TF RIT

Houghton, NY- The Houghton Highlanders competed in two events this weekend at the R.I.T Tiger Invitational Friday night, Feb. 2, and Saturday, Feb. 3 at the Cornell Invitational. Personnel records tumbled as 18 records including 3 school records fell during the two days of competition.

Sr. Joe Mason broke his own school record in the men's shot put with a throw of 49' 3.75" (previous mark was 48' 5.5"), Sr. Ryan Fadden broke the Men's 500m record set in 1994 by Jim Karcanes. Ryan's time was 1:07.48 which beat the previous time of 1:11.00. The Men's 4x400 relay team (Steve Scott, Dan Ballard, Chad Stauring and Ryan Fadden) broke the school record with a time of 3:31.53.

Joe Mason's shot put record was also a provisional qualifying mark for nationals. Joe threw 2 qualifying marks for nationals in the meet - 49' 0.5" and the school record 49' 3.75"

Athletes of the weekend include Bethany Christensen who PR'd in her 55m and 200m runs and was the top runner for the women in those events over the weekend; Ryan Fadden who broke the 500m record and anchored the 4x400 relay; Joe Mason who qualified for nationals in the shot put; Steve Scott who set significant PR's in his events as well as ran in the 4x400 relay; and, the Men's 4x400 relay team.

To date, the following have qualified for NAIA Indoor Nationals: Rachel Rhodes (3000m Race Walk), Ryan Fadden (800m), Joe Mason (Shot Put), and the Men's 4x800 Relay (Dan Ballard, Josiah Snelgrove, Chad Stauring, Ryan Fadden).

Houghton College has deep and solid roots in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, where our teams use their commitment to excellence, both on the field-of-play and in the classroom, as a platform for their strong and unique emphasis on Sports Ministry. Their goal is to make a difference for the Kingdom on campus, in Allegany County, in the Northeast and around the world. Houghton is one of only 13 institutions who have been hand-selected by the NAIA to serve as "Champions of Character" Program Centers, opening the door for Houghton to be a leader, both in the Northeast and nationally, in character education. Through hands-on, innovative community outreach initiatives, Houghton coaches and student-athletes are working together to change the culture of sport and to change our culture through sport.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- February 2 2007 CONTACT: Glyn Turner 585,567,9648

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- February 2 2007
CONTACT: Glyn Turner 585,567,9648