Northfield, Minn. – The Gusties opened the 2026 indoor season on Saturday at the St. Olaf Open, turning in several strong performances across both the track and field.

To start off the women's team, Allison Stacy led the reigning outdoor MIAC champions in the 60 meters, placing third with a time of 8.14 seconds. In the 400 meters, the Gusties delivered a strong showing as McKenzie Luetmer finished second in 1:00.75, followed closely by Isabel Fynboh in third at 1:03.59.

The women's field events proved to be a highlight of the meet. Two time MIAC champion Kayla Kajer continued her impressive high jump campaign, clearing 1.62 meters to take first place and rank 19th nationally. Kaylee Hawks added a fourth place finish with a jump of 1.46 meters. In the pole vault, Camille Finney placed second at 3.25 meters, while Maddox Lee finished fourth with a clearance of 2.85 meters.

The Gusties also found success in the triple jump, where Ava Loftness claimed first place with a mark of 10.83 meters. Kajer added another podium finish by placing third with a jump of 10.59 meters, with both marks ranking inside the top 100 nationally in Division III. In the throws, Keira McCord recorded a personal best of 12.55 meters in the shot put, a mark that currently ranks 26th in the nation.

For the men's team, Jade Anstine made an impressive return to competition by winning the 60 meters in his first race in nearly a year, posting a time of 7.06 seconds. Conner Martens followed with a second place finish in the 200 meters at 23.49 seconds. Cohen Stursa represented the longest sprints well, finishing third in the 600 meters with a time of 1:28.96.

In the field events, Kyler Flunker opened the meet with a standout performance in the high jump, clearing a personal best of 1.94 meters to earn second place. The men's long jump group also had a strong day, led by Jaylin Raab who placed third with a jump of 6.14 meters. Six additional Gusties finished inside the top ten in the event. 

Jumps captain Bradyn Nordeen reflected on the group effort following the meet, saying, "Newcomers have come in with strong intention to improve their jumps, while returners and Coach Billy modeled what a focused, high quality practice looks like. That standard carried over into a successful meet for everyone today."

Carter Will capped off the field competition with a strong collegiate debut in the shot put, placing third with a throw of 13.45 meters.

The meet concluded with the men's 4x4 relay of Tyler Heil, Luke Scheel, Cullen Arneson, and Stursa, who finished second in a tightly contested race with a time of 3:31.11.

Gustavus returns to action next Saturday at the Macalester Vanessa Seljeskog Classic.