Pole-vaulter Matthew Fay ’19 took first place at the Youngstown State University National Invitational in a field of 16 participants. With a vault of 16-0 ¾, Fay now holds the third-best performance in the University’s history. During the two-day trip to Youngstown, Ohio on Feb. 5-6, the men’s track and field team had some impressive performances, while also having success at the Crusader Challenge at Susquehanna University on Feb. 6.

“The meet went well, we had a lot of fun competing and are looking forward to Leagues,”  Fay said. “I was really happy to see our hard work in practice translate into personal records.”

Other notable performances include Nick Lombardo ’18, who claimed the long jump title for the second time at the Invitational. Lombardo was victorious with a jump of 23-1 ¼ in a pool of 33 jumpers. He also finished second in the triple jump.

On the first day of the invitational, David Frering ’18 took second in the 1000-meter run, beating out 18 opponents. Jacob Ashkettle ’17 and Scott Gulizio ’19 were top-five finishers in the 500-meter dash. Luke Giugliano ’17 and Peter Murray ’16 finished top-five in the 5000-meter run, competing with 40 other runners. Olu Shoyoye ’16 earned fifth in the weight throw, while Mark Stafurik ’16 took sixth.

During the second and final day of the meet, Ross Pirnie ’17 scored an IC4A-qualifying time in the one-mile run and earned third place. In the 800-meter run, Gulizio and Jordan Jackson ’17 finished second and third, respectively. Grant Reynolds ’16 took second place in the 60-meter hurdles, while Thomas Matera ’18 and Peter Onusconich ’18 landed within the top-10 in the event.

“Fay was awesome in the pole vault and I liked how our 800-meter runners ran. Pirnie looked real good in the mile and Lombardo continues to impress in his jumps,” head coach Kevin Donner said.

The Bison also sent some athletes to the Crusader Challenge at Susquehanna University. James Capone ’19 finished in the top-half of finishers in the 200-meter dash, while Max Hubbauer ’19 ran the 800-meter run and Brian Babyak ’19 the one-mile, both finishing in the top-25 of their event.

The Orange and Blue will return Feb. 12 for their final home meet of the indoor season with the Bucknell Tune-Up. The team will travel to Boston University on Feb. 19 for the much-anticipated Patriot League Indoor Track & Field Championships.