Moncton, NB – The StFX X-Men placed third overall at the Subway AUS Championship this weekend.
The Dalhousie Tigers claimed the AUS banner, earning 105 points over the two-day event. UNB was second with 93 points, while the X-Men had 88.
StFX garnered 12 medals in total – five gold, three silver and four bronze.
Veteran fourth year runner Angus Rawling (Calgary, AB), the defending national champion in the 3000m event, was no match for the AUS field as he claimed gold in that discipline, shattering a 28-year old AUS record in the process. Rawling's time of 8:18.82 broke the 1991 record of 8:25.7 set by Moncton's Joel Bourgeois.
Rawling also won the AUS silver medal in the 1500m. His finishing time of 3:56.19 was eclipsed only by Saint Mary's Andrew Peverill who had a kick in the final lap to take the race over Rawling.
Fifth year sprinter Tim Brennan (Beechwood, NB) also had a big weekend for the X-Men as he won individual gold and bronze, along with a pair of relay gold medals. Brennan was the AUS champion in the 600m event, clocking in at 1:21.96. He won bronze in the 60m hurdles with am 8.81 result.
Brennan anchored the X-Men 4x400m relay team that not only won gold but set an AUS record in the process. Bradley Barclay (Coldwater, ON), Eric Sutton (Peterborough, ON) and Adrian Kinney (Bristol, NB) were his teammates who finished with a 3:25.55 time in the field of seven teams. The previous AUS record of 3:27.58 was set in 2017 by Dalhousie.
The same four X-Men runners enjoyed their second gold medal in the 4x200m relay. Their time of 1:31.58 bested the field of six as Kinney ran exciting anchor leg to overtake his Dalhousie opponent to bring home the gold for his blue and white squad.
The fifth StFX gold medal was captured in the field event by third year jumper Kirishnia Cooper (Nassau, Bahamas). He topped the field in the triple jump with a 13.34m result to earn the title of AUS champion. The mark also set a new StFX record as he bettered his own previous mark of 13.14m et earlier this season. The medal was Cooper's second of the weekend as he also won silver in the long jump with a 6.41m showing.
Riley Jennings (Debert, NS) was the silver medalist in the men's weight throw, finishing with a 15.06m result. The throw set a new StFX record, surpassing the previous record of 13.65m set by Robert Kennedy in 2014. Jennings' StFX throwing partner Sam Gan (London, ON) won AUS bronze in the shotput with a 13.14m throw.
In the 600m race, second year X-Men runner Quinn Alexander (Truro, NS) was the bronze medalist with a 1:26.97 race. He was also a member of the StFX 4x800m relay team that claimed bronze. Along with Justin Major (Nassau, Bahamas), Aidan Doherty (Vancouver, BC) and Rawling, their time of 8:14.13 was good enough for third spot amongst seven teams.
The AUS major award winners announced following the championship included the following:
Male AUS Championship MVP: Matt Coolen, Dalhousie
Female AUS Championship MVP: Savanna Jordan, Dalhousie
Male AUS Field Athlete of the Year: Jean-Luc Bastarache, Moncton
Female AUS Field Athlete of the Year: Lexie Shannon, UNB
Male AUS Track Athlete of the Year: Matt Coolen, Dalhousie
Female AUS Track Athlete of the Year: Bailey Smith, UPEI
Male AUS Rookie of the Year: Eric Hughes, UNB
Female AUS Rookie of the Year: Erin McCavour, UNB
Male AUS Student-Athlete Community Service Award: Jonathan Peverill, Saint Mary's
Female AUS Student-Athlete Community Service Award: Bhreagh Burke, Saint Mary's
Men's AUS Coach of the Year: Chris Belof, UNB
Women's AUS Coach of the Year: Rich Lehman, Dalhousie
Men's Volunteer Coach of the Year: Mike Bawol, Dalhousie
Women's Volunteer Coach of the Year: Jodi Langley, StFX
The U SPORTS national championship is scheduled for March 7-9 at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.
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Courtesy Krista McKenna, StFX Sports Information