GRANTHAM, Pa. - Days One and Two of the Messiah Multi/Invitational have concluded, with the decathlon and heptathlon wrapping up on the evening of the second day. Also contested were the 10,000m race and the discus throw.
 
Day 1 was a very successful first day for the men's decathletes. Gavin Dunkerton found himself in second place overall in the competition overall and leading the four Falcons multi athletes after racking up 3158 points on Day 1. Dunkerton began with a very solid season best 100m in the 100m of 11.84 and continued on with a personal best distance in the long jump of 5.87m. Dunkerton's shot put was one of his best ever throws with a mark of 11.83m, and he had a fantastic high jump competition with a huge personal record mark of 1.82m (5' 11.5"). To conclude an exhausting day 1, he covered the 400m distance in a time of 53.14, a strong finish to the day.
 
Josiah Provan found himself in second amongst Falcons after Day 1 of competition with a total score of 2837, strongly ahead of the pace of his personal record. Provan began with his fastest 100m in three years with a time of 11.91, then earned a new personal best mark in the long jump of 6.05m. Provan's shot put was close to his personal best with a mark of 10.75m, and he also turned in a solid high jump of 1.59m (5' 2.25"). A 400m covered in 55.19 concluded the day, a time just within a second of his personal record set at last year's MAC championships.
 
Liam McGovern was the third Falcon after Day 1 in seventh place overall with a total score of 2816 points, also well ahead of his personal record pace. McGovern ran very close to his new personal best in the 100m with a time of 12.16 in the opening event, then joined his teammates in setting a new personal best in the long jump with a mark of 5.95m. McGovern's shot put was a solid 11.33m, a mark similar to his performance at February's Indoor MAC Championships. McGovern also registered a huge personal best in the high jump, surpassing his old personal record of 1.60m (5' 3") with a clearance at 1.67m (5' 5.75"). McGovern capped off the day with a new personal record in the 400m of 56.65, setting personal bests in 3 of 5 events on Day 1.
 
Ethan Johnson competed through injury in the decathlon for the Falcons, having been limited in practice for some time and planning to compete in the meet at less than 100%. Johnson ran a strong time of 12.19 in the 100m, then took a single attempt at the long jump that was measured at 4.62m. Johnson set a new personal best in the shot put at 8.26m before clearing opening height in the high jump with a mark of 1.37m (4' 6"). Johnson ran a time of 77.17 in the 400m to conclude the day and earn points for his competition score, finishing Day 1 with a total of 1631.
 
Natalie Hamlen also performed strongly for the Falcons on Day 1 of the heptathlon as the Falcons' sole representative in the women's multi. Hamlen began her day with the 100m hurdles race, which she finished in a time of 18.74, a mark that stands roughly only half a second from her personal best. Hamlen cleared a height of 1.28m (4' 2.25") in the high jump before throwing a distance of 7.99m in the shot put. Hamlen finished the day very strongly with a new personal record in the 200m into a very strong headwind, finishing with a time of 29.86. Hamlen's Day 1 total stood at 1695 points.

Day 2 of the multi competition took place in colder, windier conditions in light to moderate rain, making it very difficult for the athletes to compete at their best. Nevertheless, both men and women multi athletes performed exceptionally on Day 2, with several personal bests being set and great overall scores being achieved.
 
Gavin Dunkerton maintained his spot as the top Falcon and second overall in the competition with a final score of 5612, his second best score overall in the decathlon that sits only behind his gold-medal winning performance at last year's MAC Championships. Dunkerton began the day with a solid season best time in the 110m hurdles of 17.53, then threw a new personal best by several centimeters in the discus with a mark of 32.68m. A very windy pole vault competition that made it very difficult to compete yielded a height of 3.40m, which Dunkerton followed up with a javelin throw of 41.33m. Dunkerton finished his competition with a time of 5:20.22 in the 1500m, finishing with an incredible sprint finish to overtake several competitors down the home stretch.
 
Liam McGovern ended up as the second Falcon and in fifth place overall in the competition with a new personal best score in the Decathlon of 5112 points, beating his previous personal best in the decathlon (4719) by nearly 400 points. McGovern opened his day with a 18.55 clocking in the 110m hurdles, only several tenths off his personal best, and also threw very close to his personal best in the discus throw with a mark of 35.12m. McGovern finished just one bar short of his personal best in the pole vault with a top height of 3.10m, then threw a distance of 39.60m in the javelin in very windy, difficult conditions. McGovern's 1500m time of 5:21.91 to finish off his competition was a personal best, capping off an incredible series of events for the sophomore.
 
Josiah Provan was the third Falcon in the finishing order in seventh place overall, ending up with a score of 4764 points, a score nearly identical to his score at Outdoor MACs 3 years ago. Provan finished with a time of 17.43 in the 110m hurdles, just several hundredths off his personal best, and ended up with a mark of 22.32m in the discus throw. Provan tied his personal best in the pole vault with a vault of 2.90m, a very impressive clearance given the rainy and windy conditions. Provan tossed the javelin a distance of 26.63m and closed out his competition with a 1500m time of 5:20.71, closing out a strong and gutsy competition.
 
Ethan Johnson battled through injury to finish the competition in the decathlon, finishing with a score of 2263 points. Johnson started but did not finish the 110m hurdles race, but managed to achieve a mark of 20.28m, a distance just shy of her personal best. Johnson cleared opening height in the pole vault with a mark of 1.80m (5' 10.75"), then threw the javelin a distance of 26.62m in his debut at the event. Johnson also stepped off the track in the 1500m shortly after it began, starting but not finishing to allow his competition and marks to stand.
 
Natalie Hamlen closed out her efforts in the heptathlon with an excellent day 2, setting personal best marks in two of three events despite the subpar conditions. Hamlen finished by far with a personal best Day 2 heptathlon score in those three events, racking up a total of 1576 points that nearly equalled her collective efforts through the four events of Day 1 (1695 points). Hamlen began Day 2 with a huge personal best of 19 centimeters in the long jump, finishing with a jump of 4.93m. Hamlen also set a personal record by roughly 7 tenths of a meter in the javelin throw, finishing with a mark of 24.73m. Hamlen's 800m time of 2:32.75 represented her best ever 800m after a heptathlon competition, made all the more impressive in light of the intensely windy conditions. Hamlen finished with a total heptathlon score of 3271 points, her second best total.
 
Apart from the multi, two other events also took place on Day 2. Jaclyn Steenstra threw a distance of 27.49m in the discus throw, while Carolina Hatch threw a top mark of 22.79 in the discus competition.
 
Hoyt Lechthaler unleashed a huge personal best throw of 43.59m on his final attempt to take first place in the discus competition. Lechthaler's throw vaulted him from 9th to 6th on the Messiah All-Time Outdoor Performance list. Ted Lechthaler also had an excellent competition, finishing very close to his personal best with a mark of 37.59m.
 
The Falcons also had one athlete compete in the 10000m. Jonathan Wyrick flew the banner for Messiah in the race, finishing sixth in a field of ten runners on a very windy day with a time of 34:39.49.
 
The rest of the action on the track and in the field will take place on Day 3 of the Messiah Invitational, held on Saturday April 13th. Stay tuned for more updates regarding action at Messiah's annual home track meet.

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