HOOKSET, N.H. (4/16/23) – As the full squad split up for this weekend, a portion of the Franklin Pierce Outdoor Track & Field Program competed at the Southern New Hampshire Penmen Relays on Saturday afternoon at Mark A. Ouellette Stadium. The event was non-scoring.

Between the two sides, the day featured 13 top-five finishes, two wins and one program record. The lone record breaker was men's freshman Ben Gilbert (Windsor, Vt.), who crushed it in the Men's Discus with a 43.04-meter mark to claim 1^st-overall in the event, shattering a previous record held by senior Armani Mette (Randolph, Mass.) from the 2021 season (41.92m). Also placing 1^st overall from the men's side was junior Janvier Ntakirutimana (Burlington, Vt.) in the Men's Steeplechase, finishing the race with a 10:43.09 time.

From the women's side, freshman Elizabeth Jones (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) continued to impress with a 2^nd-overall finish in the Women's Pole Vault, clearing a bar of 3.05 meters. Three other Raven women would secure top-five finishes in their respective events.  

PIERCE PLUS PERFORMERS – MEN'S

• Sophomore Harrison Pelosi (Gloucester, Mass.) placed 6^th in the Men's 800-Meter Finals (1:59.20)
• Junior Thomas Darrah (Thetford, Vt.) placed 3^rd-overall in the Men's Mile Run (4:33.33)
• Sophomore Logan Mihelich (Northwood, N.H.) rounded 6^th-overall in the Men's Mile Run (4:38.73)
• Freshman Declan Morgan (West Springfield, Mass.) placed 8^th in the Men's Mile Run (4:41.30)
• Junior Janvier Ntakirutimana took the win in the Men's Steeplechase (10:43.09)
• Sophomore Ailoune Diaw (Cumberland, R.I.) finished 7^th in the Men's High Jump (1.70m)
• Junior Connor Nordmann (Bethel, Conn.) T-2^nd in the Men's Pole Vault (1.70m)
• Freshman Jay Candelario (New Haven, Conn.) took 3^rd in the Men's Shot Put (13.24m), 6^th in the Men's Discus Throw (33.08m)
• Freshman Ben Gilbert placed 7^th in the Men's Shot Put (11.96m), placed 1^st in the Men's Discus Throw (43.04m - NPR)

PIERCE PLUS PERFORMERS – WOMEN'S

• Freshman Jennifer Kulick (Goffstown, N.H.) placed 3^rd in the Women's 100-Meter Hurdles Finals (17.80), 4^th in the Women's 400-Meter Hurdles (1:10.76)
• Freshman Elizabeth Jones placed 2^nd in the Women's Pole Vault (3.05m), 7^th in the Women's 100-Meter Hurdles Preliminaries (18.19)
• Junior Emma Cutter (Newburyport, Mass.) finished 7^th in the Women's 400-Meter Hurdles (1:15.93), 10^th in the Women's Pole Vault (2.15m)
• Junior Katie Peterson (Derry, N.H.) placed 9^th in the Women's 400-Meter Hurdles (1:23.69)
• Senior Victoria Van Houten (Wantage, N.J.) claimed 3^rd-overall in the Women's Steeplechase (12:24.41)
• The Women's 4x400-Meter Relay Team (Missell, Masterson, Thompson, Sheline) finished 4^th-of-5 participating teams (4.53.24)
• Sophomore Teresa Deasy (Smithtown, N.Y.) took 4^th in the Women's Pole Vault (2.60m)
• Junior Tyra Felton (Sterling, Mass.) placed 4^th in the Women's Shot Put (12.05m), 6^th in the Women's Hammer Throw (40.57m)
• Freshman Emily Nhun (Biddeford, Maine) placed 9^th in the Women's Shot Put (10:30m), 7^th in the Women's Discus Throw (33.61m)
• Graduate Katerina Dajia (Aurora, Ontario) finished 10^th in the Women's Shot Put (9.87m), 3^rd in the Women's Discus (35.53m)

Up next, Pierce outdoor track & field will spend April 21^st and 22^nd at the MIT Sean Collier Invitational, hosted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts.