HANOVER, Ind.-- The Trine men's track and field team got a well-rounded performance to handily win the Hanover Invitational.
The Thunder ran away from the rest of the field, earning 145 team points to finish ahead of second-place Hanover by 57 points. A total of 17 teams participated in the meet. Trine got four individual first-place finishes and two relays wins on the track, while field performers contributed one first-place finish and another performance that was the top collegiate effort in an event.
Patrick Richardville (Leo, Ind. / Leo) starred on the track with a pair of wins in sprinting events while also contributing to both winning relay teams. The sophomore notched a win in the 100-meter dash in 11.08 seconds and added a victory in the 200-meter dash in 22.82 seconds.
Richardville, John Harris-Scott (Wesley Chapel, Fla. / Wiregrass Ranch), John Daniel (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Carroll) and Devan Emerson (Elkhart, Ind. / Jimtown) made up the victorious 4-x-100-meter relay team. The quartet of runners ran a time of 42.60 seconds to win the event by just under a second.
The 4-x-400-meter relay team consisted of Richardville, Jasper Bassett (Auburn, Ind. / DeKalb), Jacob Leopold (Ottawa, Ohio / Ottawa-Glandorf) and Will Collins (Marion, Ind. / Marion). The group finished in an even 3:28 to top a competitive Hanover relay by half a second.
Nicholas Zak (Saint John, Ind. / Hanover Central) carried a strong freshman campaign in the indoor season onto the outdoor track with wins in the 800-meter run and 1500-meter run. He edged Leopold by .06 seconds as the Thunder took the top two spots in the 800. He was also able to edge the second-place finisher in the 1500 by .05 seconds.
Jessie Dowell (Remington, Ind. / Tri Junior-Senior) led the performance in the field by winning the javelin throw. His winning toss was measured at 152 feet, 3 inches. The performance was Dowell's first win as a collegiate performer.
Sam Gilly (St. Joseph, Ill. / St. Joseph-Ogden) added the top collegiate performance in the hammer throw. Gilly's effort was measured at 170 feet, 2 inches for third-place overall.
A trio of second-place finishes highlighted performances elsewhere on the track. Bassett ran a personal-best 400-meter time of 50.25 seconds to place second.
Austin Ganger (Mishawaka, Ind. / Mishawaka) added a second-place finish in the 5K in 16:04.48. Ganger's return to competition gives the Thunder more competitve depth in distance events. Jonathan Phillips (Royal Center, Ind. / Pioneer Junior-Senior) led four top-eight Trine placers in the 3K steeplechase by notching a second-place finish.
Elsewhere in field events, Courtney Mitchell (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Bishop Luers) led three top-eight finishers in the shot put. Mitchell's effort of 46 feet, 8.75 inches placed second. Nicholas Gerber (Goshen, Ind. / Goshen) finished fifth, while Derek Scott (Niles, Mich. / Niles) placed seventh.
Troy Fritz (Monte Vista, Colo. / Sangre de Cristo) added a fourth-place finish in the triple jump.
Trine returns to competition next Saturday, Apr. 9 at the George Glass Invitational, hosted by Taylor University. Events are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.