Track and Field Set to Host Bison Outdoor Classic on Saturday and Sunday

4/15/2016 2:07:00 PM | Women's Track and Field

By: TBD

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell track and field program will hold its largest event of the season when it hosts athletes from 89 teams for the Bison Outdoor Classic Saturday and Sunday at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. The Bison will host schools from NCAA Division I, II, III and Canada, along with track/running clubs at the meet.

The meet will begin at 10 a.m. Saturday with field events and wraps up with the men's 10,000-meter run under the lights at 10:20 p.m. Sunday opens with the pole vault at 11 a.m. and concludes with the men's 4x400 relay at 5:25 p.m.

“The Bison Outdoor Classic is one of the best and most competitive meets on the East Coast,” says head coach Kevin Donner. “Teams come from all over the East and Midwest and even Canada to compete in this atmosphere. The distance carnival on Saturday night is as competitive as ever and of course it is great to be at home three of the next four weekends. Traditionally, most of the qualifying marks that we get come from our two regular season home meets. It looks like the weather will cooperate as well.”

The meet features some of the top teams in their respective regions. On the men's side, Monmouth and Penn State join Bucknell with a top-10 ranking in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Cornell and Army West Point are listed third and fourth, respectively, in the Northeast Region, while ACC-school Virginia Tech is ranked fifth in the Southeast Region. Grand Valley State is listed third in the NCAA Division II National rankings.

The field will be loaded on the women's side, as Penn State is the top team out of the Mid-Atlantic Region, while Cornell is listed second in the Northeast Region. Other regionally-ranked teams include Army West Point, Temple and Virginia Tech. Grand Valley State ranks fourth in the NCAA Division II National rankings.

Bucknell turned in quality results at last year's Bison Outdoor Classic. On the men's side, Peter Murray (5,000), Grant Reynolds (110 hurdles), Zach Williams (3,000 steeplechase), Elijah Kay (high jump), Nicholas Lombardo (long jump), Joseph Breen (shot put) and Pat Mulrooney (javelin) each posted top eight finishes in their respective events.

Jess Bridle (400), Grace Loh (1,500), Kate Scott (5,000), Jen Silvestri (400 hurdles), Efe Agege (triple jump), Abigail Brundage (shot put), Sophia Nnadi (discus, hammer), Dayna Simone (javelin) and Meg Sangimino (javelin) all earned top eight finishes on the women's side.

Bucknell will be home three of the next four weekends, including the Patriot League Outdoor Championships on May 6-7.