EASTON, Pa. - The Lafayette track and field team continued their season Saturday at the Lafayette Open. Competing against Lafayette was Lehigh, Colgate, Binghamton, and Monmouth.

On the men's side, the 3,000-meter steeplechase brought home the first victory on the day for the Leopards. Leading the way, finishing first in a time of 9:25.70 was senior Michael Neeson. Finishing a little over ten seconds behind Neeson was junior Austin Barry, crossing the line in a time of 9:36.19, good for second place in the race. The finish from Neeson and Barry are both personal bests. Neeson's finish is the best in the Patriot League so far this season, while Barry's is the fourth fastest.

The 1,500-meter run was another event that yielded some solid results from some of the men's most consistent runners this season. Finishing fourth in the field of 22 runners was senior Ryan Branch in a time of 4:04.10. Less than a second behind Branch in fifth place was sophomore Bobby Oehrlein in a final time of 4:04.98. 

Another super dependable aspect of the men's team this season has been the throwing events, and today was once again no different. In the hammer throw, Lafayette finished with two top eight finishes. Leading the way for them was sophomore Devin Rosmarin, finishing fourth with a mark of 157' 2". This mark is a new personal best for him. About three meters behind Rosmarin in eighth place was Andrew Bowsher, with a toss of 146' 10".

Dylan Drescher got in on the action as well, as he finished with another fourth place finish for Lafayette with a mark of 159' 7" in the javelin throw. A little less than four meters behind Drescher was senior James Dailey, finishing sixth with a toss of 146' 8".

On the women's side, sophomore Annie Hathaway continued being a huge factor in the pole vault, as she finished second overall with a top height of 10' 6" meters. Finishing fifth in the event was senior Julia Knowles, with a mark of 9' 6 ^1/4".

Another second place came from senior Katie Ullmann. Her mark of 5' 3" in the high jump was good enough to take home silver in the event.

The final second place finish came from the super dependable senior, Ainsley Jacobs. Her time of 4:45.76 in the 1,500-meter run was good enough for silver in the 26-runner field. Less than a second behind Jacobs making her outdoor season debut this season was junior Autumn Sands, finishing fourth overall in the race with a time of 4:46.55.

Senior Olivia Barney was also once again a huge factor in the success of the Leopards during the meet. In the hammer throw, Barney finished third out of 21 throwers with a top mark of 160' 8". She also returned later with another third place finish, this time in the discus throw with a mark of 132' 8" in the 16 thrower field.

Also factoring into the top six of the shot put was sophomore Grace O'Mara, finishing fifth with a top throw of 40' 2 ^3/4". This mark is a new personal best in the event. O'Mara also finished sixth in the discus with a mark of 122' 6".

A freshman once again making a name for herself so far this season was Lily Dineen in the 800-meter run. Her time of 2:18.05 was good enough for third place in the 20-runner field. Dineen's time was also the second fastest time from a freshman in the race and is a new personal best for her.

Senior Gabi Galletta also continued her fast start to the season, finishing fifth in the 5,000-meter run in a final time of 18:08.09. Finishing behind Galletta was fellow senior Liv Palma, crossing the line in seventh place with a time of 18:45.88. 

Freshman Sophia Dongaris continued her strong start to the season, finishing sixth in the triple jump with a mark of 35' 8^3/4".