Men’s Track & Field News

For the third consecutive season, the Guelph Gryphons stood atop both the men’s (139 points) and women’s (138 points) standings, capturing the 2020 U SPORTS Track and Field Championships at the Universiade Pavilion.

The Gryphon men and women each capped off incredible weekends by winning the 4x400m relays in the final two events of the championship. They Gryphon women also tied their U SPORTS record of 3:40.08 they set from last season, with Morgan Byng, Sadie-Jane Hickson, Jenna Smith and Zoe Sherar capturing their second straight gold.

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“Every year you do this it’s special, this one is particularly special. I’ve been here with this team six years, and this is the most fun I’ve ever had, the most fun our staff has ever had, and I think the most fun our athletes have ever had,” said Gryphons head coach Jason Kerr, who was named both the Men and Women’s Fox 40 Coach of the Year.

“We’ve won this meet before, but just something feels a little extra special. I feel like we were loose, excited, and we were our own teams’ biggest fan over the weekend. Just an incredible group of people.”

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In total, Guelph captured seven medals on Saturday, adding gold medals in each of the 4x200m relay, Jenna Smith in the 600m, and Mark Bujnowski repeating in the men’s shot put.

Calgary (69 points) earned the men’s silver medal, adding five medals, including gold in the 1500m by George Gemer Award winner Eric Lutz, as Athlete of the Meet. Saskatchewan earned team bronze with 51 points.

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The Toronto Varsity Blues picked up seven total medals on Day 3, including gold by Kristen Schulz in the women’s triple jump, and Emily Branderhorst in the high jump, taking the team silver medal with 86.5 points. The Laval Rouge et Or rounded out the team podium spots with women’s bronze (58 points).

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Saskatchewan Huskie Michelle Harrison earned the women’s Athlete of the Meet award for her record-setting performance in the 60m hurdles on Friday.

The host Alberta Golden Bears and Pandas finished eighth on the women’s side with 24.5 points, with the Bears finishing seventh with 32 points.

“We had 20 something medals, we had meet records, we had school records,” continued Kerr. “The biggest standout performance to me is our coaching staff and our medical staff. We had the biggest team I think you can have at this championship, 29 men and 24 women. Nobody worked harder than our chiro’s, our MT’s, our therapist, and our coaching staff.”

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INDIVIDUAL HONOURS

Men

George Gemer Award (Athlete of the Meet): Eric Lutz, Calgary

Bob Boucher Award (Fox 40 Coach of the Year):  Jason Kerr, Guelph

Women

Athlete of the Meet: Michelle Harrison, Saskatchewan

Sue Wise Award (Fox 40 Coach of the Year): Jason Kerr, Guelph