Reading, PA (February 24, 2024) - On Saturday, the DeSales University men's track & field team closed out the MAC Indoor T&F Championships with some more incredible performances at Alvernia University.
 
The team continued to out perform pre-race predictions, finishing in fourth place overall out of 16 teams. The squad scored 75 points after being projected to have a sixth-place finish in the pre-meet polls.
 
Kicking off the meet in the mile, sophomore Davis Trump set the school record in the mile as he finished fourth place overall with a personal best time of 4:21.91. He scored five points with his performance and qualified for the AARTFC Regional Championship. First-year Joey Wilson also finished 10^th place overall with a personal best time of 4:30.80.
 
Then, in the 60-meter hurdles finals, junior Sam Estherson set the school record with a massive personal best. He finished in fourth place overall with a time of 8.48, moving up a position from his performance in the trials.
 
Moving to the triple jump, senior Xavier Phoenix took fifth place overall with a jump of 13.81m. He scored four points with his performance, totaling 14 points from his individual performances. First-year duo Weston Simak (12.84m) and Lens Demosthene (12.61m - PR) also took 12^th and 13^th place overall, respectively.
 
Back on the track with the 60-meter dash finals, senior Kyle Dunbar took third place overall with a time of 7.03 to earn six points. Senior Logan Berner also finished seventh overall with a time of 7.13, earning two more points.
 
Coming back strong for the 200-meter, Dunbar secured a first-place victory with a personal best time of 22.11 in a very close race from the sixth heat. With his performance, Dunbar improved upon his school record in the event. Berner also placed 15^th overall, finishing first in the second heat with to tie his indoor personal best time of 23.43. First-year Colin Marsh placed 24^th overall in the event, taking fourth place in the second heat with a time of 24.12.
 
In the 3000-meter, senior Shane Artis secured five more points with a second-place overall finish with a time of 8:49.83. This brought his total scoring to 13 points for the entire championship. Senior Nick Manidis set a personal best in the event, winning the first heat with a time of 8:57.47 (10^th overall). The graduate student trio of Brian Bruno (9:08.91 – 14^th place), Matt Santacoloma (9:11.34 – 17^th place), and Tom Greve (9:14.81 – 20^th place, PR) rounded out the distance performances.
 
Back to the throws, senior Jake Schaeffer placed 22^nd overall with a throw of 12.17m. Meanwhile, graduate student Nick Chinn placed 27^th overall with a season best throw of 11.80m. Sophomore Giovanni Wellington (28^th overall) then finished just behind with a mark of 11.73m.
 
Rounding out the events for the second day of the conference championship, the 4x800 meter relay secured six more points with a third-place finish. Senior Ben Phillippy started things off with a 2:01.25. Trump followed up with a 2:02.65. Graduate student Carl Tyce made his first appearance for the Bulldogs and split a 1:57.07. First-year Jozef Callano then finished off the relay with a 2:02.27. The relay team finished with a time of 8:03.21, the fifth fastest time in school history.
 
After a very successful championship meet, Artis (5000-meter), Berner (60-meter), Esterson (60-meter hurdles), and Trump (Mile) will look to build on their performances next weekend at Nazareth University for the AARTFC Indoor Championship. The rest of the Bulldogs will take some time to prepare for the outdoor season beginning in late March.

Day One of MAC Indoor Championship
Leading off the meet in the long jump, senior Xavier Phoenix finished first place overall with a mark of 6.93m. Graduate student Sidney Walker finished sixth place overall with a personal best jump of 6.50m. Phoenix and Walker combined for 13 points in the event.

Moving to the track, the distance-medley relay finished in third place with a time of 10:22.61. First-year Jozef Callano led off the squad with a 3:12 split in the 1200 leg. First-year Colin Marsh then split a 52 out of the 400 leg. Senior Ben Phillippy followed up with an 800-meter split of 1:59. Closing out the relay, sophomore Davis Trump ran a 4:19 in the 1600-meter, beating Messiah to the finish line with a lean. The relay team qualified for the AARTFC Regional Championship.
 
In the 60-meter hurdles trials, junior Sam Estherson took fifth place overall with a time of 8.58, qualifying for the finals and posting a massive personal best. With his performance, Estherson moved up to second in school history and qualified for the AARTFC Regional Championship.
 
Moving to the 60-meter dash trials, senior Kyle Dunbar ran a personal best and won the second heat with a time of 6.96 to secure first place overall. With his performance, Dunbar tied the fastest time in school history. Senior Logan Berner also finished first overall out of the first heat with a time of 7.00, good for third place overall. He set a big personal best, improving upon his fourth-place time in school history. Both Dunbar and Berner qualified for the finals tomorrow.

In the 5000-meter, senior Shane Artis finished second place overall with a time of 15:09.90, an indoor personal best that improved upon his fourth fastest time in school history. Artis secured eight points with his performance.

Rounding out the events for day one of the conference championship, the 4x200 meter relay took fourth place overall with a time of 1:32.43. The team comprised of Berner, Dunbar, Wilson, and McCulloch won a wire-to-wire race in the first heat to earn five points for the team.