The Bison track and field teams hosted the Bison Outdoor Classic at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium from April 14-15. The men were able to place third in a field of 18 teams, while the women took home the gold, beating out 19 other teams.

On April 14, Colleen Buckley ’19 and Kate Scott ’17 started the meet by breaking program records. Scott shattered a 30-year-old record in the 10,000-meter run, completing the race in 34:46.48. Buckley finished her 5,000-meter run in 16:29.83, breaking the record of teammate Christine Bendzinski ’18 from earlier this season. Bendzinski continued the milestones, winning the 1,500-meter run in 4:20.13. Meg Sangimino ’17 won the javelin with a throw of 158-04. Many Bison athletes posted ECAC qualifying stats.

“I went into the race wanting to run fast and be competitive, but I knew there were some really talented girls in the race who would be looking to PR for themselves. Through the last 800 meters I could hear all my friends and my mom and I realized that, no matter how much I was hurting, if there was a chance to get the win I was going to take it,” Buckley said.

Meanwhile, day one events saw a slew of IC4A qualifying times for the men. Drew Dorflinger ’20 broke into the top-10 list for the 5,000-meter run while qualifying, posting a time of 14:18.15. Luke Giugliano ’17 completed the 10,000-meter run in 29:52.01. Ross Pirnie ’17 garnered a IC4A spot in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 9:20.53 and Terry Hall ’19 qualified with the javelin, throwing 193-09.

Success continued on April 15 when seven women posted ECAC qualifying statistics. Ella Schultz ’20 was runner-up in the shot put with a heave of 45-10 and three quarters. Kaitlin Salisbury ’20 ran her 200-meter dash in a time of 25.04, the eighth fastest in program history. Laura Papili ’17 became the sixth fastest 400-meter hurdler in school history with a time of 1:02.70. Salisbury, Allison Sharkey ’17, Carli Lucke ’18, and Carly Reiner ’17 competed in the 4×100-meter relay event and became the fourth fastest in both the race and Bison program history with a time of 47.33.

Nicholas Lombardo ’18 led the second day for the men, winning the long jump with a leap of 23-9 and a half. April 15 saw even more IC4A qualifying times. Scott Gulizio ’19, Jordan Jackson ’17, and Sean Conway ’20 all qualified in the 800-meter run. Matthew Fay ’19 became the second best pole vaulter in program history with a vault of 16-2 and three quarters, securing third place in the event. William Melchionni ’19 and Jacob Ashkettle ’17 both qualified in the 400-meter dash, while Joseph Breen ’17 qualified in the shot put with a throw of 54-0. Melchionni also qualified for the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.12. The men’s 4×100-meter relay, composed of Melchionni, Bobby Gablein ’20, Ryquan Harris ’20, and Jeffrey Brown ’20, also qualified with a time of 42.14, garnering them fourth place.

“It was a completely electric meet to be a part of. Running under the lights in your home stadium is such a cool and really such an unforgettable experience. I’m really looking forward to seeing what our team is capable of through the end of the season,” Buckley said.

The Bison track and field team will be back in action again at home at the Bucknell Team Challenge on April 22.