WESTFIELD, Mass. – Powered by 11 victories overall, the UMass Dartmouth men's track & field team dominated the 2025 Jerry Gravel Classic, hosted by Westfield State at Jerry Gravel Track. The Corsairs were aided by multiple wins from several student-athletes, including rookies
Ancil Alexander,
Bryce Tessier and
Zane Gordon.
Sophomore
Ronan Maloney won the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a time of 10:30.27, while rookie
Connor Bruni took third in 10:59.27. It marked the first collegiate action in the event for both runners.
In the 4x100-meter relay, the Corsairs saw the team of sophomore
Justin Andrade, rookies
Daniel Jordan and
Zane Gordon, along with junior
Jalen Castillo win with a time of 43.30. Next, in the 1,500-meter run, rookie
Michael Gemelli paced the way in fifth with a personal best time of 4:31.20. Junior
Cooper Blatz rounded out the action in seventh with a mark of 4:36.31.
Rookie
Bryce Tessier took the win in the 110-meter hurdles, crossing the finish in 16.06, while in the 400-meter dash, Gordon posted the victory with a time of 50.18 – a D3 New England qualifying mark. Jordan also finished strong in the 400m, earning fourth with a time of 51.78, while junior
Fernando Gaspar Rodriguez was 14th in 1:00.33.
In the 100-meter dash, Castillo paced the effort in fifth with a time of 11.80. Rookie
Jonathan Gourdine was seventh in 11.86 to round out the event. Next up was the 800-meter run, led by junior
James Christie who posted fifth in a personal best time of 2:06.66. Sophomore
Tyler Scanlon was right behind in sixth with a time of 2:07.13, while classmate
Ben Bairos was eighth in 2:08.89.
Tessier made it a two-time victory for the day, capturing the 400-meter hurdles to complete the hurdle sweep. He recorded a time of 57.22 which was also a D3 New England qualifying mark. Sophomore
Josh Kurutu placed sixth with a mark of 1:05.59.
In the 200-meter dash, Gourdine posted sixth overall in a personal best time of 23.54, while sophomore
RJ Stone was 12th in 24.11 – also a personal best time. Christie posted 23rd in 25.39 – his first collegiate running of the 200m - while Gaspar Rodriguez was 24th in 25.94.
The final event of the day, the 4x400-meter relay saw two teams in action for the Corsairs. Pacing the way was the foursome of Gourdine, Jordan, Stone and Gordon take first overall with a time of time of 3:27.43. The B relay of Christie, Scanlon, Bruni and Maloney finish sixth with a mark of 3:48.17.
The field events saw rookie
Kevin Saenz place third overall in the hammer throw with a personal best mark of 32.97 meters (108' 2"), while classmate
Mickey Valentino was seventh with a mark of 26.76 meters (87' 9").
In the shot put, rookie
Ancil Alexander continued his winning ways, taking the title with a personal best and D3 New England qualifying throw of 14.82 meters (48' 7.5"). Saenz was close behind in fourth with a throw of 12.74 meters (41' 9.75"). The pole vault saw rookie
Devin Nieves win with a height of 2.65 meters (8' 8.25") – marking his first collegiate attempt in the event.
The triple jump saw rookie
Scott Amin take the victory with a personal best distance of 13.36 meters (43' 10"), while in the long jump, Andrade posted fourth with a mark of 6.27 meters (20' 7"), followed by Nieves in sixth with a jump of 6.00 meters (19' 8.25").
In the high jump it was a 1-2-3 showing, paced by rookie
Sean Patrone, who took home the victory with a D3 New England qualifying height of 1.95 meters (6' 4.75"). Junior
Vincenzo Videtta was second with a mark of 1.95 meters (6' 4.75") – also a D3NE Qualifier – while Amin was third in the event with a mark of 1.85 meters (6' .75").
The final field event of the day saw another spectacular performance from Alexander as he captured his fourth straight discus throw title. He posted a mark of 52.42 meters (171' 11") which not only bested the school record – which he has reset twice since achieving it in the first week of the season – but will likely rank top-three in Division III following the weekend. Saenz also finished strong, posting seventh with a mark of 35.69 meters (117' 1") -
UMass Dartmouth is back in action next weekend, traveling to Medford, Mass., to compete at the Tufts Sunshine Classic on Saturday.
