Johnson Dials Long Distance In St. Peter

ST. PETER, Minn. (4/26/14)—Senior Connor Johnson led Concordia on a triple-event weekend as he vaulted all the way into the top 20 in the nation in the javelin. Johnson was a part of a Cobber team that participated in the Drake Relays on Friday and then the Gustavus Drake Alternative Meet on Saturday. Concordia also had a contingent compete at the Al Cassell Relays on Saturday in Valley City.

Johnson didn't put up big numbers in the javelin on Friday at Drake but dialed long distance on Saturday in St. Peter. He threw the javelin 191-05 in his very first attempt which is the third farthest in school history and No.19 in the nation this year. The top 20 in the nation earn bids to the NCAA Championship Meet so Johnson is currently in the running to compete at the national meet at the end of May. To put his toss into even more perspective – it is over 10 feet farther than his previous career best.

Fellow field athlete Mark Goss posted the only other top 3 finish at the Gustavus meet. Goss continues to record top MIAC marks every time he competes in the high jump. On Saturday he cleared 6-04.75 and finished second. Goss' season best of 6-06.00 is currently No.3 on the conference's season-best list.

Alex Benzegala was the only track athlete to crack the top 5 in St. Peter. He raced to a 50.51 in the 400 meters and came home in third place. Benzegala's season best time of 49.52 is fifth fastest in the MIAC this year.

Tim Peterson, Jeff Fiebelkorn, Noah Dovre and Theo Betting turned in the other top track performances at Gustavus. Peterson finished seventh in the steeplechase with a season-best time of 10:36.26. Fiebelkorn was sixth in the 400-meter hurdles at 59.45. Dovre sprinted to a time of 16.47 in the finals of the 110-meter hurdles and placed eighth in the meet. That time is a season best and in the top 15 of the MIAC. Betting clocked a time of 23.63 in the 200-meter dash and placed eighth.

Erik Bye and Jackson Schepp came away with the only top 5 finishes for the small Cobber crew at the Al Cassell Relays. Bye finished fifth in both the hammer throw and javelin. His final distance in the hammer throw of 124-03 is a personal best. Schepp was second in the high jump after clearing a height of 6-02.25.

Concordia's multi-event athletes will get their shot at conference glory when they compete in the MIAC decathlon on May 1-2 at Carleton. The rest of the team will compete in the Ron Masanz Invite hosted by MSU Moorhead on May 3. That meet is the final "regular season" competition before the conference championship meet on May 9-10.   

Cobber Notables

Cobber All-Time List
JV - Connor Johnson - 191-5 - #3 All-Time

Personal Records
HT - Erik Bye  -  124-3             
200M - Theo Betting - 23.63          
400H - Taylor Lauermann - 62.99         
SC - Tim Peterson - 10:36.26        
DT - Gabe Wright - 93-11               
JV  - Connor Johnson - 191-5