Track and Field Set for Mason Spring Invitational

Track and Field Hosts Bison Opener on Friday and Saturday

Track and Field Set for Mason Spring Invitational

4/8/2016 10:50:00 AM | Women's Track and Field

By: TBD

LEWISBURG, Pa. – After turning in quality results at the Colonial Relays, the Bucknell track and field teams return to action to compete at the Mason Spring Invitational. The meet, hosted by George Mason, will be held on Saturday, beginning with field events at 10 a.m.

"We have never been to the Mason Spring Invitational," says head coach Kevin Donner. "However, the extra weekend in April this year has given us the opporunity. We are holding a few athletes out who will have an extended season which gives a few extra athletes a chance to travel and compete. The weather looks rough but we must callous ourselves and still be ready to compete."

Bucknell will compete in a loaded field Saturday, including Patriot League schools American, Holy Cross and Navy. The meet begins with the women's hammer throw and concludes at 9:10 p.m. with the men's 5,000-meter event.

The Bucknell women took second out of 44 schools in last weekend's Colonial Relays, while earning four new ECAC qualifiers.

Jess Bridle broke the school record in the 400-meter dash, completely the event in 54.92. The time broke the previous mark set by Jennifer Zymet (54.98) in 2013 and meets the ECAC standard.

Christine Bendzinski and Sarah Chandler both qualified for the ECAC Championships in the 5,000, while the 4x800 relay squad also qualified for the postseason meet.

On the men's side, the team finished in the top three for the sixth-straight season. Nicholas Lombardo led the way with his first-place finish in the long jump. His leap of 23-4 ½ is top mark in the Patriot League thus far and qualifies him for the IC4A Championships.

Ross Pirnie (3,000 steeplechase), Peter Murray (10,000) and Zach Williams (3,000 steeplechase) also qualified for IC4As in their respective events.

Following Saturday's meet, the Bison will compete in their first home event of the outdoor season when they host the Bison Outdoor Classic on April 16-17.