DC Rewrites Record Book at Joe Banks Invitational

ADA, Ohio – The Defiance College track and field team saw seven school records fall at the Joe Banks Invitational on the campus of Ohio Northern University. The men's squad broke four records on its way to a fifth-place finish, while the women's team set three school marks before finishing fifth as well.

The men, who tallied 75 points in the meet, were led by first-place finishers Brad Zarembski and Blake Witherspoon. Zarembski broke his own school record in the men's high jump, clearing 6-08.00 to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Division III Indoor Championships in March. Witherspoon tied a personal-best in the 200m dash with a time of 22.83, while also teaming up with Trey Harris, Kyle Longsdorf and Ryan Perry to break a DC record with a time of 1:33.09 in the 4x200 relay.

Austin Trivett set a new school record in the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.98, while also finishing second in the pole vault (13-11.25) and fifth in the high jump (6-02.25). Perry earned a pair of fourth-place finishes, tying a school record in the 60m (7.08) and running personal-best time of 23.41 in the 200m. Justin Perkins was the other Jacket to set a DC record, crossing the line in 9:10.39 to place fourth in the 3000m.

Seth Bidlack was fifth in the 1000m with a time of 2:42.67, while Andrew Baker (1:10.37) edged teammate Issac Wilkins (1:13.26) in the 500m. Longsdorf cleared personal-best 12-05.50 in the pole vault, before joining with Bidlack, Baker and Witherspoon on the 4x400 relay team that finished second with a time of 3:34.70.

The record-breaking performances of Emily Cole, Marlea Rolander and Kaitlin Switzer highlighted the meet for the women's squad, who accumulated 55 points on the day. Cole, the DC outdoor record holder in the pole vault, cleared 9-04.25 in her first meet of the season to eclipse Angela Mester's mark of 9-00.25 in the 2001 season. Rolander broke her own DC record in the 60m hurdles, crossing the line in 9.67 on her way to third place. Switzer, a week removed from breaking her own mile record, set a new school record in the 3000m, finishing third with a time of 11:16.45.

Amanda Tooley led the Jackets with 14 points in the meet, finishing second in the shot put (34-04.00) and third in the weight throw (44-04.75). Samantha Higdon recorded a second-place finish in the weight throw with a toss of 46-05.25, while Laura Derov was fifth in the shot put (36-06.25). Alex Thiel and Kristin Goldstein also earned top-six finishes, as Thiel was third in the triple jump with a leap of 29-07.25 and Goldstein was sixth in the 300m with a personal-best time of 46.49.

Defiance will be back in action next Friday, March 6, when it travels to Greencastle, Ind. to participate in the DePauw Indoor Qualifier. Events are scheduled to begin at 5:00 p.m.