The Bison men’s and women’s track and field teams had very successful weekends at the Bison Outdoor Classic. While the competition was not scored overall, several individuals on the team met with major accomplishment. 

Michaela Bracken ’22 stated “the Bison outdoor Classic was a huge meet with a ton of great competition. We saw some big teams and I think everyone gets excited for this meet every year. Really proud of how the team did!”

Among the men’s team particularly, several standout performances were offered. Quinn McCutcheon ’25 competed in the mile for the first time this spring and placed first out of the 19 competitors. Anthony Zamarra ’23, meanwhile, posted a score of 54-9.25 in the shotput which was good enough for second all-time in Bison history. Aiden Brewer ’22 competed in the decathlon and won the 400 and 1500, placed 11 in the 100, 13 in long jump, 14 in high jump and 16 in shot put.

Several other individuals had success in their respective competitions. Grayson Crockett ’25 finished seventh in the mile, Jack Calisi ’23 placed 11 in hammer throw, Brandon Foust ’25 finished 25 in the 100, and Christian Cadmus ’24 placed 11 in the 3000. Additionally several Bison finished well in the 400 with Rayven Sample ’24 placing 12th and Colby Belczyk ’25 placing 22nd. In the 200, Matthew Perello ’24 finished with a strong time of 22.36 which was good enough for 14 out of the 68 competitors. The Bison also were very strong in the discus where Braden Stryker ’25 finished 9, Daniel Guzman ’24 finished 19, the Bucknellian’s own Jaxon White ’23 finished 21 and Zamarra took 24. The Bison were also very strong in the relays with the 4×400 team of Sample, Thomas Matsumura ’22, Alex Simpson ’24 and Belczyk finishing fourth. 

On the women’s side, there were also several impressive performances. Ashlyn Ramos ’22 finished fourth in the 10k with the fourth best time in Bison history. Karly Forker ’22 finished 10 in the 1500 which was also the fourth best time in Bison history for the event. Gianna Macones ’22 also placed in the top five in the long jump with an 18-6. 

Karly Renn ’25 had another strong performance in the pole vault, tying a personal best and taking sixth place. Abby Kates ’24 and Hollie Walters ’24 both finished top five in the high jump and mile respectively. Mariana Engleby ’24 (6) and Margaret McLoughlin ’25 (10) both also finished top 10 in the mile. 

The Bison were also very strong in the relay. The 4×400 team of Bracken, Jessie Castellano ’23, Meghan Quinn ’24 and Bridget Lalonde ’23 took first with a time of 3:48.57. The 4×100 team of Lalonde, Quinn, Macones, and Karen Hull ’24 was impressive as they finished second to Buffalo by only 0.09 seconds. This time was also the second best time in program history. All eight of the members of relays also placed really well in their respective competitions. Lalonde earned a top 10 time in program history by placing third in the 400 with a 56.20. Castellano also finished top 10 in the 400 with a time of 57.36. Quinn finished fourth and seventh in the 100 and 200 respectively while Macones placed seventh in the 100. Bracken earned third place in the 400 hurdles with a time of 1:03.12.

“In the sport of track and field, when there is no cumulative team score, each individual has to focus on achieving individual goals. When each individual achieves their own personal goals, it makes the team, as a whole, stronger,” stated Brewer. “Then, when it does come time for a scored meet like the Patriot League Championships, we will be in a better position to succeed. Similar to any other team sport, for the team to be successful, each individual needs to play their part, and do their job to the best of their ability.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams will host the Bucknell Team Challenge this coming weekend. The competition will only be a single day on April 23.