BY: SEAN WALLACE; STAFF WRITER
Photo courtesy of gobonnies.com
The St. Bonaventure men’s track team opened the outdoor season with two new school records at the Bill Q Invitational Saturday in Rochester, N.Y.
In the 400 hurdles, sophomore Henry Morris set a school record, placing second with a time of 57.57.
In the 400 meters, junior Christian Figueroa set another new school record, placing second out of 20 runners with a time of 50.03. Sophomore Riley Dillon broke the record last year with a time of 50.83.
Despite breaking a school record, Figueroa said he eyes a greater challenge.
“My personal approach to staying sharp is to never lose sight of the mission and the goal to get better,” said Figueroa. “There is always more work to be done and always better results to obtain. My goals for the upcoming season are to run a sub 49.50 400 meter, a sub 23.00 200 meter, stay healthy and score at the Atlantic 10 Outdoor Championships with our 4-by-4 team.”
Juniors Aiden Scattergood, Aiden Holt and sophomore Will McCarthy look to build off last year’s performance.
Last season at the A-10 Outdoor Championships, Scattergood finished with a time of 15:04.85 in the 5000, moving to third all-time within the school. As a freshman, he broke two school records in the 800 with a time of 1:55.75 and the 1500 with a time of 4:00.04. In the 4-by-800, He also set a school record time of 8:15.11 at the A-10 Outdoor Championships.
Holt set a personal best of 2:08.68 in the 800 at the UB Invitational and in the 1500 at the Brockport Invitational with a time of 4:09.61. He also qualified for the A-10 Outdoor Championships and recorded a time of 4:11.84 in the 1500.
Looking to exceed expectations, Holt spoke on his offseason mindset and his goal for the spring.
“What keeps me sharp is knowing that if I take a day off or I don’t put in all my effort into a training session, that’s one step closer to being who I once was instead of someone I’m striving to be,” said Holt. “My goal for this season is to be better than I was last season. Last season, I had what some people call a ‘breakout,’ and I want to show that it wasn’t a fluke.”
McCarthy broke the school’s 3000-meter steeplechase record at the A-10 Outdoor Championships last season with a time of 9:40.62 last season. He also set two personal bests with a mile time of 4:31.55 at Nazareth and a time of 4:12.33 in the 1500 at Saint Francis.
March 29, McCarthy placed second in the 5000, clocking in at 15:33.37. Junior teammates Casey Malloy and Ethan Luce finished first and third. Malloy finished with a time of 15:28.39 and Luce clocked in at 15:35.97.
Looking to capitalize on his performance in steeplechase, McCarthy spoke on his goals for this season.
“Some goals for the upcoming season have to be to put up a higher finish at the A-10 Outdoor Championships this year,” said McCarthy. “I’d like to set myself up during the season to give myself the best opportunity to place well in steeplechase.”
The men’s track team competes in the Colonial Relays Friday, April 4-5 in Williamsburg, Va.
