MTU release

PUEBLO, Colo. – Houghton native Clayton Sayen concluded his historic career for Michigan Tech at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Pueblo, Colorado, on Thursday evening.

Sayen battled the wind and his competitors in commendable fashion, but slid back to finish eighth in his heat of the 1,500m, in a time of 3:53.60. The first heat proved to be the faster of the two, with three of the four available little q’s coming from Sayen’s heat, placing him 15th in the event.

The senior was in good position through 300m, sitting in fourth, before settling into the race in the second lap to move to 10th. Following some contact with other runners in the field in the third lap, Sayen could not recover when he hit the bell lap, concluding his career for the Huskies.

“It was an emotional day for me filled with happiness, sadness and gratefulness,” Sayen said. “It wasn’t my best day on the track, but it was the best effort I could give. It’s always sad falling short of a goal, but looking back on my career only makes me happy.

“I’m beyond grateful for the support from my coaches, family and my teammates, especially the ones who made the trip out to come watch. My time as a Husky has been great and I’m happy to have been part of a program that has seen such improvement over my five years. I’m thankful for the opportunity that Michigan Tech has given me and I look forward to this program growing and improving moving forward.”

This was Sayen’s second year qualifying for the 1,500m at the NCAA Championships. He holds school records in the 1,500m (3:43.84) and the 800m (1:49.27). He was the back-to-back GLIAC Outdoor 1,500m Champion (2022, 2023) and holds the meet record in the event. This past fall, he had the highest individual finish in Michigan Tech history at the NCAA Cross Country Championships where he placed 16th overall, being the low-stick for the 10th place Huskies, marking their highest team finish in program history.

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Jesse Jacobusse

Senior Jesse Jacobusse wrapped up her career as a Husky in the preliminary round of the 800m at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Pueblo, Colorado, on Friday evening.

“The end of a season is always bittersweet and especially so when your student-athletes don’t have their best performances to close things out,” assistant head coach Robert Young said.” I am so proud of the growth and accomplishments both Jesse and Clayton have exhibited in the past two years I’ve worked with them.

“Each has left an undeniable mark on the program and has laid a foundation we seek to continue to build upon. Losing them means we have big holes to fill, btu they have also shown the way so our next generation knows they too can compete at the national level.”

The Chelsea, Michigan, native placed seventh in the first heat of the preliminary round of the women’s 800m, clocking in at a time of 2:17.83. Overall, Jacobusse placed 18th in the event.

Jacobusse went through 400m in 1:03.98 holding sixth-place before falling to seventh-place over the final 400m meters.

“Jesse is one of the most driven people I’ve ever met and she’s ending her career at Tech as one of the best runners who has ever come through the track & field team, including all the accolades she received as a member of the soccer program,” mentioned head coach Kristina Owen. “It’s rare to come across an athlete as talented and versatile as Jesse is. I’m so incredibly proud of everything she’s accomplished and we’re so excited to see where her next adventures take her.”

I didn’t have the race I wanted today,” Jacobusse said. “But my season goal was to make it to the national meet and to achieve a school record and I met those goals. Getting to compete on the national stage has been a dream of mine since I got to Tech and I was grateful to finally do that while having a great support system with me today, certainly making it more special.

“My experience at Michigan Tech has been worth so much more than I could express and I am so thankful for all the opportunities I had to compete in a Tech uniform. I have been fortunate to have the most amazing coaches and teammates during my time at Michigan Tech and that alone made my time as a Husky something that I will forever cherish.”

Jacobusse is the 800m school record holder, breaking Liz Bloche’s record set in 2019, with her 2:08.00 performance at the St. Francis Last Chance Invite the second weekend of May. She is also a two-time All-GLIAC performer in the 800m, taking third in the event the past two GLIAC Outdoor Championships.