Press release written by Mitchell Coll
WEST CHESTER, Pa. - - The Wilmington University women's and men's track and field teams battled rainy conditions at the Purple & Gold Invitational this Saturday afternoon but that didn't stop the men from placing second in the invitational with the women placing fourth.
Men:
The Wilmington University men's track and field team earned 150 points to finish second overall trailing only Holy Family's 155 points on Saturday.
In the 200-Meter Dash, Taf Bunu won the event out of 16 total runners. Bunu crossed the line at 22.72 seconds. Juan Fountain placed fourth overall at 23.11 seconds, and Jalen Bailey finished sixth overall with a time of 23.32 seconds.
Taf Bunu also breaks a school record that was set in 2019 by Manuel Suero in the 400-Meter run. Bunu's new school record pace was set at 50.88 seconds, which took first overall at the Purple & Gold Invitational. Juan Fountain and Bradley Spencer also placed in the event, as Fountain placed fourth overall and Spencer placed sixth.
Raymon Gonzalez was the lone runner in the 800-Meter run and bested his collegiate best in the event. Gonzalez placed first overall with a time of 1:57.76.
Dan Wyshinski also bested his time, but in the 1,500-Meter run. Wyshinski finished first overall with a time of 4:06.12. Trent Taylor also placed in the event with a time of 4:25.27, good for seventh place.
Bradley Spencer and Shemar Parker both placed in the 110-Meter Hurdles event. Parker finished in third overall with a time of 16.71 seconds. Spencer finished fifth overall with a time of 17.00 seconds.
Mike Dowd won the 3,000-Meter Steeple with a time of 10:25.00. Dowd was the lone Wilmington runner in the event and was the best out of eight total runners.
In the long jump, Akeel Blake wins yet another invitational. Blake's best jump was 6.74 meters in rainy conditions. Blake outjumped 15 total jumpers. Shemar Parker placed fourth overall with a jump of 6.15 meters, for fourth place overall.
Freshmen Christian Dollard earned first place in the Men's Discus throw as the Wilmington Throwers battle rainy and windy conditions in the circle. Dollard, despite the conditions, came out on top with a winning throw of 36.04 meters. Varghese placed second with a throw of 35.37 meters, and Shemar Parker placed fifth with a toss of 30.63 meters. Dollard also placed fourth in Men's Shot Put with a throw of 9.30 meters.
Josh Varghese won the Hammer Throw with a best toss of 44.53 meters. Dollard placed sixth with a throw of 22.59 meters.
The Men's team finished first overall, scoring 153 points. Two other CACC teams were at the meet in Holy Family and Goldey-Beacom. Holy Family finished in second place with 138 points, and Goldey-Beacom finished in fourth with 106 points.
Women:
The Wilmington University women's track & field team placed fourth overall, scoring 39 points.
In the 800-Meter Run, Yailynn Ramirez placed third overall with a time of 2:31.49. Ramirez was third overall amongst 20 total runners. In the 1,500-Meter run, three Wilmington runners, Tiffany Banning, Yailynn Ramirez, and Alexa Crowell, finished in 6th, 7th, and 8th place, securing the final six points.
Freshmen Jada Obegi was the lone Wilmington thrower in the Shot Put this afternoon. Obegi finished third overall with a season-best throw of 10.57 meters. Freja Olofsson placed second overall in the discus throw with a best toss of 34.68 meters in rainy conditions. Viviana Caamano led the way in the hammer throw with a best toss of 36.86 meters. Olofsson and Obegi also placed in the event, finishing 6th and 7th. Caamano rounded out the scoring in the Women's Javelin throw with a 6th-place toss of 23.13 meters.
Up Next:
The Wildcats will be in two places at once next weekend as the sprinters, jumpers, hurdlers, and throwers will be at the Towson Invitational and the distance runners will be at the Danny Curran Invitational on Friday March, 31.