GORHAM, Maine – The Saint Joseph's College men's track and field team turned in a statement performance at the USM Alumni Open on Saturday, highlighted by two school records from freshman standout Stephen Pierre, a relay victory, and multiple New England Division III qualifying marks in the jumps and hurdles.
"We brought great energy and effort today and were rewarded with some impressive marks. Our ability to cover events with talent and depth continues to grow and will be a key to our success at the conference level," said Head Coach Mike Burleson.
"The caliber this group is competing at right now makes me incredibly proud," added Associate Head Coach Troy Hendricks. "To be dropping school-record performances on just meet two of the season speaks to how bought-in they are. I'm excited to see the work they put in over winter break and where that momentum takes us when we come back at the start of the new year."
SPRINTS AND RELAYS
Junior Jacob Schmader (Limington, Maine) and senior Noah Batoosingh (Scarborough, Maine) led a strong effort in the 300 meters, finishing third (36.82) and fifth (37.57), respectively, to pace the sprint group on the flat 200-meter oval.
Freshman Eli Benjamin (Rochester, N.H.) competed in the 55-meter dash, clocking 7.01 in the prelims to place ninth overall in a tight field.
Saint Joseph's grabbed a win on the track in the 4x200-meter relay, as Batoosingh, sophomore John Read, freshman Eli Benjamin, and Schmader combined to run 1:34.17, crossing the line first and continuing the early-season momentum from the Elm City Classic.
In the 4x400-meter relay, the quartet of junior Aidan Mills (Ontario Center, N.Y.), sophomore Isaac Keresey (Pittsfield, Maine), junior Emilson Zoccolo (Lewiston, Maine), and sophomore Harrison Fields (Gray, Maine) placed second in 3:42.01, closing the meet with another strong relay showing for the Monks.
MID-DISTANCE AND DISTANCE
Senior Brayden Grant (Rochester, N.H.) turned in a solid performance in the 500 meters, placing fifth in 1:18.19.
In the 1000 meters, Mills led the way with a fourth-place finish in 2:55.79, followed by Fields in eighth at 3:03.49 and senior Kyle Benson (Biddeford, Maine) in ninth at 3:12.55, as the Monks continued to build depth through the middle-distance group.
Keresey posted one of the top distance marks of the day, finishing second in the mile with a time of 4:31.81, while Zoccolo added a 13th-place finish in 5:07.57.
In the 5000 meters, senior Jacob Pelletier (Augusta, Maine) clocked 16:04.76 to place fifth, and teammate Alexey Seredin (Peaks Island, Maine) ran 16:49.95 for 11th, giving Saint Joseph's a strong presence in the longest event of the day.
HURDLES
The 55-meter hurdles proved to be a major highlight and a key event for the Monks.
Pierre, competing in his first collegiate hurdles meet, broke the school record and placed second in the final in 7.98, hitting the New England Division III provisional standard. Read followed in third at 8.01, also meeting the provisional standard, as the pair delivered a big 2–3 finish in the final.
The prelims were equally impressive, with Pierre (8.17), Read (8.21), and junior Tudum Monday (Lewiston, Maine) (8.24) all achieving New England Division III provisional qualifying times, giving Saint Joseph's three hurdlers at championship-caliber level just two meets into the season.
JUMPS
Pierre produced another breakout performance in the long jump, where he broke his own school record and won the event with a mark of 6.81m (22' 4.25"), an automatic qualifier for the New England Division III Championships. His series also included jumps of 6.78m and 6.71m, showcasing impressive consistency at a high level. Junior Devonte Prom (Portland, Maine) added a strong fifth-place finish at 5.75m (18' 10.5").
In the triple jump, Monday won the event with a mark of 13.03m (42' 9"), good for a New England Division III provisional qualifying performance. Junior Christopher Godefroy (Windsor Locks, Conn.) placed fifth at 11.64m (38' 2.25"), while Peters finished seventh with a best of 10.96m (35' 11.5").
In the high jump, Benjamin continued his strong start by clearing 1.83m (6' 0") for second place, while sophomore Martinho Codo (Lewiston, Maine) jumped 1.73m (5' 8") to finish fourth.
THROWS
The Monks' young and deep throws group continued to gain momentum across both the shot put and weight throw.
In the shot put, sophomore Anthony Vasquez (Westbrook, Maine) led the way with a ninth-place finish at 10.07m (33' 0.5"), followed by senior Alexander Greslick (Windham, Maine) in 10th at 9.80m (32' 2"). Freshman Brandt Bishop (Marblehead, Mass.) threw 9.10m (29' 10.25"), classmate Daven Duquette (Berlin, N.H.) recorded 9.07m (29' 9.25"), and fellow freshman Cameron Gonyer (Berlin, N.H.) added a mark of 7.99m (26' 2.75"). Junior Gabryel Balch (Strafford, N.H.) rounded out the group at 7.31m (23' 11.75").
In the weight throw, Vasquez placed fifth with a throw of 9.75m (32' 0"), Gonyer finished sixth at 9.73m (31' 11.25"), and Duquette took seventh with 9.60m (31' 6"). Greslick added an eighth-place mark of 9.48m (31' 1.25"), while Balch finished 10th at 9.09m (29' 10"), giving Saint Joseph's five athletes over nine meters and valuable early-season depth in the event.
FULL RESULTS
Men's 55 Meters
Men's 300 Meters
Men's 500 Meters
Men's 1000 Meters
Men's 1 Mile Run
Men's 5000 Meters
Men's 55-Meter Hurdles (Prelims)
Men's 55-Meter Hurdles (Finals)
Men's 4x200-Meter Relay
Men's 4x400-Meter Relay
Men's High Jump
Men's Long Jump
Men's Triple Jump
Men's Shot Put
Men's Weight Throw
