BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's outdoor track & field team hosted the season-opening BSU Bears Invitational on Saturday at Swenson Field.
Junior Michael Kotleski (Great Barrington, Mass.) and freshman Nick Johnson (Marstons Mills, Mass.) each won individual events and qualified for the Division III New England Championships to pace the Bears.
Kotleski captured top honors in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 58.07 seconds, while Johnson placed first in the discus throw with a toss of 136 feet, three inches (41.54m).
Juniors Brayden Hollowell (Nashua, N.H.) and Austin James (Mansfield, Mass.) both qualified for DIII New Englands in the shot put. Hollowell finished second in the event with a put of 45 feet, 7.25 inches (13.90m), while James placed fifth with a mark of 44 feet (13.41m).
Sophomore Joseph Keough (Walpole, Mass.) and freshman Lamont Haynes (Boston, Mass.) also qualified for DIII New Englands. Keough finished second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:05.96, while Haynes placed fourth in the 200-meter dash with a time of 22.88 seconds.
Kotleski and Haynes also competed on the Bears' 4x100-meter relay which posted a second place time of 43.32 seconds. They were joined on the relay by freshman Kyle Cordeiro (Westport, Mass.) and sophomore Alex Goss (North Dighton, Mass.).
Haynes added a third-place showing in the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.27 seconds.
Freshman Olivier Ndikumana (Amherst, Mass.) captured top honors in the triple jump with a leap of 42 feet (12.80m).
Freshman Joshua Higgins (Fitchburg, Mass.) placed second in the 800-meter run (2:00.68), while sophomore Jamie Carlson (Maynard, Mass.) finished third in the pole vault (11'5.75"/3.50m) and freshman Trevor Wysong (Taunton, Mass.) was the fifth runner to cross the line in the 5,000-meter run (15:45.73).
Next Saturday, the Bears will compete at the UMass Dartmouth Corsair Classic.