TIFFIN, Ohio – The Wilmington College men's track and field team was back in action at Heidelberg University for day one of a two-day Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) Outdoor Track & Field Championships on Thursday. The day started bright and sunny but slowly turned to cold and rain, however that did not stop the Quaker squad from competing and putting themselves in fifth place with 19 points.

 

In the freezing rain, the junior duo of Evan Whitaker (9:39.19) and George Rickett (9:40.65) finished fifth and sixth respectively in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Directly after, freshman Dane Klosterman ran a hot time in the 400-meter hurdles to qualify for finals. Running events were capped off by a sixth-place finish by the 4-x-800-meter squad of Eric Reynolds, Rickett, Simon Heys and Aidan Henson.

 

Field events were limited on the day for the Quakers, as the bulk of the workload comes on day two. The throws squad managed to make the most of it and saw Blake Jamison and Nate Marcum finish third and sixth respectively in discus. Freshman Sam Eastes qualified for finals in the javelin, but came one spot shy from scoring.

 

"I liked the position the team put itself in today," Head Coach Ron Combs said. "We did not have a perfect day, however we made the most of the wet conditions and I am excited to see what happens on day two."