ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Freshman Caden Fisher and seniors Nicholas Auchenbach and Jenny Bellefluer led the way for Mansfield at the RIT Track & Field Invitational Saturday afternoon.
The Mountaineers hit the ground running in the men's 60-meter hurdles with Caden Fisher and Nicholas Auchenbach finishing in a virtual tie. Friendly banter ensued between the teammates as they awaited the official results, which turned into congratulations and cheering as Fisher took first place by .004 of a second over Auchenbach. Both set new PRs and PSAC marks with times of 8.863 and 8.867 respectively.
"Nic pushes me to be better," said Fisher. "I owe my success to him pushing me in practice, seeing him succeed like he has pushes me to be better every day."
Bellefluer continued her dominance on the indoor circuit, taking first in the women's 200-meter dash with a time of 26.90. This was Bellefluer's third first-place finish through the first two events on the indoor season. When asked how she felt about her early season success, Bellefluer simply replied "It felt good to get back out there and shake off the rust after a long break."
Senior Kenzie Jones had a solid day, finishing second in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:30.75.
Junior Quincy Amabile continued his impressive start to the season with a second-place finish in the men's 1,000-meter run. Amabile's time of 2:38.20 set a new PR. "When Quincy runs, it's like he is running from a velociraptor," said Men's Head Coach Mike Rohl. "There's no stopping him."
Ryan Clifford had a solid outing, compiling a top-five finish in the men's 1,000-meter run. His time of 2:39.23 was a new PR. Freshman Momadue Diallo set a PR in both the men's 500-meter dash (1:11.26) and the men's 60-meter dash (7.69).
Sophomore Erin Sheridan finished tied for second in the women's pole vault with a height of 2.95 meters. Freshman Maully Fox set a new PR in the pole vault at 2.35 meters.
Mansfield had a strong showing in the relay events, starting with the women's 1,600-meter relay, placing second with a time of 4:37.63. The men's 1,600-meter relay team followed with a third-place finish of their own at 3:44.44
The Mounties will have short break before returning to action Friday, Jan. 18th at the Highlander Invitational hosted by Houghton University.
