Senior Andrew Buderer leads Men’s Outdoor Track and Field at Mount Union Last Chance meet
By Wes Mayberry
ALLIANCE — Senior Andrew Buderer (Oak Harbor) set a new personal-best mark in the pole vault on Thursday to lead the Ohio Northern men's outdoor track and field team at the Mount Union Last Chance meet at Mount Union Stadium.
Buderer cleared a height of 4.86 meters to place second in the event on Thursday. His career-best was previously 4.78 meters, and his new mark ranks third all-time at ONU and puts him in position to qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships. The top 20 individuals in each event qualify for the national meet, and Buderer currently ranks tied for 14th in the pole vault.
Fifth-year senior Jack Lehr (York, Pa./Dallastown) also set a new personal-best with his throw of 52.07 meters in the javelin, besting his previous top mark of 51.23 meters. The new distance ranks eighth all-time at ONU and was good enough to place second in the event at Thursday's meet.
Lehr also posted a ninth-place finish in the shot put with a distance of 13.92 meters.
Sophomore Keegan Digby (Bowling Green/Otsego) finished third in the shot put with a throw of 15.54 meters.
Earlier this season, Digby posted a school-record distance of 16.34 meters in the shot put, which currently ranks 10th nationally, putting him in position to qualify for the national meet.
Fifth-year senior Travis Sutter (Sharpsburg/Ft. Recovery) added a second-place finish in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, running a time of 10:11.21.
Also on Thursday, the Polar Bears sent their 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams to compete in the Augustana (Ill.) Midwest Twilight at the Knowlton Outdoor Athletic Complex in Rock Island, Ill.
Senior Nate Dean (Euclid/Villa Angela Saint Joseph), juniors Hunter Kesler (Oakwood/Paulding) and Vini Souza (Spencerville) and freshman Ozzie Miller (Dalton) ran a time of :41.34 to place seventh in the 4x100 relay.
Kesler, freshman Jordan Dean (Euclid/Villa Angela Saint Joseph) and sophomores David Gross (Prospect/Pleasant Local) and Trey Myers (Dayton/Chaminade-Julienne) finished seventh in the 4x400 relay with a time of 3:14.57.
Both relay teams posted season-best marks.
According to the NCAA's qualification rules, the top 16 relay teams earn a spot at the national meet, but only one team per relay event per school is eligible to qualify. Under that stipulation, ONU's 4x400 relay team currently ranks 16th, and the 4x100 relay team ranks 19th.
Thursday's meets were the final ones of the season for the Polar Bears (16-3 overall) as a team.
The NCAA Division III Championships are scheduled for May 26-28 in Geneva, Ohio.