CARLISLE, Pa. – Jordan Birden (Baltimore, Md./Cristo Rey Jesuit) won the high jump, clearing a program record-tying height of 1.90 meters to lead McDaniel to a seventh-place finish at the DuCharme Invitational hosted by Dickinson in season-opening men's indoor track and field action on Saturday.
The Green Terror recorded 45.2 points at the 11-team meet. The host Red Devils won the invitational with 168.6 points.
Birden's height in the high jump was also one of eight Centennial Conference (CC)-qualifying standards hit by McDaniel at the first meet of the season.
Birden was also 13th in the triple jump (10.17) and 16th in the long jump (5.12).
Chris Jones (Centreville, Va./Centreville) notched an individual victory in his debut, crossing first in the 1,000 meters with a time of 2:42.75, which ranks sixth all-time in Green Terror history.
Colin LaPenta (Morristown, N.J./Morristown) crossed third in the same event, debuting in 10th place on the all-time performer list.
Jones and LaPenta also ran the first two legs on the 4x800-meter relay, which finished second with a time of 8:47.98. Peter Merkel (Ellicott City, Md./Homeschool) and Calvin Ball (Westminster, Md./Westminster) round out the quartet.
Kyle Dunn (Crofton, Md./South River) notched the most individual CC qualifiers with three in his four events.
Dunn's best placefinish came in the high jump, where he was tied for seventh at 1.65 meters. He was 14th in the long jump with a CC-qualifying leap of 5.51 meters. He also qualified on the track in the 55 meters with a time of 6.95 seconds. Dunn rounded out his day in 12th place in the shot put (11.24 meters).
Merkel was fourth in the 3,000 meters with a time of 9:21.49, which ranks seventh all-time. Ball was 10th in the event with a time of 9:56.39, lowering his PR by more than 15 seconds.
Arthur Williams (Baltimore, Md./Cristo Rey Jesuit) added a CC-qualifying jump of 1.65 meters to finish tied for seventh in the high jump. The height also puts him and Dunn tied for sixth on the program's all-time list.
Williams was also 12th in the triple jump (10.77) and 18th in the long jump (4.94).
Carlos Hernandez (Derwood, Md./Magruder) led a trio of qualifiers in the shot put, finishing fourth with a toss of 12.88 meters, which ranks eighth all-time.
Chuck Kronmiller (Norristown, Md./Methacton) was ninth (12.12) while Diego Weiner (Miami, Fla./Riverside Military Academy [Ga.]) was 11th (11.47).
The Green Terror returns to action at the Hagerstown Invitational on Saturday.
Team Scores: 1. Dickinson 168.6, 2. Messiah 121, 3. Hood 89.5, 4. Mary Washington 81.5, 5. Lebanon Valley 68.1, 6. York (Pa.) 63.5, 7. McDaniel 45.2, 8. Gettysburg 32.6, 9. s.w.i.f.t. racing 30, 10. OBM Track Club 10, 11. Goucher 2.
McDaniel Results: 55: 10T. Kyle Dunn 6.95*; 200: 10. Gary Smith 25.42; 1,000: 1. Chris Jones 2:42.75, 3. Colin Lapenta 2:45.22, 9. Jason Stein 3:24.53, 10. Richard Rutkin 3:57.28; 3,000: 4. Peter Merkel 9:21.49, 10. Calvin Ball 9:56.39; 4x800 Relay: 2. Jones, Lapenta, Merkel, Ball 8:47.98; High Jump: 1. Jordan Birden 1.90m (6-2 ¾)*^, 7T. Kyle Dunn 1.65m (5-5)*, 7T. Arthur Williams 1.65m (5-5)*, 12T. Ben Munyan 1.60m (5-3); Long Jump: 14. Dunn 5.51m (18-1)*, 16. Birden 5.12m (16-9 ¾), 18. Williams 4.94m (16-2 ½); Triple Jump: 12. Williams 10.77m (35-4), 13. Birden 10.17m (33-4 ½); Shot Put: 4. Carlos Hernandez 12.88m (42-3 ¼)*, 9. Chuck Kronmiller 12.12m (39-9 ¼)*, 11. Diego Weiner 11.47m (37-7 ¾)*, 12. Dunn 11.24m (36-10 ½), 18. Kyle Andrews 10.23m (33-6 ¾), 19. Munyan 10.17m (33-4 ½).
* Centennial Conference qualifying standard, ^ program record
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