Senior Lucas Shumate and junior Matt Molinaro have strong outings on Day 1 of NCAA Div. III National Championships
By Caleb Scott
ADA — Senior Lucas Shumate (Wapakoneta/Spencerville) and junior Matt Molinaro (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle) both had strong days to lead the Ohio Northern men's track and field team at the NCAA Div. III National Championships at North Central (Ill.) College on Friday.
Shumate finished tenth overall in the weight throw with a toss of 57' 3.75".
"Lucas had a good day," said head coach Jason Maus. "He probably didn't finish where he wanted to, but he had a good day. It didn't seem like things were going his way, but finishing tenth in the nation is still a great feat. There are a lot of athletes that would love to be where Lucas is and we are proud his season. He has had a great year."
Molinaro advanced to the finals of the 800-meter run as he won his heat and ran the fastest time in the country in 1:51.84.
"Matt ran a really good race today," said Maus. "He looked very comfortable and had a solid race. It was a pretty convincing win for him and he just seemed ready to go right from the beginning."
Matt will compete in the finals of the 800-meter run on Saturday at 3:25 pm.
