PITTSFORD, NY – Competing in front of what is essentially a home crowd at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships, three University of Rochester men's track and field team members turned in solid performances on day one of the national meet at the Golisano Training Center on the campus of Nazareth University.
 
Rochester was represented by thrower Jordan Johnson, middle-distance runner Sean Hendricks and multi-event athlete Gabe Thyne, all seniors during Friday's opening day.
 
Johnson led off the day, competing in the weight throw in his first career NCAA appearance. During the opening flight, Johnson's opening toss of 18.44 meters pushed him to the top of the leaderboard after one round.
 
On his next two tosses, Johnson recorded marks of 17.63 meters and 18.24 meters, keeping his best distance from the opening toss. That mark put him fourth after the opening ten competitors.
 
Eventually, flight two would see eight more athletes pass up the UR senior, pushing Johnson down to 12th place overall in the 20-athlete field. With the finish, Johnson will earn Second Team All-America honors from the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).
 

Later in the afternoon, Hendricks turned in a masterful finish during the preliminary heats of the mile, advancing to Saturday's championship final. During the prelims, Hendricks recorded a time of 4:10.80, qualifying third of ten individuals advancing to the final.
 
The spot in the final was far from guaranteed though, with Hendricks sitting towards the back of the pack entering the final stretch on the track. The UR senior sprinted the final 50 meters harder than anyone in the opening 10-runner heat and swept towards the outside lanes, going from ninth place to third over the final 50 meters.
 
Hendricks' final lap split was a blistering 27.68 seconds over the 200-meter track, fueled by the final dash to the line. After the senior leaned over the line and saw he had advanced to the final, the UR fans in the crowd erupted, and elation from Hendricks ensued.
 
Thyne is competing in the grueling seven-event heptathlon for the third week in a row and sits 18th after day one and four events, scoring 2,609 points.
 
The seniors day one events were the 60 meters, long jump, shot put and high jump. Thyne opened the day with a 7.30 second time in the 60 meters, scoring 779 points towards his individual score. That mark was 14th in the field and was his top-scoring event on day one.
 
A 15th place jump of 6.40 meters in the long jump netted Thyne 675 points towards his total. Up next was the shot put, where Thyne tossed 10.56 meters, adding 519 points to his score. He closed out Friday's event schedule with a 1.81 meter clearance in the high jump, which translated to 636 points in the event scoring.
 
Joining Hendricks and Thyne on day two of competition will be fellow senior Cole Goodman in the triple jump.
 
Saturday's schedule opens with Thyne running the 60 meter hurdles at 10 am on Saturday. The pole vault will follow later in the morning, with the heptathlon concluding at approximately 4:45 pm.
 
The triple jump will start at 2:30 pm, with Goodman taking part in flight two. Hendricks' mile final will run on the track starting at 4 pm.