Senior Jarrett Mickens (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley) surpassed his own school record en route to winning the long jump Saturday as the Valparaiso men's track and field squad competed at the Stan Lyons Invitational in Indianapolis, Ind.

Mickens added over four inches to his previous personal best and school record in the long jump, leaping 24'6 1/2” to earn the event victory over a 30-athlete field by four inches.  The Crusaders had a pair of athletes finish in the top-11 in the triple jump as well, as senior Steve Schubert (Naperville, Ill./Benet Academy) placed fifth with a season-best leap of 45'3”, while sophomore Chris Hovan (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Christian) jumped 41'0 1/4”, a season best as well and good for 11th place.

Sophomore Andrew Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) posted a pair of top-20 finishes in the throws Saturday, including a ninth-place effort in the javelin throw as he unleashed a toss of 147'7”.  Rixon finished 20th as well in the shot put, registering a mark of 42'11”, while his older brother, Bill Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield), placed 21st in the hammer throw with a toss of 157'9”.

Another season-best effort on the infield came courtesy of freshman Sean Carey (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township), as the rookie cleared 13'1 1/2” in the pole vault, tying for 23rd place.  Sophomore Charlie Walesa (Chicago, Ill./Luther North) added a 16th place finish in the high jump as he cleared 5'8 3/4”.

On the track, freshman Julian Smith (Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice) stood out with a pair of top-five finishes in large fields in the sprints.  Smith ran to a fourth-place finish in the 200m dash Saturday, crossing the line in 22.07 seconds.  The freshman also added a fifth-place showing in the 100m dash with a time of 11.12 seconds.  Sophomore Wally Bradford (Mukwonago, Wis./Mukwonago) narrowly missed Valpo's all-time top-five in the 1,500m run, crossing the line with a PR of 3:57.25, good for 12th place.

Valparaiso heads to the Horizon League Outdoor Track and Field Championships next weekend.  The three-day meet begins in Indianapolis on Friday afternoon, May 6, at 1 p.m. CDT.