Moon Township, Pa. - The Robert Morris University men's outdoor track & field team continued its 2011 campaign Saturday afternoon at the VCU Invitational in Richmond, Va.
The meet was shortened and an official team winner was unable to be declared due to lightning, which forced the cancellation of the javelin, pole vault, the men's discus and triple jump and the 4x400 and 4x800-meter relays.
Nicolas Gentile (Sarver, Pa. / Freeport) continued his strong freshman campaign by claiming the individual title in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:55.57. It marked just the second time he has competed in the event this season and the first since establishing a new school record in RMU's season-opening meet at Wake Forest.
Gentile was one of two Colonials to finish in the top three in the 800-meter, as freshman Dorian Rumble (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Penn Hills) finished third with a time of 1:59.12.
Freshman Chris Carper (Altoona, Pa. / Altoona) posted solid performances in both the 110-meter and 400-meter hurdles, finishing third in both events, respectively. Carper posted a time of 15.73 seconds in the 110-meter hurdles and 54.73 meters in the 400-meter hurdles.
The freshmen were at the forefront for Robert Morris at the VCU Invitational, as in addition to the accomplishments by Gentile, Rumble and Carper, rookie Mitchell Preske (Windsor, Ohio / Grand Valley) tied for second in the high jump thanks to a leap of 1.91 meters (6'3.25").
In the throws, sophomore Brendan Morales (Westminster, Md. / Westminster) finished fourth in the hammer throw and fifth in the shot put, respectively. He posted a season-best toss of 51.68 meters (169'07") in the hammer and a throw of 14.58 meters (47'10") in the shot put.
Sophomore Charles Thurner-Diaz (Camp Hill, Pa. / Camp Hill) finished fourth in the shot put thanks to a toss of 14.61 meters (47'11.25").
In other events for RMU, freshman Jermaine Dwight (Wyncote, Pa. / Cheltenham Township) finished sixth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 50.62 seconds, while senior Charles Gladman (Philadelphia, Pa. / Cardinal Dougherty) posted a time of 11.02 seconds in the 100-meter dash to finish 14th.
RMU returns to the state of Virginia for its next meet, taking part in the James Madison Invitational Friday, April 22, and Saturday, April 23.
