Outdoor Track & Field Posts School Record 28 Top 10 Finishes In Placing Fifth, Eighth At Fitchburg State Jim Sheehan Invitational
MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME OUTDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Fitchburg State Jim Sheehan Invitational
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Elliot Field, Fitchburg, Mass.
FITCHBURG, Mass. -- The Massachusetts Maritime outdoor track & field team posted a school-record total of 28 top 10 finishes today at the Fitchburg State Jim Sheehan Invitational, as the Buccaneer men finished fifth among 12 teams competing in the event while the women’s squad scored 20 points with four competitors to finish eighth among 10 entrants in the field.
Freshman Liz Leonardi (Sandwich, Mass.) recorded the top finish of the day for Massachusetts Maritime, as she placed first in the 3,000 meter steeple chase with a time of 14:44.48. Senior Rory O’Donnell (Somerset, Mass.) and junior Chris Sullo (Canton, Mass.) each registered second place performances for the Buccaneers in the triple jump (13.78 meters) and high jump (1.85 meters), respectively, while sophomore Gabriel Bermudez (Guaynabo, P.R.) and freshman Robert Gratzer (Pembroke, Mass.) each notched third place finishes in the javelin (46.41 meters) and discus (39.15 meters), respectively.
Senior Joseph Choiniere (Mansfield, Mass.) posted three top nine finishes by placing fourth in the 100 meters (12.18), seventh in the long jump (5.79 meters) and ninth in the 200 meters (24.29), while juniors James Hutchinson (Pembroke, Mass.) and Chris Dintino (Mashpee, Mass.) finished fourth in the javelin (46.12 meters) and hammer throw (36.79 meters), respectively. Sophomore Evan Balderelli (Brimfield, Mass.) placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 110 meter hurdles (19.03) and 400 meter hurdles (1:02.00) for Massachusetts Maritime, which also received a fifth place finish in the triple jump (12.21 meters) from Sullo.
Sophomore Laura Spalt (Harwichport, Mass.) recorded a pair of top nine finishes by placing fourth in the 100 meter hurdles (18.79) and ninth in the high jump (1.33 meters) for the Buccaneers, who also received a fifth place performance in the javelin (32.48 meters) from senior Meredith Hall (Duxbury, Mass.). Gratzer and O’Donnell added seventh place finishes in the shot put (12.62 meters) and high jump (1.80 meters), while senior Jason McWhirter (Melvin Village, N.H.) and sophomore Rob Bergonzi (Quincy, Mass.) placed seventh and eighth in the 3,000 meter steeple chase with respective times of 12:00.88 and 12:16.92. Sophomore Thomas Dindy (Marshfield, Mass.), freshman Ted Mello (Acushnet, Mass.) and senior Jon White (Lynnfield, Mass.) joined Choiniere in placing eighth, ninth and 10th in the long jump with respective marks of 5.64, 5.53 and 5.48 meters, while senior Anthony Venterosa (Stoughton, Mass.) and sophomore Chris Flynn (Orange, Conn.) added 10th place performances in the 400 meters (53.47) and discus (32.75 meters), respectively.
The Buccaneer 4 X 400 relay of Venterosa, White, Bermudez and O’Donnell finished second with a time of 3:38.85, while the 4 X 100 squad of Dindy, Mello, sophomore Josh Lamm (North Andover, Mass.) and freshman Joseph Salvatore (Weymouth, Mass.) placed third with a time of 48.50. The tandem of McWhirter, freshman Kevin Griffin (Stoneham, Mass.) and seniors Matt Nadell (Whitman, Mass.) and Brian Reske (Duxbury, Mass.) added a fifth place performance in the 4 X 800 relay with a time of 9:23.69.
Massachusetts Maritime returns to action next Saturday morning by heading to North Dartmouth, Mass. to participate in the UMass Dartmouth Corsair Invitational that begins at 11:00 a.m.