The Shippensburg University men's track & field team faced many obstacles over the course of its three days in Lancaster County but fought to the end, winning the 4x400-meter relay Saturday to fend off a valiant Slippery Rock squad and win its fifth consecutive PSAC Outdoor Championship in competition at Millersville University.

Shippensburg edged The Rock, 178-172.5, after trailing by one half of a point entering the final race. Needing to finish ahead of their rival, the quartet of sophomore Eric Bologa, sophomore Andrew Kujawski, senior Joel Flott and sophomore Robert Bales stepped up with a time of 3:14.13.

That time, a NCAA provisional qualifier, is just short of the school record that was set earlier this season in Richmond, but matches the exact time of the previous school record set at the 2005 PSAC Championships by Mark Piccolo, Steve Huffman, Kenrick Marsh and Alton Richards.

Furthering the irony is the fact that Shippensburg's run of five consecutive titles began at the same site as Saturday's competition – Millersville University's Biemesderfer Stadium. The Raiders also entered the final race in 2009 with just a half of a point separating themselves and East Stroudsburg before clinching the title with a second-place finish in the 4x4 relay.

“It was exciting as it can get in track and field,” said head coach Dave Osanitsch, who won his 20th combined PSAC championship on Saturday. “You have all of these things going on at a meet and it comes down to the last event. The energy was insane, both between Shippensburg and Slippery Rock, and I don't think you could have had a better environment.”

Slippery Rock won six events and made it a memorable battle with numerous strong performances; it was particularly buoyed late with a 20-point effort in the discus despite only having one person among the Top 8 seeds.

“Our heartfelt congratulations go to Slippery Rock,” Osanitsch said of John Papa's squad. “They had a great meet, came at us every stretch of the way and never backed down.”

Furthering the adversity of the Raiders on the final day was the fact that the team was performing on limited rest. After midnight on Saturday, SU's hotel was evacuated for a carbon monoxide scare – leaving both the men's and women's squads outside in the rain for more than four hours. Each member of the team had to be tested for carbon monoxide before it could return to the hotel, making sleep a premium for the majority of the Raiders.

“It was such an amazing effort, considering all the challenges and tribulations we went through,” Osanitsch said. “My hat's off to the athletes and to the coaching staff for helping keep everyone prepared.”

Senior Herman Kirkland was named the 2013 PSAC Championships Overall MVP after winning his second conference title of the weekend on Saturday, defending his 100-meter title in 10.64 seconds. Kirkland also won the long jump on Friday.

“For Herman to come back in the 100 meters today, it was awesome,” Osanitsch said. “He really ran well and had to fend off Slippery Rock's DJ Chisom for the win. His victory definitely helped with momentum for us, and therefore I think it is appropriate that he won the MVP award because his performances in both the track and the field that really helped us to win the league title.” 

Throughout the day, the competitors had to battle numerous downpours, particularly early on. One extremely important performance in the rain was from sophomore Charlito Iwuagwu in the discus. After fouling on his first two attempts, Iwuagwu stepped up, shook off a steady downpour and unleashed a throw that was the best of the competition at that time. He eventually finished second in the event, throwing 153 feet, 7 inches on his fourth attempt, to add a critical eight points to the team's cause.

“Charlito managed that third throw in the discus, while in the pouring rain, and it was phenomenal,” Osanitsch said. “There's 22 events, and it's amazing just how valuable certain performances can be.”

The Raiders had two other conference champions on Saturday in addition to Kirkland and the 4x4 relay.

Sophomore Steve Waithe defended his conference title in the triple jump – with his sixth and final jump landing 50 feet, 9 ½ inches to improve his season PR by seven inches and rank him ninth nationally. Waithe landed five successful jumps – four of which were distances farther than any other jumper in the competition.

Junior Matt Kujawski, SU's record holder in the 200 meters, lived up to his top seeding in the event by claiming the league crown in 21.52 seconds. Matt Kujawski claimed his first individual PSAC outdoor place-winning performance with the victory; he also won the 200 meters during the indoor season.

SU went 1-3-8 in the 100 meters, as Matt Kujawski finished third behind Kirkland in 10.81 seconds and senior Romarr Mayne took eighth place in 11.16 seconds. The Raiders finished 2-4-5 in the 800 meters, with Flott pacing the group in 1:52.07. Sophomore Tom Kehl ran fourth in 1:54.14 and junior Dan Dreeman placed fifth in 1:54.23. Kehl also stepped up for a third-place finish in the 1,500 meters (3:55.43).

Bales, who anchored the meet-clinching 4x4 relay, placed second in the open 400 meters with a time of 48.41 seconds and also managed a sixth-place turn in the 200 meters of 22.11 seconds.

Bologa, the opening leg of the 4x4 relay, finished third in the 400-meter hurdles (52.25 seconds) and fifth in the 100-meter hurdles (15.32 seconds) for the first PSAC outdoor place-winning performances of his career. Sophomore Jordan Jones joined Bologa on the awards stand for the 400-meter hurdles after placing sixth in 54.53 seconds – marking his first place-winning performance.

Freshman Jalen Ramsey notched second place in the high jump by clearing 6 feet, 8 inches on his third attempt at that height. Ramsey also placed second during the indoor season.

Sophomore Derek Nothstein and Andrew Korrubin both stepped up with points for the second straight year in the javelin. Nothstein, the defending champion, could not overcome an incredible throw of more than 223 feet by ESU's Matt Tholis that led to him receiving the Field MVP award, but still finished second with a sturdy toss of 212 feet, 7 inches that came on his fourth attempt.

Korrubin placed fourth with a mark of 199 feet, 6 inches achieved on his second attempt – a stupendous PR throw of 13 feet.

Not to be lost on Saturday was a second-place finish in the triple jump for sophomore Matthew Terry, whose mark of 47 feet, 11 inches was second only to Waithe and marks the highest individual place-winning performance of his career. Terry has placed in both the long jump and triple jump in each of his two PSAC outdoor competitions to date.

Additionally, freshman Chris Mullin completed the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 9:29.63, finishing seventh for two crucial points toward the team cause.

“This is a truly exciting win,” Osanitsch said. "There are some parts of the team that struggled and others that exceled – each year it's different. Various event groups are going to carry us each year. You don't have to put all your eggs in one basket to have that opportunity."



Saturday Place-Winners

100
1. Herman Kirkland 10.64
3. Matt Kujawski 10.81
8. Romarr Mayne 11.16

200
1. Matt Kujawski 21.52
6. Robert Bales 22.11

400
2. Robert Bales 48.41

800
2. Joel Flott 1:52.07 (NCAA P)
4. Tom Kehl 1:54.14
5. Dan Dreeman 1:54.23

1500
3. Tom Kehl 3:55.43

100H
5. Eric Bologa 15.32

400H
3. Eric Bologa 52.25 (NCAA P)
6. Jordan Jones 54.53

3K Steeplechase
7. Chris Mullin 9:29.63

4x400
1. Eric Bologa, Andrew Kujawski, Joel Flott, Robert Bales 3:14.13 (NCAA P)

High Jump
2. Jalen Ramsey 6' 8”

Triple Jump
1. Steve Waithe 50' 9 ½”
2. Matthew Terry 47' 11”

Discus
2. Charlito Iwuagwu 153' 7”

Javelin
2. Derek Nothstein 212' 7”
4. Andrew Korrubin 199' 6”