BETHANY, W.Va. - The No. 17 nationally ranked Bethany College men's track & field team competed in the Steemer Showcase hosted by Wittenberg (Ohio) University in the Steemer Center while select members of the men's track & field team competed in the Muskie Meet hosted by Muskingum (Ohio) University in the Bullock Health and Wellness Complex.

Bethany was back in action in their first split meets of the season as 12 athletes qualified for the Steemer Showcase. In the Showcase, the Bison faced off against a mix of NCAA Division I, II, and III teams as well as schools from the NAIA as the team finished 19th out of 22 with 9.5 points. Cedarville (Ohio) University came in first with 109 team points

The only medal of the day for the Bison came in the 60-meter dash where junior Caliyph McClinton (Pittsburgh, Pa./Neighborhood Academy) took home the silver with a time of 6.83 seconds. Also competing in the 60-meter dash prelims were freshman Jason Ellman (Erie, Pa./Mercyhurst Prep), sophomore Shavel Lesley (Whitehall, Ohio/Whitehall-Yearling), Ja'Vonni O'hara (Waycross, Ga./Ware County), and Ziacheas White (Waycross, Ga./Ware County). 

In the 200-meter dash, Ellman led the way placing 11th out of 54 with a time of 22.43 followed by freshman Juan Colon (Lancaster, Pa./McCaskey) in 16th running a 22.67. Junior Daryes'e Fleming (Joppa, Md./Joppatowne) and Lesley rounded out the Bison sprinters in the 200.

Colon stayed hot with a 15th-place finish in the 400-meter dash with a time of 50.52 while Fleming ran a 52.73, freshman Charvez Brooks (Gwynn Oak, Md./Forest Park) ran a 53.25, and junior Dave Rene (Boynton Beach, Fla./Lakewood) ran a 59.92.

The Green and White's final points came in the high jump as junior Mykel Davis (Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Park) finished tied for eighth with a 1.9 meter leap for 1.5 team points. Freshman Zion Mongeois (Royal Palm Beach, Fla./Palm Beach Central) also made his collegiate debut with a jump of 1.7 meters.

Senior Koda Moore (Proctor, W.Va./John Marshall) was the lone representative for the Bison in the throwing events where he placed 39th overall in both the weight throw and the shotput with distances of 12.87 meters and 11.67 meters, respectively.

The other half of the men's track & field team made the short trip to New Concord to compete in the Muskie Meet where the Bison finished ninth in the team standings with 14 points. Mount Vernon (Ohio) Nazarene University took the top spot with 176 points.

Leading the way for the Bison was junior Willie Holden (Exmore, Va./Broadwater Academy) as he won the triple jump with a mark of 12.15 meters and came fifth in the long jump with a distance of 6.15 meters to supply the Bison with all 14 of their team points.

Bethany was represented by freshman Duke Dudley (St. Petersburg, Fla./Canterbury), sophomore Jermain Beersingh (Miami, Fla./Hialeah Senior), and freshman Dontavious Murphy-Sorrell (Baltimore, Md./Our Lady of Mount Carmel) in both the 60-meter dash and the 200-meter dash. Beersingh also competed in the long jump where he finished 11th.

Junior Shonathan Desena (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg Area Senior), senior Zaire Tullis (Hartford, Conn./Capital Prep Magnet School), junior Jalen Britton (Fort Lee, Va./Prince George), junior Cyrus Brown (Clinton, Md./Surrattsville), and freshman Kevin Leach (Salisbury, N.C./Rowan) held down the throwing duties for the Bison at the Meet. Desena led the way in the weight throw placing 11th while Britton placed 13th in the shotput to lead the team.

The Bison are back in action on Friday, February 13 as they travel to Youngstown, Ohio to compete in the YSU Last Chance Indoor Meet at the Watson and Tressel Training Site.