The Margaret Bradley - Alex Wilson Connection
2 Historical Meets on 1 Great Day
Did you know that Alex Wilson coached Margaret Bradley’s dad? Well, what if you could attend both the Alex Wilson Invitational and the Margaret Bradley Invitational on the same day AND meet Margaret Bradley, himself? That’s exactly what the Notre Dame Running Club did on February 21st. 25 runners headed to the University of Chicago to compete in the Margaret Bradley Invitational while three more stayed at Notre Dame to compete in the Alex Wilson Invitational.
The day started with Gracie Wetli, Karson Girvin, and Audrey Filonczuk running the women’s 3K with times of 10:53.02, 11:40.74, and 12:11.24 respectively. Gracie ran so fast, that she even dropped the pacer. She now holds the 2nd fastest 3K time in club history.
Next up was the men’s 3K where Winston Fairchild, Zach Wrobel, and Andrew Jitendran ran impressive times of 9:44.78, 9:58.48, and 10:40.32 respectively.
After that, Josh Allen jumped a height of 1.83m in the men’s high jump.
Next, was the women’s mile where Audrey Filonczuk (6:05.18), Katie Burke (6:05.43), Aine Fitzpatrick (6:12.07), Gracie Wetli (5:33.26), Ingrid Corpus (5:34.50), Audrey Christo (5:34.66), Karson Girvin (5:52.71), and Elizabeth Nelson (6:07.75) had great races.
The men’s mile followed and Jonathan Karr (5:45.47), Héctor González Dueñes (4:48.90), Freddy Rudolph (5:01.39), Tommy Stecz (4:44.41), and Zach Wrobel (5:06.08) and all had impressive performances.
Next up were the women’s 60m Hurdles where Theresa Kerker broke her own club record with a time of 10.84 seconds. But, that club record didn’t last long. In the very next heat, Marie Schafer broke the record with a time of 10.81 seconds. Marie advanced to the finals and broke her club record with a time of 10.73 seconds. These great runners just keep breaking club records.
The men’s 400 meter dash followed, but there was an issue with the timing that caused a 10 minute delay. But that delay didn’t stop the Notre Dame Running Club from running since that was when the men’s 3K was starting at the Alex Wilson.
Pieter Heesters, Owen Donaher, and Ryan Fryer had a great 3K race at the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame with times of 8:42.34, 9:02.59, and 9:03.1 respectively.
Back in action at the Margaret Bradley Invitational, Matthew Fishburne (1:04.38), Kevin Taylor (1:04.97), and Braeden Smith (54.42) all had great races in the 400 meter dash after the timing delay.
Next up was the men’s 800m dash where Rowan McDonnell and Zeke Wigutow raced in 2:11.4 and 2:14.3 respectively.
After that was the women’s 200 meter dash where Marie Schafer and Mara Morales had great races of 30.50 and 30.66 seconds. They now hold the second and third fastest 200 meter times in club history.
The men’s 200 meter dash followed where Nathan Gafney (26.71), Matthew Fishburne (27.53), Kevin Taylor (28.14), and Stephen LeSage (25.45) all had great performances.
The final race of the day was the 4x400 meter dash. For the first time in club history, we had multiple relay teams in the same event.
For the women Ingrid Corpus, Lizzy Nelson, Karson Girvin, and Gracie Wetli ran in 4:39.72 and Theresa Kerker, Mara Morales, Katie Burke, and Marie Schafer were right behind and finished with a time of 4:42.61.
For the men Braedon Smith, Stephen LeSage, Winston Fairchild, and Rowan McDonnell ran 3:50.18 and Nathan Gafney, Tommy Stecz, Matthew Fishburne, and Zach Wrobel ran 4:08.37.
It was a great day to race in Chicago with lots of fun. Several runners were able to see friends and family at the meet since several of our runners are from the Chicago area. It was the running club’s first time to travel to Chicago and we are excited to go back in the future.
Club Records:
Women’s 3K 2nd Place - Gracie Wetli 10:53.02
Women’s 60m Hurdles 1st Place - Marie Schafer 10.73
Women’s 60m Hurdles 2nd Place - Theresa Kerker 10.84
Women’s 200m 2nd Place - Marie Schafer 30.50
Women’s 200m 3rd Place - Mara Morales 30.66
Men’s 4x400m 1st Place - Smith, LeSage, Fairchild, McDonnell 3:50.18
Special Shoutouts:
20 Meets: Gracie Wetli
5 Meets: Kevin Taylor
1st Meet: Mara Morales, Marie Schafer, Lizzy Nelson, Tommy Stecz, Rowan McDonnell, and Stephen LeSage.
You can view all running club records and results here.
Alex Wilson meet results can be found here.
Margaret Bradley meet results can be found here.
Margaret Bradley meet photos can be found here.
Stay tuned for the Illinois Club Relay Recap coming soon!
Post and Photos by: Jonathan Karr
© 2024 Notre Dame Running Club (runclub@nd.edu)