RIPON, Wis. - The Carroll University Track & Field teams opened their 2024-25 campaign on Saturday, participating in the Ripon College Invitational. The women's team placed first, and the men placed third in the unscored meet, giving the Pios a great opportunity to set the foundation for the season for a young team. 

On the women's side, the distance runners shined, as Carroll runners won the 800m, the 1-mile, and the 3000m race. Rebekah Buboltz won the 800m with a time of 2:24.59, followed closely behind by freshman Hana Smith, who placed second with a time of 2:27.01. Junior Kayla Hirschmann took the 1-mile race with a time of 6:10.41 and senior Gabrielle Holbrook won the 3000m in 11:57.39. In field events, senior Maria Falk won both the shot put and weight throw. Her shot-put distance of 13.62m is currently good for third in the national rankings. Other highlights include the 4x400 relay team of Anika Tollerud, Hana Smith, Tirzah Losos, and Taylor Olund, who placed second with a time of 4:18.48. 

Highlighting the men's team was junior Ethan Weber, who won the men's mile with a time of 4:32.80, a new personal best for the Waukesha, Wis. native. Sophomore Ethan Zilisch also had a good day, placing first in the long jump among collegiate runners with a distance of 6.66m. Zilisch also took fourth in the 60m dash, posting a time of 7.17 seconds. Junior Brady Ruesser had a successful day in throwing events, taking second in both the weight throw and shot put. 

Carroll takes an extended break for finals week and the holidays before returning to action on January 25, 2025 where they travel to UW-Whitewater.