Junior Matt Molinaro (Sterling Heights, Mich./DeLaSalle) posted two first place finishes to lead the No. 29-ranked Ohio Northern men's outdoor track and field team to a second place finish at the Ohio Athletic Conference Championships on Saturday afternoon in New Concord.
The Polar Bears (65-16 overall) finished second with 124.5 points.
Molinaro got Northern off to a solid start as he opened the afternoon with an All-Conference mark and claimed the 1,500-meter run title in a facility record time of 3:59.40.
The junior also claimed first place in the 800-meter run with an OAC record and facility record time of 1:51.46.
Molinaro was named the Men's Distance Runner of the Year honors for his efforts during the championships.
In the hammer throw, senior Lucas Shumate (Wapakoneta/Spencerville) posted a second place finish to earn All-Conference honors with a toss of 175' 7.00".
Senior Kase Schalois (Van Wert) posted a second place finish in 14:51.13 in the 5,000-meter run to help Northern cap off their second place finish.
In the high jump, junior Alexander Sibila (Zionsville, Ind.) narrowly missed All-Conference honors after finishing fourth in the event with the leap of 6' 4.75".
"Our men took care of things that we needed to take care of," said head coach Jason Maus. "We had some guys that had huge weekends for us. Matt Molinaro and Kase Schalois were outstanding. But we also had a lot of guys who had quiet weekends and scored a lot of points for us. Shumate was great in the throws, Spencer Schulze and Sam Boyd really stepped up. These guys pour it all out on the line and really make you proud to be a Polar Bear."
The Polar Bears will return to the track May 11-12 as they travel to Naperville, Ill. to compete in the North Central (Ill.) Keeler Invitational.
