CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – The Messiah men's track and field team competed in Day Two at the MAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships at DeSales University on Friday. The Falcons competed well throughout the day and have accumulated 57 team points through two days of competition. Messiah leads all 14 teams as Widener University (48) sits in second place and DeSales (40) sits in third place.
Read below for highlights of Friday's action:
3000m Steeplechase
The Falcons had a strong showing in the 3000m steeplechase, registering three top-ten finishes.
Josiah McCarthy had a team-best finish, crossing the line in 9:59.98, barely eclipsing the 10-minute threshold to earn a fifth-place finish.
Silas Buckwalter finished seventh overall, recording a time of 10:04.23 while
Josh Bauman recorded a time of 10:11.57, placing ninth overall.
Jonathan Wyrick (10:31.14),
Ray Truex (10:44.38), and
Jackson Hazen (10:55.13) all turned in quality performances as well.
100m
Zach Mayro competed in the 100m prelims on Friday, punching a ticket to Saturday's finals with a seventh-place finish. Mayro crossed the line in 11.34s as Lebanon Valley's Owen Buhr topped all competition in the preliminary stage with a time of 11.12s.
400m Hurdles
Derek Heisey qualified for tomorrow's 400m hurdles finals with a time of 57.92s. Heisey placed fifth overall out of 15 runners as
Adam Hostetler (1:02.43) also recorded a quality finish in the event.
800m
Beiler topped all competition in the preliminary stage of the 800m, earning a top time of 1:57.21. Alex Scheib also competed well, placing sixth overall, crossing the line in 1:58.48. Both runners qualified for tomorrow's finals.
Long Jump
Brendan Provan turned in a strong performance in the long jump, earning the Falcons three team points with a sixth-place finish. Provan earned a mark of 6.52m as DeSales' Xavier Phoenix earned the top mark of the field (6.79m).
High Jump
Heisey competed well in the high jump, placing third overall with a mark of 1.82m. Heisey competed in a competitive field of 12 jumpers, earning the Falcons six team points with his performance.
Discus Throw
Two Falcons competed in the discus throw as Hoy Lechthaler notched a team-best finish with a mark of 37.20m.
Christian Pilawski also represented Messiah in the event, achieving a mark of 36.50m.
Decathlon
Matthew Puleo,
Gavin Dunkerton, and
Ryan Thurber concluded the decathlon on Saturday. Puleo totaled 5092 points, earning an impressive fourth-place finish out of the nine competitors. Dunkerton placed fifth overall with 4940 points as Thurber accumulated 4408 points. Thurber performed well in the 1500m event, placing second overall with a time of 4:57.98. Puleo dominated the javelin throw, topping all competition with a mark of 52.23m. Dunkerton performed well in the event too, placing third overall with a mark of 42.23m.
What's Next
The Falcons wrap up the three-day MAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships tomorrow, May 7, at DeSales University, beginning at 12:00 p.m. Messiah, currently in first place, seeks its third outdoor conference championship in program history.
