LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- During Spring Break, five members of the Carleton men’s track and field team participated in the Walt Disney World Invitational. Tom Ballinger (Sr./Wenatchee, Wash.) recorded a NCAA provisional qualifier in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 53.83, which currently ranks second-fastest in Division III.
Ballinger and teammate Ty Martin (So./Minot, N.D.) were the only Division III student-athletes participating in the 400 hurdles. The pair finished third and 14th respectively. There were eight racers from Division I programs in the event, two from Division II and one each from the NAIA and a club team.
The 110-meter hurdles featured an even more diverse—and interesting—field. No Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy were not among the racers at Disney’s Wild World of Sports Complex.
Instead, while competing alongside Division I and II participants, Ballinger, Martin and Carleton assistant coach Ben Dillow advanced to the finals. There they found themselves among a nine-person field that included two of the top hurdlers in the country—David Oliver (2008 bronze medalist in Beijing) and Joel Brown (2005 U.S. Indoor Champion in the 60-meter hurdles). Dillow, Ballinger and Martin finished sixth, seventh and eighth respectively.
The Knights’ 4x400-meter relay placed third with a time of 3:20.22, edging past the entry from Division I Florida State on the final leg. Nick Cesarek (Sr./Eagan, Minn./Eastview), Michael Sanders (Jr./Cedar Falls, Iowa) and Jack Delehanty (Sr./Madison, Wis./Monona Grove) each had their best relay legs ever, and Ballinger anchored with his fourth race of the day.
Individually, Cesarek set a personal-best time of 11.20 in the 100-meter dash, plus his second-best showings in the javelin (48.82 meters) and 200-meter dash (22.46) as he finished fourth and 10th respectively. At 1:56.73 in the 800-meter run, Sanders placed fourth and posted the top time in the MIAC so far on the young season. Delehanty finished seventh at the 800-meter distance (1:57.86). Martin also set a personal best in the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.80.
The next competition on the Knights schedule is Saturday, March 28 at the Saint John’s Invitational in Collegeville, Minn.