Men’s Track and Field Piles Up Five Wins at Wesleyan Invitational III

Distance runners pepper top 10s

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. (January 19, 2013) – Freshman Mike Abrams (Newark, N.J.) and junior Antoine Gisore (Concord, N.H.) won a pair of events each on Saturday afternoon to lead a five-win day for the Franklin Pierce University men's track and field team at Wesleyan Invitational III, hosted by Wesleyan University at Bacon Field House. Franklin Pierce distance runners collected five top-10 finishes at distances of one mile or greater.

Gisore's versatility carried the day for the Ravens in the Nutmeg State. He posted wins in both the 600 meters (1:25.14) and the 3,000 meters (9:01.43), while mixing in a seventh-place finish in the mile (4:31.82) as well. In addition, he ran the third leg on the Franklin Pierce 4x400-meter relay squad which finished 10th with a time of 3:42.20.

Abrams carried the banner in the sprint events for the crimson and grey, finishing first in both the 60- (7.11) and 200-meter (22.88) dashes. He joined Gisore on the 4x400 team, running the anchor leg.

Abrams was joined in the 60-meter dash top-five by freshman Ryan Dionne (Amesbury, Mass.), who finished third (7.23). Dionne picked up the fifth win of the day for the Ravens, and their lone win in field events, as he posted a 6.47-meter jump in the long jump. Dionne was also a member of the 4x400 relay, as he ran the lead leg before handing off to freshman Adam-Corey Rander (Bronx, N.Y.).

Elsewhere, sophomore Makopa Rugabirwa (Concord, N.H.) and sophomore Eric Gallos (Ventnor, N.J.) each posted a pair of top-10 finishes. Rugabirwa's were both top-five finishes as well, as he placed third in the 5,000 meters (16:25.50) and fourth in the 800 meters (2:01.94). Gallos collected a sixth in the 5,000 meters (16:38.71) and a ninth in the 3,000 meters (9:49.40).

Also on the track, Franklin Pierce picked up a second-place finish in the 4x800-meter relay. The quartet of freshman Sean Colford (Epping, N.H.) to freshman Chris Birotte (Lynn, Mass.) to Rugabirwa to freshman Ryan Cross (Suffern, N.Y.) stopped the clock with a time of 8:27.92.

After Dionne, freshman Shawn DeCost (Nashua, N.H.) had Franklin Pierce's other top-five finish in the field events, as he cleared a height of 1.75 meters to finish second in the high jump.

The Ravens return to action on Friday, Jan. 25 at the BU Terrier Invitational, hosted by Boston University.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce track and field apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).