One of Hillsdale's most impressive indoor men's track and field records has fallen.
On Saturday, at the annual Hillsdale Tune-Up meet, sophomore Ben Haas surpassed the weight throw record set in 2010 by Jason Stomps of 21.55 meters with a throw of 21.78 meters to win the meet. The mark is not only a school record but the second-best mark in NCAA DII to date, with just one week of competition left before the NCAA DII national meet field is set.
Stomps won the 2010 indoor national title with his throw, making it one of the most impressive marks on the book at Hillsdale, but Haas has made it clear throughout the year that it was just a matter of time before the record felt. The sophomore had throws within .2 meters of Stomps' mark at two previous meets, but on his final throw on Saturday, he finally hit the mark he needed to make history.
Haas' history-making mark was one of several strong performances on the day for the Chargers men. Junior Cass Dobrowolski cleared a season-best 2.09 meters to win the high jump, moving him up to a tie for 21st in the nation in the event and putting him on the edge of earning his first-ever spot in the DII indoor national meet, though Dobrowolski likely will have to go higher at next week's G-MAC Championships to make the field.
The Chargers won several more events on Saturday. Connor McCormick took first in the pole vault with a season-best mark of 4.76 meters, and Ryan Van Havel won the long jump with a personal best mark of 5.97 meters.
On the track, junior Richie Johnston took first in the mile with a time of 4:16.68, with teammate Emil Schleuter finishing third in a personal best time of 4:31.46. The Chargers also went 1-2-3-4 in the 60m dash, led led by junior Owen Gardner, who won in a personal best time of 7.01, followed closely by senior Jamahl Burke in second with a time of 7.11 and Drew Ransom in third with a time of 7.16. Hillsdale also did well in the 200m dash, with Joseph Ritzer taking second in 22.57, and Ransom finishing third in 22.71.
Senior Sean Fagan placed second in the 60m hurdles in 8.35 for the Chargers, and Rhys Woodard won the 800m run in 2:03.40.
Hillsdale now turns its focus to the G-MAC Championship meet, next Friday and Saturday in Ashland, Ohio. Hillsdale will look for a strong team finish, and the meet also doubles as the final chance to improve provisional qualifying marks and book a ticket to the NCAA DII Indoor National meet in March.