(Posted May 6, 2006)

CHESTER, Pa. ? The Juniata College track and field teams both capped three strong days of competition at the MAC Championships with strong showings on the final day which helped both teams capture top-five finishes in the team standings. The Juniata women claimed a fourth-place finish by earning 89 points, improving two spots from last season?s sixth-place finish. On the men?s side Juniata matched its fifth-place finish from a season ago, but raised its point total to 98 from last year?s 73.

On the men?s side, Randy Anderson (DuBois/DuBois) claimed the only victory of the day for Juniata as he defended his title by finishing first in the 100. The junior then added a third-place finish in the 200. Dusty Sier (Smithsburg/Smithsburg, Md.) was eighth in the 100, giving Juniata a pair of scoring efforts in that event.

The Eagles would top that in the 800 as the Blue and Gold earned three finishes in the top-eight. Tripp Rudolph (Upper St. Clair/Pittsburgh) was fourth in the event and he was followed by Eric Hoover (Brandywine/Wilmington, Del.) in sixth place and Mike Vella (Hollidaysburg/Hollidaysburg) in the eighth spot. Vella would add another point-producing effort in the 1,500 as he placed sixth and was followed by Justin Fritzius (Central York/York) who placed seventh. The Eagles then got a fourth-place finish from Chris Sheaffer (Central York/York) in the 5,000 and a fourth-place effort from Mark Modak (Sandy Spring Friends/Gaithersburg, Md.) in the 400 hurdles.

Juniata would also pile up three point-producing efforts in the long jump on the final day of competition. Matthew Booth (Allentown Central Catholic/Allentown) led the way with a third-place effort in the event. Gary Ondecko Jr. (Bishop Carroll/Northern Cambria) was fifth and Anderson was sixth. Rounding out the scoring efforts in the individual events was Kyle Mazur (Morris Catholic/Ogdensburg, N.J.) who placed sixth in the javelin.

Juniata also had two strong efforts in the relays. The quartet of Ondecko, Sier, Anderson and Booth ran a time of 42.71 to place fourth in the 4x100 relay. The Eagles then got a seventh-place finish in the 4x400 with Ondecko, Modak, Rudolph and Hoover doing the honors.

The Juniata women?s team used a balanced team effort in which the team earned points in nearly every event on the final day. Leading the way was senior Meredith Troutman (Meyersdale/Meyersdale) who earned a pair of top-four individual finishes while also contributing to a pair of strong relay efforts. Troutman placed third in the 100 on the day, and then added a fourth-place finish in the 200.

Matching those fourth-place finishes on the track were senior Katey Glunt (Bellefonte/Bellefonte) who crossed the line in fourth place in the 5,000 and freshman Kelsey Buffenmyer (Donegal/Mount Joy) who was fourth in the 100-hurdles. Nancy Hayes (Westminster/Westminster, Md.) added an eighth-place finish in the 5,000. Also producing points on the track were Amy Reynolds (Jefferson/Harpers Ferry, W.V.) who was fifth in the 400 and Emily Landis (Christopher Dock/Landisville) who was fifth in the 800.

Troutman, Buffenmyer, Reynolds and Caitlin Hinson (Danville/Danville) then teamed up to set a new Juniata record in the 4x100 relay. The quartet posted a time of 50.49 which was good for a third-place effort. The Eagles added a third-place effort in the 4x400 as Landis joined with Troutman, Reynolds and Hinson to earn the points.

In the field events the Juniata women got a second-place finish in the long jump and a pair of top-eight finishes in the hammer throw. Buffenmyer claimed a second-place effort in the long jump. Debbie Delaney (Franklin/Reisertown, Md.) was sixth in the event, and Jennifer Marshalek (Montoursville/Montoursville) was eighth.

With the team season now complete, Juniata will focus on the NCAA Division III Championships. Both Anderson and Buffenmyer have provisionally qualified for the event.

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Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.