WILLIAMSTOWN, MA - The Utica University men's track and field team went back out to Williamstown, Massachusetts, to compete in the AARTFC Regional Championships over the past two days. During the multi-day event, the Pioneers saw a plethora of top performers, including a few program records and some high-ranking finishes.
 
Day One - Wednesday, May 14th
 
Cade Tavares (Endicott, NY/Union-Endicott) got the two-day event started with his participation in the 110m hurdles. The freshman turned in a great performance during his first AARTFC outdoor event, tying his personal record with a 15.62.
 
Later in the evening, the duo of Tobias Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham Central) and Bennett Melita (Johnstown, NY/Fonda Fultonville) entered into the 3000m steeplechase. The pair of Pioneer racers fared well in the competition, with Jeralds notching a finish of 9:59.22, and Melita grabbing a time of 9:04.76. Melita's mark surpassed his previous school record time, establishing a new top time while shooting the sophomore to a third-place finish.
 
Around 7:00, the Pioneers' 4x400 unit took to the track, with the quartet of Nolan Flynn (Bethel, CT/Bethel), Evan Smith (Baldwinsville, NY/Baker), Tristan Vargo (East Aurora, NY/Orchard Park), and a returning Tavares snatching a top-ten time of 3:21.26. The group grabbed 10th place in the first team event of the meet for the orange and blue.
 
Ellis Urgent (Cornwall, NY/Cornwall Central) rounded out the Wednesday entries for Utica, as the freshman sensation looked to build upon his Empire 8 Long Jump Championship with another solid leap, this time on the regional stage. Urgent showed out during the competition, achieving a third-place finish in his first AARTFC outdoor event. His long leap of 7.16m cracked the top three among a competitive field of 24 jumpers.
 
Day Two - Thursday, May 15th
 
Leading off day two for the Pioneers was Eddy Corporan (Poughkeepsie, NY/Roy C Ketcham), who competed in the 800m. The sophomore logged a time of 1:57.77 to begin a packed Thursday slate for the team.
 
Corporan went right back to work shortly after, joining the Pioneers' 4x800m team alongside Forest Martin (Poland, NY/Poland Central), Tobias Jeralds (Canaan, NY/Chatham Central), and Anthony Leotta (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollows Hills West). The group managed yet another top 10 finish for the Pioneer relay teams, with the four speedsters producing a final time of 7:58.77. That mark was good enough to grab eighth place for the relay unit.
 
The team took on many events in the field during Thursday's slate, starting off with Empire 8 High Jump Champion Louis Pinto (Clinton, NY/Clinton). The former Clinton Comet notched a jump of 1.92m, grabbing seventh place in the final standings.
 
Pioneer hammer trio Spencer Borghardt (Melville, NY/St.Anthony's), Josh Talbot, and Blake Gannon (Schenectady, NY/Mohonasen) achieved yet another array of solid results. The freshman Gannon got a 12th-place finish thanks to a long toss of 51.11m. Meanwhile, the junior duo of Talbot and Borghardt finished top five, with the former achieving fifth and the latter logging a third-place finish. Talbot's longest toss was 55.10m, while Borghardt recorded a long of 57.02, mere millimeters from a first-place finish as the AARTFC Champion posted a 57.59m throw.
 
Lastly, Hunter Logan (Fort Plain, NY/Herkimer College) held it down in the shot put, finishing out his final AARTFC run with a third-place ranking. Logan's longest launch landed at a distance of 16.07m, with the senior capping off a great day of regional championship competition for Utica.
 
The Pioneers captured 12th place as a team thanks to their 31 total team points. This allowed the program to break into the upper ranks among a field of 39 teams that earned points at the event.