YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The IUPUI men's track team's distance crew continued its stellar effort on the second and final day of the #HLTF Indoor Championships on Sunday (Feb. 25), powering a fifth-place finish among the eight competing schools. 

The Jaguars accumulated 45 points while only scoring in three events - the mile, 3K and 5K - and the two relays. 

"It was a fast and gutsy weekend for the program. We went into this weekend with the intention of running from the front and refusing to let any race go tactical," head coach Justin Roeder said. "Our front running style led to 13 athletes seasonal bests and 11 lifetime bests. I'm proud to see their grit and excited to see them continue to excel outdoors."

The Jaguars stacked up points in the 3,000m event as Andrew Whitinger and Eric Petersen took the second and third spots, respectively. Whitinger led for much of the race, doing the heavy lifting out front, before succumbing on the final lap to Youngstown State's Ryan Meadows, who clocked a Horizon League facility record time of 8:11.86. Whitinger also went under the previous league and facility record with a time of 8:13.77, setting a new personal best mark by a second. Petersen crossed at 8:16.97 to take three seconds off his prior best. 

Mitchell Gits finished eighth overall with a personal best time of 8:23.90 to contribute to the team point total. Nick Perkins won the slower of the two heats in a time of 8:32.21. 

"I'm so happy for AJ seizing the runner-up position in both the 5,000 and 3,000-meter, shattering previous conference records," Roeder said. "Equally noteworthy is Eric, claiming a well deserved third-place finish in the 3,000-meter event."

In the mile, freshman Luke Shappell put on a show with a personal best time of 4:11.56, finishing third in his championship debut. Will Clark ran a personal best time of 4:16.55 to finish 12th overall. Freshman Nolan King ran a personal record time of 4:23.51, placing 15th overall. 

"The spotlight extends to Luke, whose remarkable performance anchored the DMR with a blistering 4:08 split and he continued this momentum into day two, securing a remarkable third-place in the mile with a lifetime best," Roeder said. 

IUPUI added two more points with a seventh-place finish in the 4x400 relay as the group of Jay Pillai, Noah Price, Alex Alba and Connor Murphy spun a time of 3:27.13, breaking the school record by two seconds. 

"I can't forget to mention our school record breaking performances in both the DMR and 4x400 relays," Roeder said. "I couldn't have asked for a better way to wrap up the indoor season."

The Jaguars will turn attention to outdoor season, beginning with the Blizzard Buster at Miami (Ohio) on Mar. 22.