LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Big Red men split off into two meets this weekend, with the sprinters going south to the Tennessee Relays while the rest of the team went to Bucknell for the Bison Outdoor Classic.
 
Our first competitor of the weekend was senior Austin Lyons in the 110m hurdles at Tennessee on Friday, where he ran a stunning 13.83 to place 3rd in a national caliber field. Though the mark won't count for record or qualifying purposes due to an illegal wind of 4.1 m/s, it is currently the top time in the conference.
 
Next up was the 100m dash, where senior Zach Menchaca blazed a 10.50, which is one of the fastest times in school history all-conditions.  Menchaca, a two time 100m conference champion, is working hard to reclaim his title after finishing second in the 100m at Heps last year.  Though his time this weekend was wind-aided it was a great performance nonetheless. Senior Alex Beck was close behind in 10.81 showing that he will also be a strong contender in 100m this year.
 
The duo came back in the 200m on Saturday, where Menchaca ran 21.37 and Beck ran 21.62. Freshman Kuune Mini was hot on their heels in 21.63, a big personal best and also one of top times in the conference this year. Encouraging performances from our sprints group as we move into the championship portion of the season.
 
Senior Oseoba Airewele capped things off in Tennessee with an impressive 15.47m/50'9.75" jump, coming off of his stellar 15.60m jump last week.
 
Kicking off day one at Bucknell on Saturday, our men competed in the unseeded 1500m. Sophomore Mars Bishop won his heat in a new PR of 3:58.83, while freshman Marek Nowak (3:58.71) and sophomore Ed Belsoi (3:59.21) both set new PRs as well and took 2nd in their heats. Next up was freshman Alex Mocarski in the invitational 1500m. He ran a smart and measured race, and kicked well at the end to cross the line in a new PR of 3:55.42. That time qualifies him for the IC4A Championships.
 
In the invitational 5000m, junior Rob Whitney continued his momentum from a breakout indoor season by running a brilliant race, finishing with a huge kick to place 2nd in his heat. His time of 14:37.19 was a huge 40 second PR from the same meet a year ago!
 
Next on the track was sophomore Paul Casavant making his 10,000m debut in the unseeded section. He went out somewhat conservatively as he felt out the race, and closed hard for a 31:17.19, meeting the IC4A standard in the event. Senior Tomas Reimer and junior Tyler Fisher competed in the seeded section of the event, following the same strategy as Paul. They allowed others to do the work, and made strong moves late in the race to finish well. Reimer ran 30:29.77 in his debut in the event, while Fisher set an astounding 46 second PR of 30:31.38. Both qualified for IC4As as well.
 
The throwers concluded the weekend for Cornell, competing on day two at Bucknell. Junior Will Lutkewitte set a new personal best in the shot put with his throw of 16.64m/50'7.25", just barely missing cracking the top-10 all-time list. Zach Hawley added a solid toss of 16.13m/52'11".
 
The lone jumper on Sunday, freshman Paris Howland made his collegiate high jump debut with a clearance of 1.94m/6'4.25" for a fourth place finish.
 
Sophomore Zeke Cohen ended the meet with a bang, as he shattered his PR yet again with a toss of 61.06m/200'4" in the hammer throw, which is likely an NCAA First Round qualifier, and 5th in school history! An amazing performance in less than ideal conditions, as heavy rain made Sunday's competition difficult. Freshman Ian Frost also added a throw of 54.53m/178'11" for a 9th place finish.
 
Next week, the team reunites and heads to Princeton for the Larry Ellis Invitational.