TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Austin Wallace claimed the decathlon title to pace the way for the Milwaukee track and field teams on day two of the Gibson Invitational.
 
"I thought overall, our multi-event athletes did a nice job," head coach Andrew Basler commented. "With Austin, we thought we might have a shot at the outdoor decathlon record but fell just short. Still it was really solid for his first time.  I also thought Trevor and Tony has good days. They were very consistent."
 
Wallace finished the event with 6,853 points which puts him second all-time in program history, just 73 points off the record. Tony Bretall and Trevor Coenen finished fifth and 11th, respectively, while Natalie Block placed seventh for the women.
 
The Panthers got off to a strong start on day two of the decathlon as all three men placed top five in the discus and top 10 in the 110-meter hurdles. Wallace grabbed first in both events, earning 856 in the hurdles and 588 in the discus.
 
Coenen and Bretall each recorded personal-best marks in the discus, finishing fourth and fifth, respectively. Coenen earned 547 points with a 34.16-meter throw while Bretall hit 33.39 meters for 532 points.
 
The javelin proved to be another top five finish for the Panthers' trio with Coenen leading the charge. He captured first in the event with a throw of 48.29 meters to earn 563 points. Wallace and Bretall finished fourth and fifth, respectively.
 
"With Natalie, we lost some points in the long jump, but she improved really well in the javelin," Basler said. "Her running events have always been a strong suit and she ran really well in the 800-meter and not only climbed to seventh in the meet but seventh all-time."
 
Block moved up to seventh in the women's heptathlon behind career-bests in the javelin and 800-meter race. Block raced to a fifth-place finish in the 800-meter to pick up 747 points with a time of 2:25.78.
 
She also added 360 points in the javelin with a throw of 23.81 meters and 559 in the long jump with a 5.0-meter leap.
 
The 4,389 total points Block earned puts her seventh on the Panthers all-time list in her first collegiate attempt.
 
Events outside of multis also began on Friday with Golden Cotton earning a top-10 finish in the 200-meter race. He crossed in 21.88 to earn two team points for the Panthers.
 
The men's 5,000-meter team shined as all four runners hit a new personal best. Trevor Wenzel led the way with a second-place finish in 14:46.64.
 
"The highlight on the men's side was the 5k having all of our guys PR. I thought at the right time in the race, they really committed mentally and it paid off," Basler stated. "I was really happy for those four guys. We are looking forward to getting the rest of our team on the track and seeing what we can do."
 
The remainder of the events at the Gibson Invitational will take place tomorrow beginning at 10:00 am CT. A group of individuals will also be competing at the Warrior Invite in Milwaukee. Live results and additional information can be found on MKEPanthers.com.