Men's T&F Grabs Third at Wilton Wright Invitational

Saturday, April 6

Jess Dow Field / New Haven, CT

10 a.m.

Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics

Southern Connecticut State University Wilton Wright Invitational

Men's T&F Grabs Third at Wilton Wright Invitational

4/8/2024 10:58:00 AM | Men's Track and Field

Mahario and Brown headline single-day meet

By: Cameron McClarren

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — Nine Pioneers earned medal placements as the Sacred Heart University men's track & field team concluded competition at the Wilton Wright Invitational hosted by Southern Connecticut State University on Saturday. SHU concluded the meet with a third-place team finish scoring 91.5 points.

Rafael Mahario once again stole the show for the Pioneers with two medals during the day. The Meriden, Conn., native grabbed his third medal of the season in the men's 200m dash, taking home his first gold in the event this year with a time of 21.89 seconds before aiding SHU to a silver medal in the 4x100m relay for a second-consecutive medal placement. Coupled with Mahario's gold medal in the 200m, first-year Colin Brown took third place in the event with a time of 22.16 seconds for his first individual medal in his collegiate career. Brown also helped anchor the 4x100m relay to a silver medal to conclude his day on the track.

Elsewhere on the track, the Pios earned top-10 performances in the 400m dash as Connor Meikle grabbed fourth while Dominic Miele took 10^th. In the 800m, Brendan Lyles narrowly missed out on setting a new personal-best time, grabbing sixth place with a time of 2:00.96. Michael Mason grabbed SHU's remaining top-10 placement before hurdles with a sixth place finish in the 1500m.

SHU had remarkable placements in the hurdles as Alexander Rotondi claimed a bronze medal in the 400m hurdles while Navon Fry claimed 10^th in the event. In the 110m hurdles, Kevin Dorio led the way for a quartet of first-year Pios in the event, finishing in sixth while Owen Giordano claimed eighth to conclude the top-10 placers in the event.

In relays, the quartet of Joshua Sanders, Benjamin Healy, Mahario and Brown claimed second in the 4x100m relay as part of a second-consecutive medal placement for the group. In the 4x400m relay, the group of Jacob Strain, Lyles, Miele, and Rotondi claimed second as SHU claimed five podium placements on the track.

In Jumps, the Pios grabbed strong performances headlined by Healy's fourth-place finish in the pole vault, clearing 3.80m on his fourth jump. Kelvin Paulino-Acosta and Ryan McCarthy also placed in the top-10 in the event with Paulino-Acosta scoring in seventh. Jeremy Knobel claimed eighth in the high jump with a clearance of 1.65m while Hunter Harris and Brian Casey grabbed ninth and 10^th, respectively.

In throws, Daniel Blatman grabbed SHU's lone medal in the field with a third place finish in the hammer throw, setting a mark of 49.37m on his fourth throw to claim the bronze medal. SHU had five placements in the men's discus to score 11 points in the event as Liam Tharin took top honors with a mark of 40.27m on his third throw. Aidan Glennon had a strong outing as well in the shot put, setting a mark of 13.66m on his final throw to claim fifth in the event.

Up Next:
Sacred Heart will be in action across the northeast with a three-meet weekend participating in the Larry Ellis Invitational (Princeton), Silfen Invitational Heptathlon & Decathlon (Connecticut College) and Merrimack College Alumni Classic. More information can be found at sacredheartpioneers.com.