Bates first-year Candido Bousquet (Colombo, Sri Lanka) displayed terrific versatility Saturday at the NESCAC Men’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Connecticut College, and was one of the Bobcats keys to nipping Tufts for second place at the meet by half a point.

Bousquet competed in four events on the day and scored a combined 13 points points for the Bobcats in three of them. He placed third in the long jump (22-01.75), third in the discus throw (139-06) and eighth in the shot put (42-00.50). Bousquet was also 13th in the hammer throw (130-04). Every point counted for the Bobcats, who scored 116.5 points, just ahead of Tufts (116) for their highest team finish since 2004.

Bousquet earned NESCAC All-Conference honors in both the long jump and the discus throw for placing among the top three, and was also a strong candidate to claim Most Outstanding Rookie Performer honors.

Bates junior Rich McNeil (Lawrence, Mass.) won three throwing events last weekend at the Colby Invitational, helping the Bobcats claim first place out of four teams, including their first regular-season win over MIT in 14 years.

McNeil, a five-time All-NESCAC performer, one-time All-American and the 2007 NESCAC Most Outstanding Rookie Performer placed first in the hammer throw, the discus throw and the shot put (45-04.25). His tosses in the discus (145-02) and the hammer (174-10) were both season bests.

McNeil was named the NESCAC Field Performer of the Week, the New England Small College Athletic Conference announced on Monday.

Bates College sophomore Ryan Quinn recorded two personal-best performances on Saturday as the Bobcats opened the outdoor season at the Snowflake Classic meet at Tufts.

Quinn (Watertown, Mass.) posted personal-best performances in both the 100- and 200-meter dashes, finishing second in the 100 in 11.19 seconds and fourth in the 200 at 22.71 seconds. His times put him at No. 6 and No. 10, respectively, on Bates’ all-time outdoor performance lists. Quinn also anchored the 4×100 meter relay team, which finished second at the meet in a time of 44.02 seconds.

Quinn helped the Bobcats finish second out of 13 teams at the meet, and he was named the NESCAC Track & Field Men’s Track Performer of the Week on Monday.

Bobcat fans have come to expect great things from two-time All-American thrower Vantiel Elizabeth Duncan (Topsham, Maine), but her performance at Saturday’s Snowflake Classic at Tufts still stands out.

In the first outdoor meet of the year, Duncan threw the hammer in competition for the first time since last May, and took first place among collegiate competitors at the meet with a personal-best mark of 173-08, meeting the automatic qualifying mark for the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships.

Duncan was also fourth in the discus throw (112-04) and third in the shot put (39-07.75), and was a big factor in the Bobcats placing third out of 16 teams at the meet. Her performance led to her being named NESCAC Women’s Field Performer of the Week.

Bates junior Vantiel Elizabeth Duncan continued to prove that she is one of the top throwers in New England at any division level, as well as one of the top throwers in all of Division III last weekend at the Open New England Indoor Championships at Boston University. [More...]

Pride and joy was evident in longtime Bates throwing coach Joe Woodhead’s words and, yes, on his face too, when the longtime Bates throwing coach was feted prior to the annual Maine Men’s Intercollegiate Track and Field Championships Saturday evening. With the renovation of the Merrill Indoor Gymnasium completed late last summer, it was determined that the time was right for the throwing circle inside Merrill to be officially renamed the Joseph Woodhead All-American Throwing Area. [More...]

Richard McNeil '10

Bates College sophomore Rich McNeil (Lawrence, Mass.) finished fifth in the men’s hammer throw in May at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, earning the first All-America honors of his career.

McNeil became the 26th Bates man to win All-America honors in outdoor track and field, and the 12th to do so in the hammer throw. He also started at defensive tackle for the Bobcats football team in 2007, recording 24 tackles. [More...]

Noah Gauthier '08

After winning the NCAA Division III championship in the indoor weight throw last month, Bates senior captain Noah Gauthier (Amherst, N.H.) cemented his fourth trip to nationals on Saturday, by hitting the NCAA outdoor automatic qualifying mark in the hammer throw.

Gauthier launched a top hammer throw of 58.30 meters for first place. Gauthier also placed second in the shot put (14.63) and fifth in the discus (37.24), as the Bobcat men’s track and field team finished second out of four teams at the Colby Invitational on Saturday. He was named NESCAC Men’s Field Performer of the Week. (View a PDF of the weekly NESCAC Track and Field release.)

With 171 points, Bates was the runner-up to MIT (224) while topping the University of Southern Maine (156) and Colby (106).

Gauthier, the recently crowned NCAA Division III indoor weight throw champion, launched a top hammer throw of 58.30 meters for first place. Gauthier also placed second in the shot put (14.63) and fifth in the discus (37.24).

Vanteil Duncan, '10

Bates sophomore Vantiel Elizabeth Duncan had a big day Saturday at the Colby Invitational. The recently crowned All-America indoor weight thrower met provisional qualification for the NCAA Outdoor Championships and recorded lifetime bests in both the hammer throw and shot put.

Duncan (Topsham, Maine) threw the hammer 49.11 meters and surpassed her personal record in the shot put by about two feet, at 13.51 meters, taking first place in both events. Duncan also finished fourth in the discus throw (33.05) as Bates finished third in the team scoring with 124 points, while MIT scored 143 and Colby 139.

Duncan was named the NESCAC Women’s Field Performer of the Week for her efforts. (View a PDF of the weekly NESCAC Track and Field release.)