Men's Track and Field Hosts Bison Open, Travels to Penn State

Saturday, January 19

Lewisburg, Pa.

10 a.m.

Bucknell University

Gulden Invitational

Men's Track and Field Hosts Bison Open, Travels to Penn State

1/23/2019 10:19:00 AM | Men's Track and Field

LEWISBURG, Pa.-- The Bucknell University men's track and field team will attend a pair of meets this weekend, with a group of athletes traveling to the Penn State National Invite while another group will remain in Lewisburg for the Bison Open and Multi.

"This has always been a very good weekend for individual performances and we expect the same for this year. " Said Head Coach Kevin Donner. "The Penn State National is a high level meet with a lot of the east coast blue bloods of track and field attending. The banked track gives us experience to prepare for the league meet at Navy and the competition will push us to great marks and give us the experience needed. After 3 weeks of practice and a couple of meets under our belt, we should see times drop in the running events and distances increase in the field events . The Bison Open is also a large meet with a lot of smaller schools, but the competition up front will be strong enough to push our athletes not at PSU and gives our entire team an opportunity to compete. I am excited to see how our athletes do in the women's pentathlon and men's heptathlon as well."

SETTING THE SCENE
What: Penn State National Invite
Where: Ashenfelter III Indoor Track, University Park, Pa.
When: Friday, Jan. 25- Saturday, Jan. 26
Meet Info

SETTING THE SCENE:
What: Bison Open and Multi
Where: Gerhard Fieldhouse, Lewisburg, Pa.
When: Friday, Jan. 25- Saturday, Jan. 26
Meet Info

Last Time Out

The men's team claimed the team title at Saturday's Gulden Invitational against Bloomsburg, East Stroudsburg, and Johns Hopkins.
The Bison qualified for IC4As in three events in the process.
Billy Melchionni and Alex Dessoye each picked up qualifications, with Melchionni qualifying in the 200 while Dessoye qualified in both the 200 and the 400 on Saturday.
Melchionni's 21.88 in the 200 was .08 short of his 21.8 that is third on Bucknell's all-time list.
Melchionni, Jeff Brown, and A. Dessoye finished 1-2-3 in the 200 at Saturday's meet.
Melchionni and Brown now hold the top two 200 times with a 21.88 and a 22.05. Brown also owns the top 60 time in the Patriot League that he set in the Bison Opener on Dec. 1., 2018 (6.83).
C.J. Falcioni swept the shot put and the weight throw, coming close to IC4A qualification in both. Falcioni's throw in the shot put was also a new personal best.
Also earning wins for the Bison on the track were Brown in the 60, Carson Etnyre in the 500, Robert Dessoye in the 800, Brett Zatlin in the 1000, Brendan O'Toole in the mile, Brendan McGill in the 3000, and Matthew Barton in the 60m hurdles.
The 4x400 meter relay team of Scott Gulizio, R. Dessoye, Nick Pacelli, and Zatlin also combined to take first place.
Matt Fay and Nicholas Marino earned a 1-2 finish in the pole vault, while Reggie Harris won the triple jump.
Fay and Marino also are tied for first in the pole vault after both cleared 16-2 3/4 at the Nittany Lion Challenge on Jan. 12.
Harris's jump of 47 1/2 at the Bison Opener ranks third in the Patriot League this season.

Last Year at the Bison Open and Multi

Steven Bolger earned a first-place finish in the long jump after leaping 22-8, while Harris won the triple jump with a 46-5. Brown also won the 60 at the meet with a time of 6.89.
Marino won last year's pole vault after clearing 15-9.

Last year at the Penn State National Invite

Several Bison earned IC4A qualification at last year's meet, with Sean Conway (800) and Nick Pacelli (1000), each earning a bid.
Pacelli's 1000 time of 2:29.78 was good for second place at the meet.
Falcioni earned a top ten finish in the weight throw with a distance of 50-1 ¼.

IC4A Qualifiers to Date