Men's Track and Field 1/25/2025 7:26:00 AM

Hawks Open Season Strong at Heenan Invitational

Naperville, IL: The Hawks men's track and field team kicked off their 2025 indoor season with an impressive performance at the Pat Heenan Invitational, hosted by North Central College at the Al B. Carius Track. With multiple athletes already hitting NJCAA National Qualifying standards, the Hawks showed they are ready to compete at a high level.

On the Track
Freshman Prince Ellington led the way on the track, delivering a standout performance in the 60m hurdles. He ran an 8.52 in the prelims before securing third place in the finals with a time of 8.71. In the 60m dash, sophomores Lucas McMillan and Tyler Anderson, along with freshman Justin Brown, ran times of 7.43, 7.52, and 7.48, respectively. McMillan and Anderson also competed in the 200m, where McMillan's time of 23.59 met the 2025 NJCAA National Qualifying standard. Freshmen Jaylen Calhoun (24.32) and Sean Holcombe (25.38) also joined the 200m field. Brown was the lone Harper runner in the 400m, clocking 55.10.

The distance squad put forth a strong effort in the mile with 10 competitors. Freshman Connor Ariunbat led the Hawks with a time of 4:33.05, while sophomore Owen Whelan was the fastest among returners, running 4:45.12. Other notable performances included Jose Morales (4:47.56), Zach Sheehan (4:49.46), Ryan Golden (4:50.00), and Jason Schmidt (4:50.30).

The Hawks capped their track events with a stellar performance in the 1600m relay, where the team of McMillan, Dakota White, Ariunbat, and Andrew Rashad met the NJCAA National Qualifying standard with a time of 3:35.30.

Jumps
The Hawks were equally competitive in the field events, with several athletes achieving qualifying marks. In the high jump, both Calhoun (6' 0.75") and Rashad (5' 10.75") cleared the NJCAA standard. In the pole vault, McMillan set a new personal best with a jump of 13' 3.5", while Stephen Osei cleared 12' 9.5", with both meeting the qualifying mark.

Ellington continued his strong meet in the long jump, reaching the finals with a best leap of 20' 8.5", earning another national qualification. Holcombe (19' 8.75"), Seth Cohen (19' 2.75"), Shamar Allwood (18' 10.5"), and Brown (18' 9.25") also contributed in the long jump. In the triple jump, Allwood secured a qualifying mark with a leap of 42' 5.5", while Rashad recorded a best jump of 38' 6.75".

Throws
Harper had two athletes competing in the shot put and weight throw. Hunter Matuch delivered a dominant performance in the shot put, finishing second overall with a throw of 51' 1.75", placing him first in NJCAA DIII rankings. Rodolfo Martinez threw 34' 8.25" in the shot put. In the weight throw, Matuch and Martinez recorded marks of 38' 1.25" and 30' 5", respectively.

Looking Ahead
With a fourth-place team finish out of 12 teams, the Harper Hawks made a strong statement to start their season. With multiple national qualifiers already, the team looks forward to building on this momentum as they head to Olivet-Nazarene for the Walt Cramer Open on January 31st.

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Players Mentioned

Tyler Anderson: Sprints; Sophomore

Lucas McMillan: Sophomore; Pole Vault, 100m, 200m, 400m

Jason Schmidt: Sophomore; 800m, 1500m, Steeplechase

Owen Whelan: Sophomore; 1500m, 5k

Dakota White: Sophomore; 800m, 1500m

Connor Ariunbat: Mid Dist.; Freshman

Ryan Golden: Mid Dist.; Freshman

Shamar Allwood: Jumps; Freshman

Justin Brown: Sprints; Freshman

Jaylen Calhoun: Jumps, Sprints; Freshman

Seth Cohen: Jumps, Sprints; Freshman

Prince Ellington: Hurdles, Jumps; Freshman

Players Mentioned

Tyler Anderson
: Sophomore
: Sprints

Lucas McMillan
: Sophomore; Pole Vault, 100m, 200m, 400m

Jason Schmidt
: Sophomore; 800m, 1500m, Steeplechase

Owen Whelan
: Sophomore; 1500m, 5k

Dakota White
: Sophomore; 800m, 1500m

Connor Ariunbat
: Freshman
: Mid Dist.

Ryan Golden
: Freshman
: Mid Dist.

Shamar Allwood
: Freshman
: Jumps

Justin Brown
: Freshman
: Sprints

Jaylen Calhoun
: Freshman
: Jumps, Sprints

Seth Cohen
: Freshman
: Jumps, Sprints

Prince Ellington
: Freshman
: Hurdles, Jumps