Saturday, May 01, 2010

Vince Liuzzo (Jamestown, N.Y./Jamestown) earned the event victory in the javelin throw Saturday, leading the Valparaiso men’s track and field team as it concluded the day’s action at the 2010 Horizon League Outdoor Championships in Lisle, Ill. in fourth place.

The Crusaders have tallied 27 points through the first two days of action to sit in fourth place out of the seven competing teams, aiming for their best finish since joining the league.  Milwaukee currently paces the team standings with 69 points.

Liuzzo, who finished second last year to teammate Brett Maynard in the javelin, took the top of the podium this year with a toss of 164’11”, surpassing by 12 feet the second-place finisher in the event.  The sophomore led a trio of Crusaders in the top-ten in the event, as Joe Spittzeri (Elburn, Ill./Kaneland) registered a season-best effort of 148’10” for a fourth-place showing, while Steve Schubert (Lisle, Ill./Benet Academy) finished tenth with a toss of 115’3”.

Valparaiso also picked up a second-place finish on the infield Saturday, as Jarrett Mickens (Aurora, Ill./Waubonsie Valley), who has stood out in the jumps all year, leapt to a runner-up placement in the long jump with a mark of 23’3 ¼”.  The Rixon brothers both recorded top-tens in the discus throw as well, with Bill Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) finishing in fifth place with a distance of 140’1”, while younger brother Andrew Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) posted a season-best toss of 135’5”, good for eighth place.

The Crusaders also picked up points on the track Saturday in the 3,000m steeplechase, with a career-best time of 9:36.99 from Jordan Piaskowy (Crete, Ill./Illiana Christian) being good for fifth place.  In the only other running final Saturday, Nick Fagan (Sycamore, Ill./Sycamore) paced Valpo with a 15th-place finish in the 10,000m run.

Mike Kash (Woodridge, Ill./Lemont Township) enjoyed a solid day in the hurdling events, posting season-best times of 16.74 in the 110m hurdles and 59.72 in the 400m hurdles to place among the top-nine in the preliminary heats in both events and qualify for Sunday’s event finals.  Ryan Ruppel (Grand Blanc, Mich./Grand Blanc) led the Valpo effort in both the 100m and 200m dashes, while Derek Schnake (Chicago, Ill./Lincoln Park) ran a career-best time of 1:56.97 in the 800m run to pace the Crusaders, but neither was able to advance beyond the preliminary heats.

Valparaiso concludes action at the league’s outdoor championships on Sunday.  The first event is scheduled for a 10 a.m. start.