Diplomats Show Well At Millersville :: Men and women combine to win nine events

April 20, 2008

MILLERSVILLE, Pa. - The Franklin & Marshall men's and women's outdoor track & field teams combined two win nine events with thrower Erin Gleason capturing two for the Diplomats at the Millersville Invitational on Saturday.

Gleason won the discus with a throw of 115-02 and then led a 1-2 finish in the shot put (39-11.50), edging out Alyssa Catalano who recorded a toss of 39-06.50. Catalano dominated the hammer throw, beating her closest competitor by 30 feet for first place (146-04).

Emily Wilson and Nicole DiBenedetto paced the runners in the distance events. Wilson took first in the 3000m steeplechase with a time of 13:09.51, while DiBenedetto led a pack of four F&M runners in the 5000m run to finish in 18:42.24.

Megan Hunter tallied three first-place finishes on the day, winning the 400m dash in 58.32 at Millersville before heading to Gettysburg to win 200m and 400m at the Mason-Dixon Invitational.

Shannon Weir placed second in both the 800m and 1500m run with times of 2:22.01 and 4:57.88, respectively. Laura Hansen competed in the hurdle events for the Diplomats, clocking in at 18.43 in the 100m hurdles and 1:15.22 in the 400m hurdles.

Jake Gomolinski led the men in the sprint events, winning the 400m dash in 50.19 and coming in second with a time of 22.36 in the 200m. Pavel Marossine and Freddy Martino collected the other two first-place finishes for the Diplomats. Marossine won the 3000m steeplechase in 10:21.93 and Martino captured the triple jump with a distance of 43-03.75.

Kwaku Anno followed Martino in second in the triple jump (42-09.75) and then was the top finisher in the long jump for F&M, taking fifth (21-00.50). Bell was the second runner out of 15 to finish the 1500m in 4:06.98, just .34 away from first place.

In the men's 400m hurdles, Josh Laster came in third with a time of 1.04.62. He also took fifth in the 800m run (2:03.87). Steven Tracy was the fourth Diplomat to finish in second place, running 11.05 in the 100m dash.

F&M returns to action on Friday at the Penn Relays. Meet time is 10 a.m.