Stonehill Opens Outdoor Season Strong at BSU Bears Invitational


Sophomore John Gelcius provisionally qualified for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Championships with his school-record javelin throw. 

Gelcius leads four first place performances with NCAA provisional qualifying javelin throw

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. (March 27, 2011) – The Stonehill College men's track and field team opened its outdoor season with four first place finishes at the Bridgewater State University Bears Invitational at Swenson Field on Saturday.

Sophomore John Gelcius (Greenwich, Conn./Greenwich) led Stonehill with his winning performance in the javelin, provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Stanislaus, Calif., with his school-record throw of 196-feet, 2-inches. He broke the previous record of 190-feet even set by former teammate Tom Kilby at the Bryant Invitational on March 28, 2009. The throw is currently ranked tenth in Division II. Gelcius was also tenth in the hammer throw with a distance of 114-feet, 2.88-inches.

Senior Daniel Fidler (Carlisle, Mass./Concord-Carlisle) led an army of Stonehill runners in the 1500-meter run with his winning time of 4:09.44. The Skyhawks took the top three spots, placed six in the top ten and all seven runners in the top 13 out of 40 runners in all. Senior Zachary Lankow (Saugus, Mass./St. John's Prep) was second in 4:12.64, while junior Stephen Polito (Worcester, Mass./Doherty Memorial) was third in 4:15.94.

The trio also finished in the top ten for the 5000-meter run, led by Lankow in ninth at 16:33.93 while Polito and Fidler tied for tenth in 16:34.01.


Senior Daniel Fidler won the 1500-meter run, leading seven Skyhawks to finished in the top 13. 

Freshman Xavier Harris-Dixon (New Bedford, Mass./New Bedford) won the 110-meter high hurdles with a time of 15.22-seconds. He also took 12th in the 200-meter dash in 24.30-seconds.

Stonehill also won the 4x400-meter relay with a time of 3:34.85. Running for the Skyhawks were junior John Driscoll (Revere, Mass./Revere), sophomore Michael Miela (Foothill Ranch, Calif./Trabuco Hills) and Ramses Monteiro (Peabody, Mass./Peabody) and freshman Thomas Banks (Peabody, Mass./Bishop Fenwick).

Driscoll also placed second in the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.46-seconds and was seventh in the 400-meter dash in 53.36-seconds. Miela placed sixth in the 400-meter dash in 53.35-seconds and was 16th (out of 41 runners) in the 200-meter dash in 24.39-seconds. Monteiro tied for fifth in the 800-meter run in 2:05.26.

Other Stonehill performances of note:

Senior Daniel Kincade (Brookfield, Conn./Brookfield) was second in the hammer throw with a distance of 158-feet, 11.04-inches. Senior Patrick Fanning (Rockland, Mass./Rockland) placed sixth with a throw of 134-1.44.

Sophomore Brandon Dunham (Plattsburgh, N.Y./Plattsburgh) placed second in the long jump with a distance of 20-feet, 3.36-inches. Freshman Alex Willgoos (Newington, Conn./Newington) was ninth with a leap of 18-feet, 9.96-inches.
Sophomore Luke Byrnes (Glen Head, N.Y./Chaminade) placed second in the pole vault with a height of 11-feet even.
Freshman Christopher Dooley (Weymouth, Mass./Weymouth) finished third in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:02.64. Junior Pak Lul (Portland, Maine/North Yarmouth Academy) tied for fifth with Monteiro in 2:05.26.
Senior Mark White (Milton, Mass./Xaverian Brothers) placed fourth in the discus throw with a distance of 125-feet, 3.12-inches.
Senior Daniel Newton (Reading, Mass./Reading Memorial) was fourth in the shot put with a throw of 43-feet, 0.12-inches. Fanning was seventh at 41-feet, 7.56-inches, while White was 12th with a distance of 38-feet, 1.08-inches.
Freshman Taylor Viotto (Washington, N.J./Warren Hills) placed fifth in the javelin with a throw of 173-feet, 5.16-inches.
Freshman Michael Harris (Danvers, Mass./Danvers) finished seventh in the 100-meter dash in 11.65-seconds. He also took ninth in the 200-meter dash in 24.05-seconds.
Stonehill is back in action next Saturday when it participates in the Bryant University Invitational, in Smithfield, R.I., at 10 a.m.