Rochester, N.Y. – The 2023 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships opened on Thursday on the campus of St. John Fisher College. Five Wheaton athletes are representing the 'Orange and Blue' at the three-day event. Three members of the Thunder men's track & field team traveled to New York, while two members of the Wheaton women's team are there.

MEN'S TEAM THURSDAY RECAP
Isaiah Clausen competed in the first five events of the two-day decathlon, placing in sixth in the 22-man field at the end of day one with 3,588 points. Clausen opened the day with a time of 11.10-seconds in the 100-meter dash for 838 points. Clausen had an effort of 6.77-meters for 760 points in the long jump. He added 520 points in the shot put with a heave of 10.57-meters. His biggest jump in the standings on Thursday came from a move from eighth place to fifth place following his performance in the high jump. Clausen's mark of 1.90 in the high jump was the second-best effort of the decathletes in the event and it earned him 714 points. He closed Thursday with a time of 51.30-seconds in the 400-meter run to earn 756 points. The decathlon will conclude on Friday with the 110-meter hurdles, discus throw, pole vault, javelin and 1,500-meter run.

Eli Odell, an All-American in 2021, competed in the prelims of the men's 400-meter hurdles on Thursday evening. Odell posted a time of 54.92-seconds, placing 19^th in the 22-man field.

Sam Elsen participated in one of two prelims of the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase. Elsen ran most of the event, however he was unable to finish the and complete the race.

WOMEN'S TEAM THURSDAY RECAP
Abi Gum (PICTURED LEFT) competed in the first four events of the two-day heptathlon, placing in 18 in the 22-woman field at the end of day one with 2,640 points. Gum posted a time of 15.46-seconds in the 100-meter hurdles to garner 782 points. She had an effort of 1.37-meters in the high jump, adding 481 points to her total. She had an effort of 10.46-meters in the shot put to add 560 points. Gum closed her first day of competition with a time of 25.77-seconds in the 200-meter dash to add 817 points and improve her standing from 20^th to 18^th.

Susannah Bennett competed in the women's 10,000-meter run, the final event on day one. The fast-faced race saw the top three placers all break the previous D3 Championships record. Bennett posted a time of 35:46.35, just two seconds off of Wheaton's school record in the event. Bennett was 21^st midway through the match and battled her way through the field to finish in 16^th.