Festa Named Pole Vault Champion; Konieczki Earns Bronze in Long Jump on Day One of Championships
The Penn State Behrend men’s track & field team had five athletes punch their ticket to finals in their respective events on the first day of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Conference Outdoor Championships on Friday, hosted by Cortland.
May 2, 2025
CORTLAND, N.Y. – The Penn State Behrend men's track & field team had five athletes punch their ticket to finals in their respective events on the first day of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Conference Outdoor Championships on Friday, hosted by Cortland.
Key Moments:
* Ryan Festa (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) was named individual champion in the pole vault and claimed gold with a height of 14-11
* Sophomore Brandon Konieczki (Erie, PA/Harbor Creek) earned a bronze medal in the long jump with a distance of 22-5 ¾
* Carter Tobin (Irwin, PA/Norwin) qualified for finals in the 100m with a personal best time of 10.63 for second place in the prelims, followed by Konieczki in 17th (11.14)
* In the 400m prelims, Jake Egizio (Canonsburg, PA/Canon-McMillan) advanced to tomorrow's finals with a personal record time of 49.68 for eighth place, while Logan Brewer (South Park, PA/South Park) placed 19th with a time of 51.66
* Nicolin Pierce (Erie, PA/McDowell) qualified for finals in the 800m with a preliminary personal best time of 1:56.81 for fourth place, followed by Aiden Seeman (Edinboro, PA/General McLane) in ninth (1:58.01/PR), Kody Klein (North East, PA/Cathedral Prep) in 11th (1:58.51/SB),and David Gahagan (South Park, PA/South Park) in 20th (2:05.52)
* In the 400m hurdles prelims, Aidan Reinsel (North East, PA/North East) and Shlok Chavda (Chantilly, VA/Freedom South Riding) both advanced to finals with career best times of 58.37 and 59.50 for fifth and eighth place
* Dominic Marino (Girard, PA/Girard) tied his personal best time in the 110m hurdles prelims (15.60)
* Thrower Hayden Travers (Henrietta, NY/Rush-Henrietta) tallied a mark of 130-10 in the hammer for 19th place
* Behrend decathlon participants freshmen Cole Cunningham (Mercer, PA/Mercer) and Trent Turner (Selinsgrove, PA/Selinsgrove) sit in third (2623) and fifth (1435) after the first day of competition
* Cunningham recorded first in the 100m (11.57/PR), second in the shot put (29-6 ¾), second in the high jump (5-7 ¼), third in the long jump (18-7 ¼), and fourth in the 400m (1:00.66)
* Turner took fifth in the 100m (12.55/PR), long jump (15-4 ¾), shot put (23-0 ½), and 400m (1:05.11)
* As a team, the Lions stand in third out of seven teams with a score of 16
* The top-3 finishers in each event earn a spot on the SUNYAC All-Conference Team
* The m/w 200m prelims, m/w 10k, women's heptathlon 200m, women's hammer throw, and men's javelin were all postponed due to weather and will be moved to Saturday's event schedule
Up Next:
* Day two of conference championships begins tomorrow at 10 a.m.