Men’s Track & Field Victorious at Penmen Relays; Summa Hits NCAA Mark at Conn. College
MANCHESTER, N.H. (April 16, 2022) -- The Franklin Pierce University men's track & field team was busy this weekend, with action at multiple locations. On Friday, select distance runners took part in the Silfen Invitational, hosted by Connecticut College, and sophomore Wondu Summa (Burlington, Vt.) met the NCAA Championships qualifying standard in the 10k, with a school-record run. On Saturday, the Ravens were victorious at the Penmen Relays, hosted by Southern New Hampshire, highlighted by a school-record performance from the 4x100-meter relay team.
Franklin Pierce had six athletes in action at Connecticut College, and it was Summa who shone the brightest. His fifth-place run of 30:31 in the 10,000 meters lowered his personal best by nearly two minutes, bettered the school record by more than 30 seconds, and met his first career NCAA Championships qualifying standard in the process. The time should put him just outside the top 50 in the country, and leads the Northeast-10 Conference by nearly 20 seconds.
Behind Summa in the 10k, graduate student Sebastien Vicary (Ulceby, United Kingdom) took 13th (31:26) and sophomore Ryan Outerbridge (Paget, Bermuda) was 18th (32:30). In the 800 meters, sophomore Ryan Walker (Seabrook, N.H.) finished seventh in 1:55.70, while fellow sophomore Evan McNeice (Wethersfield, Conn.) was 26th in 1:57.87. Senior Cody Tallent (Bellows Falls, Vt.) got through the 3000 meters of the steeplechase in 9:50, to take fifth, with a time which should stand second in the NE10.
On Saturday at SNHU, the Ravens were able to post a two-point victory at the Penmen Relays, as they edged Eastern Connecticut State by a 118-116 margin. Plymouth State followed in third with 102 points.
Franklin Pierce had five point-scoring finishes in the sprints alone. In the 100-meter dash, it was a first-place finish by sophomore Stephen Harris (Billerica, Mass.) in 10.95 seconds, while sophomore Nathan Rinaldi (Bristol, Conn.) was fourth in 11.23 seconds and sophomore Angel Gonzalez (North Andover, Mass.) was sixth in 11.47 seconds. In the 200-meter dash, it was a one-two for the Birds, as senior Devin Jones (Manchester, N.H.) ran a 22.10 and Rinaldi turned in a 22.63.
On the distance front, McNeice was back in action on Saturday, with a 1:57.11 run in the 800 meters to finish third. In the mile, it was fifth place for senior Riley Fenoff (Danville, Vt.) in 4:37.42, while freshman Logan Mihelich (Northwood, N.H.) was 10th in 4:50.98. In the steeplechase, sophomore Ntakirutimana Janvier (Burlington, Vt.) put together a winning time of 10:23, which should be good for third in the NE10, behind Tallent.
Franklin Pierce was victorious in the 4x100-meter relay with a school-record run. A lineup of senior Devin Jones (Manchester, N.H.), Harris, senior Ethan Pezzullo (Bristol, R.I.) and Rinaldi got the baton around the track in 41.95 seconds, which should move the Ravens to second in the NE10.
As for the field events, sophomore Connor Nordmann (Bethel, Conn.) got up and over 3.95 meters in the pole vault to finish third, and then the Ravens piled up points in the throwing events.
Three scored in the shot put for Franklin Pierce, led by an event win from junior Connor Everidge (Baldwinville, Mass.) at a season-best 15.14 meters, while sophomore Sal Lando (Sterling, Mass.) followed in fifth (14.10m) and senior Armani Mette (Randolph, Mass.) took eighth (12.64m). Everidge in third, at 40.67 meters, and Lando in fourth, at 40.66 meters, both scored in the discus as well, and they were joined by senior Croix Albee (Trenton, Maine) in eighth, at 39.07 meters. Everidge's mark should move him into the top five in the NE10 in the event.
Everidge (45.38m) and Lando (43.92m) made it three scoring performances apiece, as they took fifth and seventh in the hammer, respectively. Sophomore Brogan Bonsaint (Somersworth, N.H.) finished second in the javelin (53.62m).
The Ravens will be back in action next Saturday, April 23, at the Sean Collier Invitational, hosted by MIT in Cambridge, Mass.