McNeil leads men’s track and field at ECACs
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Rich McNeil ’10 |
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Sam Thomas ’07 |
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Steve Monsulick ’07 |
ONEONTA, N.Y. — Bates first-year sensation Rich McNeil finished second in the discus throw Friday on the final day of the ECAC Division III Track and Field Championships, his second top-five finish in as many days.
With 23 points, Bates was 15th out of 44 scoring teams and third among New England schools at the meet, which was hosted by SUNY Oneonta.
McNeil (Lawrence, Mass.) heaved the discus 149 feet and 10 inches, behind only Nick Orfanella of Lebanon Valley (152-11) for the title. That followed Thursday’s fifth-place showing in the hammer throw (157-02). He’ll find out on Monday whether he made the field to compete at the NCAA Championships next week. Junior teammate Noah Gauthier (Amherst, N.H.) has already qualified for nationals in the hammer throw and was held out of ECACs this weekend.
Other highlights for Bates on Friday lead off with senior Sam Thomas (Richmond, Va.), who finished fifth in the 400 meters at 49.16 seconds, his best time of the season, earning four points for the Bobcats.
Sophomore C.J. Murray (North Andover, Mass.) finished eighth in the 1,500 meters at 4:00.50, notching one team point.
First-year Noah Glick (Center Tuftonboro, N.H.) placed eighth in the high jump with a top leap of 6-2.00.
Junior Emmanuel Drabo (Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso) came in eighth in the triple jump at 44-01.50.
Also competing for Bates on Friday, senior Matt Capone (Auburn, Maine) took 12th place in the 200, at 22.75 seconds.
Senior Steve Monsulick highlighted the team’s efforts on Thursday, by capping his college athletic career with an outstanding performance in the 10,000-meter run. Monsulick (Kents Hill, Maine) passed several runners in the final mile and placed fifth in the 10K in a time of 32:03.50, his personal best mark by about 30 seconds, said coach Al Fereshetian. Monsulick was less than 15 seconds behind the race winner, Cortland State’s Jerry Greenlaw. He moved into eighth place on Bates’ all-time performance list in the event. Junior teammate Matt Dunlap (Farmington, Maine) was 13th in the event, in 33:11.15.
Also on Thursday, Capone finished ninth in the 100-meter dash at 11.29 seconds, just outside the cut for Friday’s final.