Men’s Outdoor Track shines in home meet

By Matt Cain

Contributor

The Owls Men’s Outdoor Track & Field team opened up their first home meet with a strong showing at the Wilton Wright Invitational, finishing second overall behind Central Connecticut, who posted 170.5 points. The Owls were led by standout performances across both track and field events, with multiple first-place finishes and personal records set throughout the day.

The distance squad delivered some of the day’s most impressive results. Luca Cazzaniga, a senior, headlined with a personal best in the 10,000-meter run, capturing first place in 32:21.16. Teammate Dom Tartarelli, a sophomore, followed with a solid fourth place finish at 34:00.15. In the 5000-meter, Joseph Lamburn, a freshman, added another victory for the Owls, clocking a personal best of 15:29.50. Matt Speight, a senior, crossed fifth in 15:53.36 and Ryan Gagne, a junior, also set a new personal best, finishing 13th in 16:16.83.

In the 1500-meter run, Evan McNeice, a senior, placed fourth with a time of 4:15.03. The 800-meter race saw Nate Huebner, a junior, take third in 2:00.98, while Dylan Horkey, a sophomore, finished eighth at 2:06.68.

The sprint and hurdle events featured strong efforts from the Owls. In the 400-meter, Nolan Freeman, a junior, set a new personal best, taking third in 50.00. Marquis Ward, a freshman and Matt Kilmer, a sophomore, followed closely behind in fifth (51.04) and sixth (51.14), respectively. Noah Conrod, a junior, placed ninth at 51.72, while Ty Phelan, a junior (52.69) and Philip DePoutot, a freshman, (53.61) rounded out the group in 16th and 20th.

Freshman Joe Nham placed fourth in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.58 and Mekkhi Adkins secured fourth in the 400-meter hurdles, finishing in 59.71.

In the 100-meter dash, Lucas León, a freshman, ran an 11.82 for 25th place, and Raysean Emrie, a sophomore, finished 36th at 12.05.

Field events were a stronghold for the university. Cameron Belton, a senior, led the way with a win in the shot put, throwing 16.07 meters (52-08.75). Fellow senior Natanael Barbosa Torres was close behind in second at 15.73m (51-07.25) and Leo Jolly, a sophomore, placed fourth at 15.10m (49-06.50).

Belton also finished fourth in the discus with a throw of 44.31m (145-04), while Barbosa Torres added a seventh place finish at 39.64m (130-00).

In the javelin, sophomores Michael Von Ehr led the Owls with a fourth-place finish (47.44m / 155-07) and Drew Schwartz followed in eighth (43.44m / 142-06).

Lawrence Hicks, a freshman, cleared a season-best 1.95 meters to win the high jump, adding another victory for the Owls. JC Joyner, a freshman, placed 13th in the long jump (6.15m / 20-02.25) and claimed third in the triple jump with a mark of 12.88m (42-03.25).

With a mix of event wins, podium finishes and personal bests, the Owls demonstrated depth and momentum as they continued their outdoor season.