Festa Picks Up Pole Vault Win To Open Men’s Track & Field Indoor Season
The Penn State Behrend men’s indoor track & field team began the 2024-25 season at the Mount Union Toy Drive Invitational on Saturday.
ALLIANCE, Ohio – The Penn State Behrend men's indoor track & field team began the 2024-25 season at the Mount Union Toy Drive Invitational on Saturday.
Key Moments:
* Ryan Festa (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) was the big finisher for the Lions on the day, earning a first place height of 14-8 ¼ in the pole vault
* In the high jump, Derek Hillhouse (Erie, PA/McDowell) (6-1 ½) and Boden Gushie (Erie, PA/Harbor Creek) (5-11 1/2) placed second and fifth, respectively
* Sophomore Dominic Marino (Girard, PA/Girard) ran a third-place time of 9.05 in the 60m hurdles
* Distance runners Lucas Boyd (North East, PA/North East) (9:34.52) and Aidan Reinsel (North East, PA/North East) (9:41.97) finished third and fourth in the 3000, while David Gahagan (South Park, PA/South Park) (2:47.62) was the runner up in the 1000 and Jason Seevers (North East, PA/North East) (2:08.11) registered third in the 800
* Throwers Antonio Faraone (New Castle, PA/Union) and Alex Cotton (Saxonburg, PA/Knoch) recorded distances of 48-5 ½ and 46-10 ¼ for third and fourth
* Freshman Carter Tobin crossed the finish line with a time of 23.35 for eighth place in the 200m dash
* Max Rohl (Horsehead, NY/Horseheads) recorded ninth in the weight throw with a mark of 43-6
* For Festa and Faraone, their marks qualified them for the All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference (AARTFC) Indoor Championships
Up Next:
* Behrend will return to action after Christmas break, competing at Houghton on Saturday, Jan. 25. Meet time is slated for 11 a.m.