The Middlebury men's track and field team tallied first-place finishes in 11 of its 13 events and second place in the other two at the inaugural Luke Hotte Track and Field Meet from Virtue Field House on Saturday. The invitational featured several programs from around the region and utilized a non-scoring team format.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Tony Wang secured the team's first event title with a 6.30-meter leap in his final attempt during the long jump. Toby Warmack (6.17m) and Jed Nelson (5.95m) rounded out the top finishers.
• Drew McStay and Caleb Smith split first-place laurels in the high jump. Each Panther cleared 1.82m on their respective first leaps.
• Benjamin Prestes stopped the clock in 4:20.89 to grab first place in the mile. Owen Johnson (4:21.78) and Cameron Miles (4:24.88) earned top-three finishes in second and third, respectively.
• Quinn Kennedy blazed through the 60 hurdles, claiming first with a time of 8.32 seconds and finishing just shy of the program record by four-hundredths of a second. Smith tallied a runner-up clocking by crossing the line in 8.75 seconds.
• Wyatt Lawton's time of 50.51 seconds in the 400 led the pack, with second and third places secured by Emerson Kington (50.68) and Nate Gardner (51.50).
• Donnell Harvey Jr., Aidan Castanon and Nelson swept the top-three slots in the 60. Harvey Jr. crossed the line in 7.11 seconds, with Castanon (7.14) and Nelson (7.29) close behind.
• Jack Ulrich and Jakob Kuelps led the charge in the 800, separated by the narrowest of margins. Ulrich clocked a 2:00.61, while Kuelps crossed a blink later at 2:00.62.
• Another Panther pair headlined the 200. Gardner completed his race in 22.93 seconds, while Ryan Thompson clocked in at 23.43 seconds.
• Prestes claimed his second win in the 3,000 with a clocking of 8:33.25. Ethan Sholk (8:39.37) and Johnson (8:41.40) took second and third, respectively.
• The quartet of Lawton, Kington, Thompson and Sebastian Pantzer wrapped up the 4x400 relay in 3:28.83 to claim gold.
• The pole vault was headlined by Benoit Skilton, who made his way over the bar at 4.10m to secure first place. Smith (3.95m) and Tyler Drummey (3.65m) soared to second and third, respectively.
• Kennedy also earned a runner-up finish in the shot put, logging a 12.81m toss on his first foray into the circle. Sam Spector logged a heave of 15.30m in his first effort during the weight throw to finish second.

NOTES

• The invitational's namesake, Luke Hotte, passed away last year after serving as the assistant track and field coach for 31 years. He contributed to 27 individual NESCAC champions, six conference championship teams and six individual NCAA champions.
• Kennedy and Prestes set personal bests in the mile and 60 hurdles, respectively. Prestes also set a new career time in the 3,000.

Middlebury returns to action on Sunday, February 1, when it hosts the New England Small College Invitational from The TRACK at New Balance in Boston, Mass.