(CEDARVILLE, Ohio) – Seniors Simon Heys and Noah Tobin competed over the last two days in St. Louis, Missouri, but the remainder of the Wilmington College men's outdoor track & field team competed today at the Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open. The meet was hosted by Cedarville University. Wilmington used 60 points from their throwers to grab a third-place finish with 75 points.
The highlight of the day came in the Hammer Throw, where last year's All-Americans in the event, Nathen Borgan and Jarrett Durr finished first and second. Fresh off All-American performances in the Weight Throw during indoor season, Borgan and Durr were ready for the transition to outdoor.
Borgan set a personal best with a mark of 60.02m on his first throw to best Durr by over a meter and score 10 points. Durr used a throw of 58.80m on his second to last attempt to claim second place and eight points. This wasn't all though, as Wilmington finished 1-4 in the event, as Justin Shuga and Nate Marcum rounded out the Quakers incredible 29-point team effort. Shuga set a new personal best mark of 52.52m on his first throw for six points, while Marcum tossed it 50.46m on his third throw for five points.
The Quakers also had three scorers in the Shot Put as Shuga scored six points in third place, Mike Soltis grabbed five points in fourth place and Durr finished the 14-point performance in sixth place with three points. Shuga used a huge mark of 14.60m on his final attempt for third, while Soltis also broke the 14-meter mark on his last throw at 14.44m for fourth place. Durr rounded out the Quakers in sixth at 13.20m in his first throw.
Wilmington placed two in the Discus Throw as well, with Shuga and Durr finishing up huge days with fourth and fifth place finishes, respectively. Shuga used a personal best 45.26m mark on his third throw for five points and fourth place, while Durr took advantage of his second to last throw. He posted a toss of 43.56m for four points and fifth place. Shuga finished the day with a team-high 17 total points, while Durr finished behind him with 15. The other Quaker in double-digits was Borgan with 10.
This wasn't it for the throws though as Joel O'Brien opened his season with a personal best 44.36m toss in his first throw for third place and eight points.
Setting out to defend his outdoor High Jump national title today was Brady Vilvens. He finished third in the event with a clearance of 1.90m for six points. Making his Quakers debut after competing for the men's basketball team was Carson Miles. Miles also competed in the High Jump and finished in sixth place with a clearance of 1.85m on his second attempt for three points. He tied with Grayson Ring and Jahi McDonald with the 1.85m height, but McDonald finished seventh as he cleared it on his third try and Ring took fifth after clearing on his first jump.
The other two scorers for Wilmington were Tate Yoder in the 5000 Meter Run and Dane Klosterman in the 400 Meter Dash. Yoder finished with a time of 15:55.56 for four points while Klosterman finished the 400 in 51.78 seconds for seventh place and two points. Klosterman also competed in the 200 Meter Dash and set a personal best time of 23.01 seconds.
What's Up Next
The Quakers compete next Saturday, April 6th in the Landon Bond Classic hosted by Berea College in Berea, Kentucky. The meet is scheduled to begin at 10:00 A.M.
