 3rd in the 3,000m Steeplechase, running 11:33.69.
Teddy Eising (Royal Oak, MI) took 6th in the 1,500m, running 4:39.03 with teammate Adam Dimaggio (Irma, SC) running 4:47.14 for 8th in the same event.
Noah Starkey (Macomb, MI) took the top spot for the Cardinals in the 400m, running 51.96 for a 5th place finish. Also with a 5th place finish, Starkey went on to run the 4x400m relay with Sanchez, and Alan Jones (Canton, MI), and Mike Brannan (Dearborn Heights, MI). Jones also ran 11.50 in the 100m dash for a 4th place finish, and 22.93 in the 200m for 5th. Brannan took 5th in the 800m running 2:13.83 and had a huge toss in the javelin throw, for a new personal best of 37.23 and a 7th place finish.
Throws senior Eric Bugg (Ida, MI) took home a number of points including a 3rd finish in shot put (13.49) and in the hammer throw (47m), 6th in the javelin (37.82), and competed in the discus throw (34.41m). Richard Branch (Detroit, MI) took home the bronze in the javelin, throwing 40.71m. Branch also competed in the shot put (10.74m) and in the hammer, tossing 34.21m for a new personal best. Josh Wood (Champagne, IL) threw a new personal best in discus with a toss of 22.25m, competed in the shot put (5.98m) and hammer throw (19.38m). Noah Pastrana (Dayton, OH) also competed in the hammer throw (27.21m) and discus throw (28m). Rounding out the men's throws squad was Ethan Szabados (Brownstown, MI), who made his discus debut with a throw of 25.81m. Szabados also jumped 1.80m in the high jump for a 5th place finish, with teammate Zachary Yoder (Mt. Pleasant, MI) who jumped 1.75m for a 6th place finish.
The Cardinals return to action next week for the Outdoor Track & Field WHAC Championships in Fort Wayne, Indiana, hosted by Indiana Tech, April 29-30, 2021. Follow along with the team's twitter account (CUAATFXC) for meet updates.
