From Washington University Athletics

The Washington University in St. Louis men's track & field program flexed its way to multiple victories during the WashU Mini Meet in the outdoor track & field opener Friday evening.

The men scored 176 points to outpace Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology's second place total of 155 points.

The men were led by first place finishes from Deko Ricketts (1,500 – 3:56.15), Peter Johnsrud (3,000 – 8:42.01) and Everett Kleven (pole vault – 4.70m). Kleven's height is the top mark in Division III this season, while Ricketts time ranks third.

The men's mid-distance runners dominated as the Bears captured the top eight spots in the 3,000. Following Johnsrud's top finish in the 3,000 were Dillon Williams(8:42.41), Jimmy Qiao (8:46.57), Ben Rosenkranz (8:49.04), Sawyer Kelly (8:49.93), Kyle Cepeda (8:51.90), Paul d'Ambrosio (8:54.78) and Richard Hathaway(9:03.11).

The men also totaled the top four spots in the 1,500 race. Ricketts paced the group while Nick Matteucci (3:57.09), Ethan Brodeur (3:57.67) and Chris Blagg (4:03.28) were the other three top finishes for the Bears. Joining Ricketts in the top-10 nationally were Matteucci (sixth) and Brodeur (eighth).

Both of the Bears 4x100- and 4x400-relays placed second during the meet with top-10 national times. Michael Billington, Jon Fleming, Eddie Wintergalen and Ricketts ran the 1,600m relay finishing with the third best time nationally (3:18.42). Billington, CJ Chin, Jason Singer and Roderick Smith placed second in the 400m relay with the sixth best time nationwide (42.21). Billington also added another top-10 national time in the 400 hurdles when he placed third with a time of 56.20.