Men's Track & Field finishes fourth at 2019 OAC Outdoor Championships
By Blake Moore
WESTERVILLE — Senior All-American Ian McVey (Stow/Munroe Falls) and sophomore thrower Matt Bradshaw (Cleveland/Norton) each registered All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors, helping guide the Ohio Northern men's track and field team to a fourth-place effort at the 2019 OAC Championships at Otterbein.
Over the two-day event, the Polar Bears racked up 59 team points for the fourth-place effort in the 10-team championship meet. Meanwhile, Mount Union won its ninth consecutive championship title with 197 points; John Carroll finished second with 183 points; and Otterbein rounded out the top-three with 178 points.
ONU now stands at 53-13 on the season following the weekend results.
The top-three individuals and relays in each event earn All-OAC honors.
McVey recorded the highest finish for the Polar Bears at Memorial Stadium on Saturday with a runner-up performance in the 5,000-meter run in 14:49.03. The senior led the race until the final 150 meters when Otterbein's Chase Hampton used one final burst to pull ahead and take the title in 14:48.32.
In addition, McVey posted a fourth-place finish in the 1,500-meter run Saturday with a 3:59.94 clocking.
The All-American will graduate a 12-time all-conference honoree, having received four such honors during the 2019 indoor and outdoor seasons.
Bradshaw received his first career all-conference accolade after ending third in the hammer throw. He launched the implement 53.72 meters (176' 3"), just .01 meters off his career-best mark in the event.
In the 800-meter run, sophomore Sam Krabacher (Hamilton/Badin) and junior Andrew Shelton (Williamsville, N.Y./South) ended fifth and eighth, respectively. The former crossed the tape in 1:58.47 while the latter established a new career-best with a 1:58.84 effort.
To end the two-day event, the 4x400 squad of sophomores Jared Fox (Fremont/Ross) and Donovin Moran (Saint John, Ind./Hanover Central), Shelton, and Krabacher captured sixth. The quartet won the first heat and set the fastest time for Ohio Northern this season with a 3:26.54 performance.
Fox, sophomore Owen Lloyd (Colfax, Ind./Clinton Prairie), and senior Spencer Schulze (St. Henry) rounded out the top-eight performances with eighth-place marks in the 400, 110 hurdles, and 5,000 disciplines, respectively.
The Polar Bears will now break from action until Thursday, May 9 when individuals compete for berths in the NCAA Division III Championships at the Dr. Keeler Invitational. The two-day competition will be held in Naperville, Illinois at North Central (Ill.).
Final Team Standings:
1.) Mount Union 197, 2.) John Carroll 183, 3.) Otterbein 178, 4.) Ohio Northern 59, 5.) Heidelberg 50, 6.) Baldwin Wallace 47, 7.) Wilmington 30, 8.) Capital 28, 9.) Marietta 28, 10.) Muskingum 19
