Eight represent Men's Outdoor Track & Field at Dr. Keeler Invitational, Harrison Dillard Twilight

By Blake Moore

NAPERVILLE, Ill. & BEREA — Eight Ohio Northern men's track and field athletes competed Thursday and Friday at North Central's (Ill.) Dr. Keeler Invitational and Baldwin Wallace's Harrison Dillard Twilight Meet seeking new personal bests and berths in the 2019 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

The two invitationals, held as last chance qualifiers for the national meet, were not scored.

On Thursday evening, senior All-American Ian McVey (Stow/Munroe Falls) secured a new outdoor career-best in the 5,000-meter run at the Dr. Keeler Invitational with a 14:24.24 clocking inside Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. In the 103-man field, McVey finished third overall against the country's top competitors from NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and NAIA institutions, crossing just two seconds behind Benedictine's (Ill.) Marcos Garcia for the top spot.

With his effort, the senior moved up to eighth on the NCAA Division III performance list in the event.

On Friday, sophomore Owen Lloyd (Colfax, Ind./Clinton Prairie) wrapped up the Polar Bears' stay at the two-day Dr. Keeler Invitational in the 110-meter hurdles. The Colfax, Indiana native posted a 15.15 effort, good for eighth place in a 26-competitor field.

Meanwhile, six individual male athletes represented the program at Baldwin Wallace.

Sophomore thrower Matt Bradshaw (Cleveland/Norton) kicked off the afternoon at George Finnie Stadium competing in the hammer throw and discus competitions. He launched the hammer 53.39 meters for an eighth-place mark and followed the effort with a 46.89-meter toss in the discus for seventh place.

After establishing a new career-best in the pole vault at the OAC Championships two weeks ago, freshman Andrew Buderer (Oak Harbor) cleared 4.51 meters on Friday to end fourth overall.

On the track, sophomore Sam Krabacher (Hamilton/Badin) topped the individual performances after finishing eighth in the 800-meter run with a 1:58.29 clocking.

Freshman Alexander Loeper (Medina), junior Kyle Neff (Sagamore Hills/Walsh Jesuit), and sophomore Jackson Brandstaetter (Pickerington/North) rounded out the evening in the 5,000-meter run. The trio finished 18th, 20th, and 23rd in 16:03.58, 16:18.51, and 16:42.64 for new season-best marks, respectively.

Ohio Northern will wrap up its pre-national championship slate next Wednesday and Thursday, May 15 and 16 at the Gregory Invitational at North Central (Ill.).