By ELLIOT AVE-LALLEMANT and JEREMY du RIVAGE

The Beloit Relays were held at Strong Stadium this past Saturday, where our Buccaneers showed their skills in various track and field events against other schools. The men finished second out of five and the women finished third out of five. 

The Beloit Relays have a long history, and when asked to recount it, runner Cooper Rathmann’28 says “that this has been something that has been going on since the 40s or 50s, but it got discontinued for a bit.” The legend goes that Beloit Relays got brought back in 2011 by Scott Bierman, and that this is the 14th consecutive time that this event is happening. “It’s a small meet, but we’ve got some good competition.” says Cooper. There are also rumors that Beloit Relays could possibly be renamed after a memorial athlete, which Cooper fully endorses. 

When asked about the events to watch, Cooper told me that “our 4×4 is really good, and our throwers and vaulters are pretty fun to watch. We’ve got a good line up.” And he was right, too. Naomee Casey’26 excelled in the pole vault, winning the event with a height of 10.4 feet. Joshua Martinez Marte’27 was also a force to be reckoned with in hammer throw and discus, securing first for both events, and securing second place in shot put. Beloit’s men’s 4×100 team dominated with a time of 42.15 seconds, a new meet record.

Some of the volunteers were impressed with the Bucs’ performance, like Pat Covert’27, saying that “It’s interesting to see how acrobatic it is, I didn’t expect to see how there was so much technique behind it. It’s different from being a sprinter for sure.” 

Cooper also competed in the 3000m steeplechase, securing a third place. While it was a strong finish, Cooper admits that his race was a challenging one. “There was a Lake Forest guy, like, 10 meters in front of me the entirety of the race, but then I finally made my move at the very end.” He says. “I was in front of him for 300 [meters]. Then there was the last barrier, and I have never ran that fast and had to jump over something, so I stutter stepped and I had to use my hands to get over it.” Cooper fought hard to regain the lost ground, but ultimately lost by less than a second. He described the ending as “crazy.”

Beloit Relays also served as the Track and Field team’s senior day, where they celebrated all the accomplishments and contributions of the class of 2025. Thank you for all you have done for Beloit College!

Overall, the bucs earned their spots, leaving it all on the track. Their next meet is at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois.

Featured image: @shotsbymaka