WINNIPEG – A new U SPORTS record in the men's 1000 meter, and a triple gold weekend for Sienna MacDonald headlined day two of track nationals in Winnipeg. 

After securing her first U SPORTS gold yesterday in the pentathlon, Calgary's Sienna MacDonald added two more to her collection on Friday, winning the 60-metre hurdles and long jump. 

She broke her own conference record a day ago in the 60 hurdles of the pent, at 8.16 seconds, and she was once again the class of the field on Friday with a winning time of 8.20 seconds. 

"I've been getting to the ground quicker over the hurdles," said MacDonald of her elite times in the event. 

"It's about getting the least amount of air time possible, and getting back on the ground and continuing to run. A lot of people, even in the first hurdle, get up to it and get a little spooked by it and don't run as quick. I just run straight through and try to keep going honestly." 

Meanwhile, MacDonald's distance of 6.04 meters on her second long jump attempt was enough for first. She also jumped 6.02 on her final attempt, and was the only person in the field to go over six. 

The three individual gold medals marks the first time a Dinos athlete has achieved that feat since current head coach Jessica Zelinka brought home four individual golds to go with a gold and silver in relays in 2007.

MacDonald's two golds, plus a silver from U SPORTS Female Rookie of the Year Chloe Turner in the 3000, a fourth-place result from Dawn Richardson Wilson in the 300 and a fifth-place finish in the shot put from Alexis Johnson has the Dinos tied for first with Guelph in the team standings, with 72 points.

The five-time defending national champion Guelph Gryphons are tied for first with Calgary, headlined by a gold medal from the nation's best pole vaulter Jennifer Elizarov. She hit 4.15 metres on her first attempt, edging out Rachel Grenke of Alberta, who reached 4.10. 

Western rounds out the top three on the women's side, sitting at 64 points. 

Guelph's Max Davies, also the U SPORTS Male Track Athlete of the Year, blazed to a record-setting time of 2:21:00 in the 1k as the Guelph Gryphons had a monster day to take the lead in points heading into the final day of competition, with 70. 

Other top results from Guelph included a fourth-place finish from Marcus Penaloza-Abankwah in the 300, in a sensationally fast race. Emmett Bravakis took gold at 33.72 seconds, passing Calgary's Devon Zuchotzki on the straight away, while Montreal's Brandon Smith-Drouin secured silver from the B-side. 

Additionally, Nicholas Bannon finished third in 3000 metre, an event where Laval's Jean-Simon Desgagnes of Laval led from start to finish, with a final time of 7:59.72, just off the 28-year U SPORTS record of 7:59.29. 

Corbin deBlois also earned five points for Guelph, following a fourth-place finish in high jump, an event that was dictated from start to finish by U SPORTS Male Field Athlete of the Year Noel Vanderzee. 

The Dinos standout, who'd been away from U SPORTS for a number of years after starting his career at Lethbridge, won the event with a top jump of 2.15 metres, and he was the only athlete to surpass 2.10. 

Vanderzee, who originally stood out as a volleyball player, hit 2.16m in his fourth year in the sport, and 2.20m in his fifth, which was the "big breakthrough." He then reached a PB of 2.22 metres at the conference championship. 

"Calgary, we're starting to grow as a team," he said. 

"We only have one graduating athlete, so we're going to come back bigger and stronger and continue to bond as a team. The U SPORTS record [of 2.24 metres] would've been nice, but it is hard to follow up a PB. Consistency is key. It's taken ten years to get here so it's been a lot of work and I wasn't always jumping high. It's taken a lot of time." 

Rookie Dominic Anamali nearly joined Vanderzee on the podium for the second consecutive meet. The two-sport athlete cleared the bar at 2.01m on his first attempt to finish fifth overall for more points for the Scarlet & Gold.

Devon Zuchotzki also brought home a medal for the Dinos on the busy day, claiming bronze in the 300m in 34.28 seconds. Rookie Jaxon Turner finished out his two days of competition in the heptathlon taking fifth over with 4697 points – just shy of his own school record of 4815 points set two weeks ago at the Canada West Championships.

Competition wraps up Saturday, beginning at 11:30 a.m. MT. 

TEAM STANDINGS 
WOMEN: 
1. (tie) Guelph and Calgary 72
3. Western, 64
4. Saskatchewan 49
5. Laval 39
6. Toronto, 17
7. (tie) Alberta and Dalhousie, 16
9. York, 15
10. Sherbrooke, 10
11. Regina, 9
12. (tie) Manitoba and Windsor, 8
14. Trinity Western, 7
15. (tie) McGill and Victoria, 6
17. Montréal, 5
18. Carleton 4
19. Waterloo 3
20. (tie) Brock and Ottawa, 1

MEN: 
1. Guelph, 70
2. Manitoba, 47
3. Laval, 41
4. Western, 27
5. Alberta, 26
6. Toronto, 25
7. Calgary, 24
8. Trinity Western. 17
9. (tie) Regina and Saskatchewan, 16
11. McGill, 13
12. (tie) Montréal and UNB, 12
14. (tie) Dalhousie and Windsor, 11
16. UQAM, 7
17. York, 6
18, Queen's, 5
19. Sherbrooke, 2
20. (tie) Brock and Victoria, 1

-UC-