LAWRENCE, KAN. — By topping the 15-man decathlon field in the javelin throw and discus throw, Central College men's track & field athlete Ryan Kruse (junior, St. Clair, Minn.) finished seventh at the Kansas Relays.
             
Kruse finished with 6,391 points, the eighth-best score in Division III this season. Morgan Koenigs (senior, Mapleton, MVAO HS) was 11th in the women's heptathlon (3,914 points) while Lorell Stuht (senior, Loveland, Colo.) was 11th in the hammer throw.
           
True to form, Kruse used his strength to surge up the standings. He unleashed the javelin 177 feet, 6 inches while launching the discus 140-11. Both marks were the best of all 15 competitors.
           
"A pair of really solid throwing events by Ryan," associate head coach Jim Fuller said. "Both of those throws were close to his PR."
           
It's his improvement in the running events that has Fuller excited, though.
           
"He ran a lot during his summer internship in Washington, D.C.," he said. "You make gains in the offseason and he's a better runner than he used to be. At this meet, he tied or set his PR in the 100-meter dash, 110-meter hurdles, 400-meter dash and 1,500-meter run."
           
Completing her first heptathlon of the year, Koenigs had her second-best career effort in the seven-discipline event.
           
"It was good today; it wasn't great," Fuller said. "She was a little up and down at times."
           
Koenigs was the sixth-best javelin thrower in the field, reaching 100-10. She also ran the 800 meters in 2:50.83
           
"Her javelin was pretty good today," Fuller said. "She's still working on that 800. She said she felt better running it today, she needs to gain a little confidence."
           
Lorell Stuht (senior, Loveland, Colo.) only completed one of her three throws successfully, fouling the first and third throws, but she managed to toss her second throw 155 feet, 0 inches to place 15th in the 26-woman field.

"Her third throw was her best," Fuller said. "She said that it felt great afterwards and she was a little surprised that she fouled. She's excited for Saturday."
Central is hosting the Central Open this weekend, starting with the 10,000-meter run Friday night at 6 p.m. The rest of the events start on Saturday at 10 a.m.