Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Dominate Tri-Meet

Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Dominate Tri-Meet

MEADVILLE, Pa. – Both the Penn State Behrend men's and women's track and field teams won the Allegheny Tri-Meet on Tuesday afternoon.

The men racked up 138 total points in 17 scored events with the women totaling 117 in 16 events.

On the men's side, the Lions were led by Kalil Slaughter (Sheffield, PA/Sheffield), Andres Morales (Alajuela, Costa Rica/ICS), and Milt Sibanda (Jefferson, PA/Jefferson-Morgan) who each won two events.

Slaughter was a double-winner in the 100m and 200m with times of 10.92 and 22.28, respectively.  Morales took first in the 110m hurdles with a time of 16.11 and won the 400m hurdles after crossing the line at 57.85.  Sibanda won two events in the field.  The freshman brought home a first place in the long jump at 6.09m and another in the triple jump with a distance of 13.05m.

Behrend had four other individual winners, including Josh Natalie (Erie, PA/Collegiate Academy), Kevin Gardner (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf), Dylan Bilka (Seven Fields, PA/Seneca Valley), and John Cerminara (Williamsburg, VA/Jamestown).

Natalie ran the 1500m in 4:08.53 for a first place finish for the Lions.  Back in the field, Garnder leaped 1.83m in the high jump to place first.  Bilka dominated the pole vault with a height of 4.75m to take first.  Rounding out the individual winners for the men was Cerminara in the discus throw.  The senior hit 46.80 for yet another first place for Behrend.

Two relay teams had excellent outings for the men as well. The squad of Nick Marzka (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf), Matt McWilliams (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf), Kevin Lai (Ridgewood, NJ/Ridgewood) and Morales won the 4x400m relay with a time of 3:31.53.  Lai then teamed up with Slaughter, Craig Webb (Johnstown, PA/Richland), and Geoffrey Faltot (Mercer, PA/Mercer) for the 4x100m relay.  The four athletes finished with a time of 43.63 to qualify for ECAC's.

The women's team had eight individual winners on the day, led by Angela Sweeney (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) in the pole vault.  Sweeney took first with a height of 3.25m and also qualified for the ECAC meet.

Both Corinne Conto (Bruin, PA/Karns City) and April McDermott (Atco, NJ/Hammonton) won events in the field.  Conto placed first in the long jump at 4.60m with McDermott winning the discus throw at 35.89m.

On the track, Victoria Harwood (Fair Haven, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven) won the 200m with a time of 26.26.  Katie Spade (Warren, PA/Warren) took first in the 800m at 2:18.80.  In the 1500m, Jamie Szramowski (Pittsburgh, PA/Oakland Catholic) was the frontrunner with a time of 5:17.75.

Alex Paget-Blanc continued her tremendous hurdling season by winning the 100m hurdles at 1:09.40.  The last individual winner for the Lions was Haley Hughes (Cochranton, PA/Cochranton) in the 3000m steeplechase.  Hughes crossed the line at 11:44.00.

Both teams will be back in action on Friday at the John Carroll Invitational.