UTICA, NY - The Utica University men's track and field team will compete at two different meets this weekend. A majority of the team will travel to Cortland, NY for the Cortland Classic beginning on Friday, April 19 at 2 p.m. and continuing Saturday, April 20 at 9 a.m. A small group will head to the University of Albany for the Bobbi Palma Spring Classic on Friday, April 19 at 3 p.m.
 
Follow Along: Live results for the Cortland Classic will be available here, with live results for the Bobbi Palma Spring Classic posted here.  
 
Last Time Out: Last weekend at the Jerry Gravel Classic, the Pioneers took the win with 213 points. The highlight of the meet was by none other than Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool). Kelly broke his school record with a hammer throw of 53.11m and secured the win on the afternoon. Jack Rathburn (Clarendon Hills, IL/Westmont) took his first win of the season in the pole vault, vaulting 3.80m.  In the 3000m steeplechase, Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda Fultonville) took first with a personal best time of 9:28.63. Zachary Brown (Milford, NY/Milford Central) ran a personal best of 4:15.09 to take first place, and Anthony Leotta (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollows Hills West) took first place in the 5000m, running a personal best of 15:43.89.
 
Field Athlete Of The Week: Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) has been named Empire 8 Field Athlete of the Week as announced by the league on Monday. Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) broke his own school record in the hammer throw with a toss of 53.11m at the Jerry Gravel Classic which secured the victory this past weekend.
 
In The Polls: In the regional rankings that came out on Tuesday, April 19, the men's team is currently in sixth place with 378.18 points. This is the same spot the team was in last week, and they remain the highest ranked Empire 8 team. Some of the team's top point scorers include Andy Hadasz (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) (89.29), Justin Swavely (Rome, NY/RFA) (47.42), Hunter Logan (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) (39.21), Kaiden McCaskill (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) (33.30), and Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda Fultonville) (30.13). 
 
In the Top 50: So far this season, the Pioneers currently have five athletes inside the top 50 in the NCAA Division III rankings. In the 3000m steeplechase, Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda Fultonville) is 46th, with 9:28.63 that he ran at the Jerry Gravel Classic last Saturday. Also ranked 46th is Kaiden McCaskill (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) in the high jump, thanks to his 1.96m jump at Hamilton, which was in his first meet of the season. Hunter Logan (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) is now up to 22nd in the shot put, with a 15.96m throw at Westfield last Saturday. Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) made his way into the top-50 in the hammer throw with his school record-breaking 53.11m toss which puts him at 49th. Justin Swavely (Rome, NY/RFA) is 5th in the javelin throw with his school record throw of 63.54m.
 
Cementing Their Names: After multiple big performances at the Jerry Gravel Classic the Pioneers rearranged the top ten all-time lists for different events. In the 5000m, Anthony Leotta (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollows Hills West) ran his way to fourth place. Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda Fultonville) is now second all-time in the 3000m steeplechase. In the hammer throw, Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) beat his own school record and improved his standing at number one. Also in hammer throw, Justin Swavely (Rome, NY/RFA) threw his way to third, and Spencer Borghardt (Melville, NY/St.Anthony's) made his way up to fourth.
 
Speedin': In the Empire 8 standings, Andy Hadasz (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) is leading the conference in three different events. Hadasz has the top spot in the 100m with a 10.76 and is the only runner to go sub 11 seconds in the conference. In the 200m, he is number one with his time of 21.72 and is the only sub 22 runner in the Empire 8. Hadasz is also part of the conference-leading 4x100m squad along with Shane Tinney (Oriskany, NY/Oriskany), Ethan Kain (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford), and Nolan Flynn (Bethel, CT/Bethel) with their time of 42.63, which is more than a two second lead on second place.
 
Swiss Army Knife: In his first collegiate outdoor season, Connor Dean (Taberg, Ny/Camden) has shown his versatility in the sprinting and jumping events and has multiple top-five spots in conference standings. In the 100m, Dean's 11.18 has him in fifth, and is also just outside in the 200m at sixth with a 23.03. In the 400m, the freshman is currently ranked second with a 50.97. He is also part of the 4x400m squad along with Evan Smith (Baldwinsville, NY/Baker), Tristan Vargo (East Aurora, NY/Orchard Park), and Andrew Weider who ran a time of 3:28.03 and is ranked second. Dean also has his name in the top-five for all three jumping events. He is tied for fourth place in the high jump (1.79m), second in long jump (6.48m), and fourth in triple jump (12.55m). 
 
Moonshots: So far this season, Justin Swavely (Rome, NY/RFA) has had a phenomenal showing for the Pioneers. In the Empire 8 standings, Swavley leads the javelin throw with his mark of 63.54m, which is almost a 20 meter lead on second place. In the hammer throw, Swavely's top-throw of 48.98m has him ranked third, just behind teammate Antwan Kelly (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) in second place at 53.11m. In shot put, Swavely has the fourth spot with a 13.27m throw. Teammate Hunter Logan (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) is in first (15.96m), with Billie Mays III (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) in second (14.28m). 

Up Next: The team will travel to Troy, NY for the RPI Capital District Classic on Friday, April 26 with a start time yet to be determined.