UTICA, NY - The Utica University track and field team turned in great performances at their Utica Pioneer Spring Invitational home opener. Day one was on Friday, April 7 with day two following on Saturday. In team scoring, the men took first place, scoring 172.5 points, while the women took second with 123 points. 
 
The Pioneers started off day one with their share of top finishers in the javelin throw. Justin Swavely (Rome, NY/RFA) took first in the event, throwing a facility record and personal best 58.92m. That throw puts him tenth in the NCAA Division III rankings. In her javelin debut, Laura Meade took third with a toss of 29.94m which puts her sixth all-time in program history. Abbie Knaisch placed fifth in the event with a throw of 25.88m, which is also a personal best by more than five meters. 
 
On day two, the Pioneers got things started on the track with the 4x100m relay. The men's team of Zuriel Wright (Parlin, NJ/Sayreville War Memorial), Andrew Hadasz, Ethan Kain (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford), and Shane Tinney (Oriskany, NY/Oriskany) finished second with a season-best time of 43.01. In the men's 100m, Hadasz took second with a time of 11.11. He was also second in the 200m finishing at 22.60. In the women's 100m, the Pioneers took two of the top five spots. Mackenzie Mix was second running a time of 12.72, and Meade was fifth crossing the finish line at 13.03. Meade also won the women's 100m hurdles with a time of 16.58. Mix also took second place in the women's 200m, running 26.18.
 
The men's 400m hurdles trio of Jonathan Simmons (Broadalbin, NY/Broadalbin-Perth), Andrew Wieder (Clinton, NY/Clinton), and Tyjon Billinger (Amityville, NY/Amityville Memorial) took three of the top five spots. Simmons was second with a time of 59.34, Weider took fourth running a 1:01.38 and Billinger crossed the finish line in 1:02.78 which put him fifth. The women's 4x400m relay team took first place and did it in dominanting fashion. The relay team of Meade, Jade Dening, Janaiya Cruz-Bermudez and Noella Burlette got the baton around in 4:23.51, out-running second place by more than ten seconds. The men's 4x400m relay team of Kain, Michael Orioles (Hauppauge, NY/Hauppauge), Tristan Vargo (East Aurora, NY/Orchard Park), and Hayden Lohmann (West Winfield, NY/Mount Markham) took third with a time of 3:41.54. 
 
In the women's 1500m, Dening took second place running a time of 4:59.84, just less than a second off the first place finisher.
 
The Pioneers posted another good day in the throwing events. Utica went one-two in the men's discus throw, with Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) winning the event with a throw of 44.52m, and Nate Florian (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) was just behind him with a toss of 43.46m. Michael McNeil (Yarmouth, ME/Yarmouth) was fifth place, throwing 38.84m. On the women's side, Sarah Florian was fourth with a toss of 34.43m, and Gabrielle DeSanctis threw 31.04 which gave her fifth.
 
For the second week in a row, Hunter Logan (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) won the men's shot put with a season-best throw of 15.86m. Billie Mays III (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) was third in the event with a toss of 13.61m, and Swavely was fifth with a throw of 12.76m. For women's shot put, Duanena Graves threw a personal best 10.69m which gave her fourth place. In the men's hammer throw, Kelly took second place with a throw of 48.62m, and Swavely was fifth, throwing 43.36m. On the women's side, went three-four, with Emilia Costello throwing 40.43m putting her at third, and DeSanctis took fourth with a toss of 38.56m. 
 
In the jumping events, the Pioneers had their fair share of top finishers as well. Utica took the top three spots in the men's pole vault. Jack Rathburn () won the event clearing a height of 3.95m, Weider was second, clearing 3.50m and Brady Szekeres (Accord, NY/Rondout Valley) also cleared 3.50m which gave him third. Wright was second in the men's high jump with a leap of 1.95m, Kaiden McCaskill (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) cleared 1.80m to put him at fourth, and Blake Hobin (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) tied McCaskill to finish fifth.

In the long jump, the team took third place on both the men's and women's side. Wright was third for the men's team with a jump of 6.65m, and Nora Devitt was third for the women's team, jumping 5.09m. For the women's triple jump, the Pioneers took three of the top four spots. Devitt won the event with a jump of 10.61m, Meade jumped 10.42m which gave her second, and Zeniyah Gholson was fourth with a jump of 9.99m. On the men's side, Billinger was second, jumping 13.14m. 
 
Utica will travel to Westfield, MA next Saturday, April 15 for the Jerry Gravel Classic with the meet scheduled to begin at 10am.