Bison Men Place Third for Highest PL Outdoor Finish Since 2021; Wade Shomper Repeats as Shot Put Champion

Saturday, May 16

Annapolis, Md.

9 a.m.

Bucknell University

Patriot League Outdoor Championships

Bison Men Place Third for Highest PL Outdoor Finish Since 2021; Wade Shomper Repeats as Shot Put Champion

5/16/2026 8:28:00 PM | Men's Track and Field

ANNAPOLIS, Md.- Bucknell men's track & field scored 99.5 points to finish third for its best placement in the Patriot League Outdoor Championships since 2021 when the Bison also slotted third. The Bison collected several medals, headlined by Wade Shomper's second straight outdoor shot put title, to break up the Army, Boston, and Navy triumvirate that has dominated Patriot League track & field in recent years. Navy was crowned champion for the 12th straight year and Army, again, proved the bridesmaid.

Results

"Our goal was 100-110 points and a top three finish," said head coach Kevin Donner. "We had 99.5 points and finished third, which is our highest place in a few years. I was very proud of our guys as we scratched and clawed for every possible point and beating Boston was a nice reward."

Shomper concluded his Patriot League career with another title and a career personal record at a hostile site. The men's shot put opened the day and the Bison senior broke 60 feet for the first time, hitting 18.40m (60-4.50) to grab the win and pace the three Bison scorers in the event.

"Of course I wanted to repeat, but I wanted to make sure that the whole squad did well," said Shomper, a captain. "Just had to turn it on in finals and once we were rolling there was no stopping us. We had a huge fifth and sixth round. I just wanted to repeat the feeling and energy from indoor leagues."

He immediately set the tone with his opening toss of 16.93m (55-6.50). The mark held up as the standard until the fourth round when Army's Matthew Palchak notched 17.83m (58-6). Shomper, as he has so often done, responded with an irrefutable rebuttal. With his fellow Bison throwers screaming encouragement, Shomper loaded up and fired his school record-breaking cannonball. Palchak could only respond with 16.29m (53-5.50) and Shomper remained securely upon his Patriot League throne.

"Protzman came up to me and said you've been here before," recalled Shomper. "That's all I needed to regain my composure and confidence to do what I've done before. Definitely felt the energy from the crowd, especially after Pulver's throw."

The throws crew feeds off each other like a pack of wolves and Braiden Pulver, Shomper's wingman, also delivered a personal best mark of 17.50m (57-5) to win bronze. Pulver delivered a remarkably consistent performance, hitting over 16.70m in all five of his recorded marks. As Shomper cited, his personal record arrived in the fifth round and Pulver's exuberant roar of excitement powered Shomper's PR.

Alex Polenik rounded out the Bison shot put scorers. The freshman finished eighth, throwing 15.52m (50-11).

The throws' success continued in the discus with three more Bison registering points. Senior Keenan LaMontagne capped his Bucknell career by winning silver. He started fast and his best mark of 49.03m (160-10) arrived in the second round.

"My main focus was just setting up the beginning of the throw correctly," said LaMontagne. "When I do that, the other pieces just fall in place."

LaMontagne offered this review of his collegiate tenure: "I had a fun four years and made a lot of memories with the team. But I think I am ready to move onto the next chapter. Competing at this level is a lot of work and it is really the only thing I've thought about for a long time. I'm looking forward to chasing new things. I will miss competing."

Shomper and Polenik finished fifth and sixth in the discus. The former hit 46.50m (152-7) and the latter landed 46.35m (152-0).

The 4x400-meter relay team of Amani Brown, Luke Petryna, Preston Lubeski, and Ethan Fianko bolted out of the gate and jousted Navy for a riveting, down-to-the-last-margin finish. The Bison ran a scintillating 3:10.48 that narrowly lost to Navy's 3:10.44. Fianko, the anchor, almost caught the Midshipman and likely would have done so if the race were slightly longer. The time ranked second in Bucknell history.

"We ran the same men in the 4x1 that we ran in the 4x4," said sprints coach Richard Alexander. "The 4x1 went below our expectations and our standard today. Those men wanted to come back in the 4x4 and prove something and they did just that. Running the second fastest time in school history and nearly coming home with the title."

The quartet placed sixth in the 4x100-meter relay with a time of 42.53.

Ethan Knight scored points in both hurdle events. He won bronze in the 400-meter hurdles, riding to a personal best time of 53.02. The speed sits sixth at Bucknell. He finished sixth in the 110-meter hurdles, racing 14.68.

Jeffrey Cianfrocca wrapped up his collegiate career with a bronze medal in the high jump. He cleared a season best 6-6.75 in one attempt before striking out at 6-8.

The jumps supplied more points via Jared Hess and CJ Simbiri in the triple jump. Hess finished fourth by leaping 47-8 and Simbiri placed fifth on a mark of 47-6.50.

Lubeski and Fianko slotted seventh and eighth in the 400-meter dash. The former ran 48.71 and the latter raced 49.69.

Ethan Pratt-Perez brought home seventh in the 3000-meter steeplechase. The sophomore ran 9:11.18 and made a late push for points in the final laps.

The decathlon concluded with Will Feddeler placing seventh with 6219 points.

The Bison men's season is not concluded as Wade Shomper heads to the NCAA East First Round on May 27-30. He moved to 22nd in the East after today's throw. He is the first male regional qualifier since 2019.

2026 Patriot League Outdoor Track & Field Championships Major Awards
Men's Track Athlete of the Meet – Joshua Duncan, Army West Point
Men's Field Athlete of the Meet – Nicolas Simmons, Navy
Men's Rookie of the Meet – Jason Keiser, Navy
Men's Highest Point Scorer – Joshua Duncan, Army West Point
Men's Coaching Staff of the Year – Army West Point (Head Coach - Mike Smith)