• Senior Austin Miller led all collegiate pole vaulters with a mark of 4.75m (15-7)
• Junior Vinny Todaro won a tactical 3000m run in a time of 8:56.70
• Senior Christian Spaulding placed second in the javelin Friday with a mark of 65.19m (213-10)
GREENVILLE, N.C. – Senior Austin Miller and junior Vinny Todaro led the High Point University men’s track & field team this weekend at the Bill Carson Invitational on the campus of East Carolina University.
Todaro won a tactical 3000-meter run, while Miller finished as the top collegian in the pole vault to lead HPU to a fourth-place finish at the event (82 points). Host East Carolina won the meet with a total of 156 points.
“Vinny did a nice job in his race and we had some good performances in places, but our men’s side has been flat over the past couple weeks,” head coach Mike Esposito said. “I look forward to seeing that turnaround this coming weekend on our home track.”
Todaro crossed the finish line in 8:56.70 to claim the 3000m title while redshirt-senior Jeff LaCoste was fourth in 9:27.82.
In the vault, Miller battled difficult conditions Saturday to clear the 4.75m (15-7) bar. He finished only behind HPU vault coach Scott Houston and another unattached competitior and friend of HPU’s program, Sean Young. Junior Isaiah Henderson finished ninth in the vault with a mark of 4.15m (13-7.25).
In other events, senior Christian Spaulding fought difficult winds Friday to post a solid second-place finish in the javelin. His second throw clocked in at 65.19m (213-10) to garner him the second place showing. Freshman Liam Onbashian topped his PR by close to eight feet to place 11th with a mark of 46.02m (151-0).
Freshman Alejandro Torres also picked up eight points for HPU on Saturday with a second-place showing in the 1500m run. The Elche, Spain, import crossed the finish line in 3:59.80 to finish second in the event while Todaro placed third.
Senior Paul O’Donoghue led High Point in the 800m run in a time 1:55.96, marking an outdoor season best time for the Franklin, Mass., product. Torres was seventh (1:56.97) and senior Benji Szalai placed eighth (1:57.10) in the race.
HPU’s 4x100m relay team of sophomore James House, freshman Sean Banda and seniors Andrew Kuras and Will Narramore placed fourth in a time of 41.82 seconds.
The program’s 4x400m relay team also was fourth in a time of 3:28.19. That group included O’Donoghue, seniors Dennis Crawford and Nick Hula and freshman Patrick Van Der Cruyssen.
Narramore finished fourth in the long jump with a solid mark of 7.00m (22-11.75) and also placed fifth in the triple jump (14.43m, 47-4.25).
On the sprints circuit, House finished sixth in the 100m dash (10.71 seconds) and Kuras placed 20th. Freshman Brad Kanney was 24th.
In other throws action, senior Jim Wilson earned a point for the Panthers Friday while finishing eighth in the discus throw (44.00m, 144-4). Freshman Britton Mann placed 14th with a mark of 40.26m (132-01). Wilson also earned an eighth-place showing in the shot put on Saturday with a mark of 14.56m (47-9.25).
In hurdles action, Hula placed 10th in the 400-meter event in a time of 57.34 seconds.
The Panthers return to Vert Stadium to host the Big South Triangular this Friday (April 15). Events begin at 2 p.m.