ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's track & field team competed across the valley at Alfred State College for the Alfred State Alumni Track & Field Open on Friday, April 18^th.
 
Finnegan Dean (Potsdam, NY/Potsdam Central) took first place in the 1500-meter run. Leading the race from the start, Dean crossed the finish line at an impressive time of 4:17.49 to achieve a new personal best. Teammate Damian Brown (Homer, NY / Homer) also ran his personal record time of 4:40.01 to finish in fifth.
 
Dean claimed another first place finish in his collegiate debut of the 400-meter hurdles. He won with a time of 1:01.04. Elijah Kahl (Glen Ridge, NJ / Glen Ridge), Kaden Funabashi (Portland, OR / Grant) and Jordan Annlee (Henrietta, NY / Rush-Henrietta) were neck and neck for the finish line. Kahl took third place with 1:04.64 followed by Funabashi in fourth with 1:05.07 and Annlee in fifth with 1:05.13.
 
Khamani Hunter Sr (Poughkeepsie, NY / FDR) added another win for the Saxons. He was the first to finish in the 100-meter dash at 11.30 seconds followed by Steve Cordell Hoskins III (Buffalo, NY / St. Joseph's Collegiate Institution) in third at a time of 11.80. Ahmad Yasir Majidy (Herat, Afghanistan / Quality Schools International Dushanbe) also competed in the 100-meter dash, placing 10^th at a time of 12.74 seconds. 
 
Hunter also claimed a first place finish in the 200-meter dash. He raced a time of 22.70 seconds while Hoskins took second on a personal best of 23.19. Kevin Voegelin (Allegany, NY/Allegany-Limestone) also competed in the event, racing in at 25.44 seconds. Jacob Taylor (Cohocton, NY / Avoca) joined the sprinters with a time of 27.01 seconds. 
 
First place was won for Jason Crocker (Oreland, PA/Springfield Township) in the discus throw and shot put. A throw of 39.62m (130'-0") gave him the discus throw win. In shot put, Crocker's throw of 14.72m (48'-3.5") landed him the event win. He also competed in the hammer throw, where he threw 37.12m (121'-9"), which landed him fourth place overall. Daimel Fowler (Baldwinsville, NY/Baker) joined him in the shot put, claiming sixth with a 12.31m throw (40'-4.75"). 
 
Jayden Noel (Brooklyn, NY / Automotive) beat his own personal record in the 400-meter dash. Noel finished in third place with 54.51 seconds on the clock. Voegelin took fifth with a time of 55.46.
 
Neil Peters (The Bronx, NY / DeWitt Clinton) competed in the long jump with teammates Sekou Camara (Conakry, Guinea/ICSA), Donovan Blackman and Crocker. Peters finished in third place with his furthest jump of 6.67m (21'-10.5"), which was a new personal best. He was followed by Camara, who registered 6.56m (21'-6.25") to finish fourth. Blackman took sixth with a personal best jump of 5.96m (19'-6.75").
 
In the 800-meter run, Jonathan Hodges (Kenmore, NY / Kenmore West) ran a personal record time of 2:01.10 to score fourth place against the 12 competitors. Taylor also ran a personal best time in the event after placing sixth with 2:02.50. Yuner Sesmas (Apollo, PA / Kiski Area) took ninth with 2:12.24 and Nick Erickson (Falconer, NY / Falconer Central) joined the Saxons in the race to run his personal best time of 2:19.65.
 
The Saxons took a first place finish in the 4x100-meter relay and 4x400-meter relay. Hunter, Riley Ciamarra (Cortlandt Manor, NY / Walter Panas), Hoskins and Peters led the Alfred "A" team to win the 4x100 meter relay with a time of 43.10 seconds. They were joined on the track by Alfred "B" team, composed of throwers Sesmas, Crocker, Gabe Simone (Acton, MA Landmark) and Fowler. The 4x400-meter relay team consisted of Hodges, Ciamarra, Noel and Peters. The Saxons won the race at a time of 3:27.51. 
 
"We had an outstanding day today," head coach Matt Phillips '10 said. "Our Saxons showed up and competed. It was so great to see all the family, friends and alumni showing their support. That truly goes a long way for the athletes. Thank you."
 
"I'm really proud of this team overall," volunteer assistant coach Connor Scriven '24 commented. "We had a lot of people try a lot of different events that they might not usually do, but it was great to see them go out there and give it their best and to see the rest of the team really support them in this too. We're at a point in the year that is really critical for us with Empire 8s coming up. I think this meet was exactly what we needed to head in the right direction."
 
The Saxons next travel to St. John Fisher University on Saturday, April 26^th, for the last regular season meet before the Empire 8 Outdoor Championships.