AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen College men's track and field team opened its 2020-21 outdoor season by taking part in the University at Buffalo Mid-Week Invitational this afternoon. Daemen was the only non Division I program to take part in the event, which took place at UB Stadium. The Wildcats amassed 86 points and placed second out of the five competing teams. 

It marked Daemen's first outdoor activity since Apr. 27, 2019 when the Wildcats took part in the Buffalo Invitational hosted by UB. The entire 2020 outdoor season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Graduate student Sullivan Keller (Alden, N.Y.) competed in three events during the field portion and set a new outdoor season school-record in the shot put and and hammer throw. He posted a throw of 14.81 meters in the shot put, which broke his school-record of 14.74 meters that he posted during the 2019 Rochester Alumni Invitational. Keller owns both the indoor and outdoor school-record for the shot put. He broke the indoor record earlier this month at the Houghton Invitational with a throw of 15.15 meters. He posted a throw of 49.20 in the hammer throw today, which broke his school-record of 47.09 that he posted at the 2019 East Coast Conference Championships. Keller also took part in javelin throw and posted a score of 47.08.
• Sophomore Dominic Clementi (Barker, N.Y.) highlighted the track portion of the day for Daemen. He ran the 400 meters for the first time in his career at an outdoor event and placed first out of five runners with a time of 51.30. That time was better than his person-best for the 400 meters at an indoor event (52.85), that he posted earlier this month at the Houghton Invitational. Redshirt sophomore Erik Matthews (Galway, N.Y.) and freshman Tyrell Whitaker (Lancaster, N.Y.) both made their collegiate debuts during the 400 meters and placed third (52.95) and fifth (57.50) respectively. Whitaker also ran the 200 meters and placed third out of four runners (25.51).
• Freshman Phil Ceccarelli (Hamburg, N.Y.) made his collegiate debut in the 800 meter run and placed 13th out of 22 runners with a time of 2.08.31.
• Daemen had four entrants in the 1,500 meter run. Freshman John Moote (Wilson, N.Y.) paced the Daemen entrants and placed 21st overall with a time of 4:21.21. Fellow freshman Connor O'Brien (Hamburg, N.Y.) placed 22nd (4:21.46) and sophomore John Bruggman (Batavia, N.Y.) finished 26th (4:27.43). Freshman Steven Blatto (Lancaster, N.Y.) made his collegiate debut and placed 30th (4:37.58).
• Another collegiate debut came during the 3,000 meter run, as freshman Pat Petronsky (Blasdell, N.Y.) competed for the first time and placed 22nd out of 26 runners with a time of 10:01.29.
• Freshman Hessen Bahgat (Fredonia, N.Y.) made his outdoor season debut and was the lone competitor in the pole vault. He posted a jump of 3.45 meters—besting his jump of 3.20 meters that he recorded earlier this month during his indoor collegiate debut at the Houghton Invitational.

UP NEXT
Daemen's next scheduled event is the UB Invitational, set to take place at UB Stadium on April 17.

Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Support Daemen College's return to intercollegiate athletic competitions by making a contribution to the Game On Campaign and the Daemen Wildcats Gotta Play Fund. This comprehensive fundraising campaign was established to help offset the loss of valuable external revenue streams that directly support Daemen's 17 varsity teams. To learn more, visit daemenwildcats.com/gameon.