Four different Crusaders picked up event victories on Saturday as the Valparaiso men’s track and field squad opened the indoor season at the Mastodon Opener in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Valpo took first place in three of the events on the track Saturday.  Sophomore Julian Smith (Chicago, Ill./Brother Rice) easily captured the 200m dash, crossing the line in 22.50 seconds, 0.53 seconds ahead of his closest competitor.  Sophomore Logan Coan (Chicago, Ill./Rich East) earned top honors in the 400m dash with a time of 51.86 seconds, while freshman Kevin Adamik (Elmhurst, Ill./York Community) crossed the line first in the 600m run with a time of 1:26.49, the third-fastest in Valpo history.

The Crusaders’ other victory came in the triple jump, as freshman Cy Badertscher (Janesville, Wis./Joseph A. Craig) won the event with a leap of 42’10 ¾”.  Redshirt junior Chris Hovan (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Christian) finished right behind Badertscher, placing second with a jump of 41’11 ¼”.  Elsewhere in the jumps, sophomore Sean Carey (Lockport, Ill./Lockport Township) cleared 12’ 11 ¾” in the pole vault to finish in fifth position.

Valpo’s effort in the throws was led by freshman Jacob Frey (St. Paul, Minn./Roseville Area), who finished fourth in his first collegiate meet in the shot put, registering a toss of 42’8 ¾”.  Junior Andrew Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) finished right behind Frey with a throw of 42’8”, good for fifth place.  Senior Bill Rixon (Deerfield, Ill./Deerfield) posted a fifth-place finish of his own in the weight throw, tossing the implement 49’3”.

The Crusaders’ 4x400m relay squad, comprised Saturday of Coan, freshman Ricky Laskowski (Dixon, Ill./Dixon), sophomore Mickey Delcambre (Westfield, Ind./Westfield) and freshman Josh Carow (Greenwood, Ind./Indianapolis Lutheran), finished in second place and was the top collegiate squad, posting a time of 3:29.33.  Sophomore Joe Holy (Bolingbrook, Ill./Joliet Catholic) registered a podium finish as well, crossing the line in the 400m dash with a time of 54.00, good for third place.

Valparaiso will now take over a month off for the holiday break before returning to the track, as the Crusaders will next compete in the Dick Pond Open in Romeoville, Ill. on Jan. 13.  The meet is slated for a 4 p.m. start.