ROCK ISLAND -- Both the Augustana men's and women's track & field teams cruised to a first-place finish on Saturday at the 80th annual Vikings Olympics. The men came out on top out of 11 teams with 157 points, 36 ahead of second-place St. Ambrose, while the women collected 207 points to finish in first, nearly 100 more than second-place Ripon.

On the men's side, the Vikings went No. 1, 2, and 3 in the 110m hurdles, with AJ Banks leading the way with his winning time of 14.57. The mark currently sits No. 7 in Division III. He was followed by Brayden Veil in second and Bayley Pierce in third. Banks also won the 400m hurdles with a personal-best time of 55.57. Pierce also came in second in the event with a final time of 56.81. Four Vikings posted a PR in the 200m, led by Jimmy Vercoe's 10th place time of 23.11. Daniel Prochaska finished in fifth in the 800m after clocking 2:01.42, while Joe Gibbons came in sixth in the 1500m at 4:07.46. 

In the 3,000m steeplechase, Finbar Martin was the champion after posting a PR time of 9:39.86. Teammate Donovan Garro was right behind in second with a PR himself after clocking 9:48.40. 

In field events, Magnus Wells secured a top-20 throw in Division III and a new lifetime best in the discus with a toss of 47.65m to finish in third. Wells also earned fifth in the hammer with a season-best mark of 48.10m, fifth in the shot put with a PR of 13.97m, and won the javelin with a 54.55m throw. Landon Wierenga was close behind in sixth in the hammer with a PR distance of 47.75m. In the high jump, three Vikings finished in the top five, with Caden Eller coming in third, Mike Hudson in fourth, and Gerard Cabrera Espinach in fifth. In the pole vault, Dakota Straight claimed second after clearing 4.25m, followed by Noah DeMarco in third and Collin Ferry in fourth. 

On the women's side, the Vikings saw numerous first-place finishes. McKenzie Reser was the top time in the 100m, setting a new meet record at 12.01m, good for 11th in Division III. Reser was also victorious in the 200m after clocking 24.37 for a new meet record and No. 4 time in Division III. Cora Deemer also saw success in each event after ending in fifth place in both. In the 100m hurdles, five Vikings placed in the top seven, led by Lauren Oelke's winning time of 16.79. Kira Nelson and Khaliah Knox came in second and third to round out the top three. Elsewhere, Jordyn Van Santen and Gracelyn Streets Wood snagged top-five performances in the 400m, while Oelke, Nelson, and Addi Wessel went second, third, and fifth in the 400m hurdles. Lina Maatouk was the winner of the 800m after posting a new PR time of 4:46.95. Kenzie Meirhaeghe collected fourth place in the steeplechase at 12:51.38. 

In field events, Charlotte Frere posted the No. 6 best toss in Division III so far this season with a second-place mark of 45.50m. Heather Michalski was in fourth with a distance of 40.14m. Frere also placed fourth in the hammer throw after tossing 45.56m. In the javelin throw, Laina Nelson set a meet record with a throw of 38.76m to place first. Shakira Wade led a group of three Vikings in the top five in the long jump after posting a mark of 4.79m. Rachael Linskey and Carson Kekelik rounded out the top five. Cora Heller won the pole vault event after clearing 3.35m, while Liz Hayes and Carmela Carbone went No. 1 and 2 in the triple jump.

In relays, the team of Van Santen, Deemer, Maatouk, and Reser set a meet record and earned first with a time of 3:55.00 in the 4x400 race. 

The Vikings will be back in action next weekend for the UW-Platteville Invitational.