Men Compete in Polar Bear Invitational

ADA, OHIO- The Defiance College men's track and field team traveled to Ada, Ohio to compete in the Polar Bear Invitational hosted by Ohio Northern University. The Yellow Jackets finished 10th with an overall team score of two points.

Top finishes in the running events included freshman DeAundre Butler (Sarasota, Fla./Sarasota) who placed 16th in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.73 seconds. 

Junior Clayton Bruggeman (St. Henry) finished 17th in the 800-meter run with a time of 2:06.53. Fellow junior Colin Krick (Hicksville/Antwerp Local) finished 15th in 1500-meter run and crossed the finish line in a time of 4:23.93. 

In field events, freshman Javier Castillo (Nogales, Ariz./Nogales) led the way in the shot put with a 12-place showing following a best throw of 43' 6.00".  Sophomore Josh Ream (Van Wert/Crestview) also competed in the event and placed 17th overall with a distance of 39' 6.00". 

Castillo finished in the top-ten in the discus throw recording a best toss of 140' 7.00" which was good enough for seventh place overall.  Teammate and sophomore Joshua Petro (Ocala, Fla./The Villages) finished 12th in the same event with a mark of 128' 1.00'. 

In the hammer throw, the duo of Petro and Castillo turned in efforts of 147' 9.00" and 131' 5.00" respectively to place 13th and 19th overall.  

The men's track team will compete in the annual Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships next weekend (April 29-30) hosted by Bluffton University in Bluffton.  The two-day event begins on Friday (Apr. 29) at 1 p.m.