Men's Track Leading National Championship
The University of Findlay men and women's outdoor track and field teams wrapped up the second day of competition at the 2015 NCAA Division II National Championship on May 22 in Allendale, Mich. The Oilers men's team continues to lead the championship and have racked up 37 points thus far while the women are 17th with six points.
The men were led by senior Demorrio Leggett, who claimed the silver in the triple jump. Leggett broke a 20-year old school record with a mark of 51'06.25 in the event to claim runner-up status. He broke Xiaojun Zhang's mark of 50'05.25, which was set during the 1995 campaign.
Junior Michael Bruce finished right behind Leggett in the triple jump as he earned third place honors with a mark of 51'00.25. Both athletes earned All-American accolades for their performance in the triple jump. Bruce also captured All-American honors in the long jump yesterday with a fourth place finish.
Senior Justin Welch, who yesterday won a national championship in the hammer throw, finished seventh in the discus to earn All-American honors in the event. He secured his seventh place finish with a toss of 179'05.
The Oilers 4x400-meter relay team of senior Dillon Webster and sophomores Sergi Torres, Maliik Briggs and Derek Collins finished 14th in the preliminary round with a time of 3:24.47. Webster also recorded a 17th place finish in the preliminary round of the 800-meter run at 1:52.73.
On the women's side, junior Lydia Guagenti earned All-American honors with a fourth place finish in the high jump. Guagenti earned fourth place with a leap of 5'08.
Senior Pam Showman was 11th in the heptathlon with a score of 5,009 while junior Samantha Grippe finished 21st in the preliminary round of the 800-meter dash after crossing the finish line in 2:15.64.
The Oilers will wrap up the championship event tomorrow. The men's squad has a 16-point lead in the standings heading into the final day. Southern Indiana is in second place with 21 points while Ashland is in third with 19.
The men's team, looking to solidify their hold on the top spot at the championship event, will have three individuals competing in the shot put. Senior Taylor Miller headlines the trio as he is the top-ranked competitor in the event. Fellow senior Mathieu Marcoccia has the third best mark and is coming off of a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Championship while sophomore Ben Hahler is seeded ninth.
On the women's side, senior Kendra Averesch will take part in the shot put.