BOSTON – Freshman Ryker Paradis (Lewiston, Maine) of the University of Southern Maine men's track & field team shattered his own program record in the shot put with a toss of 17.41m to win the event title on Sunday at the DIII New England Championships. Paradis the first Husky to win a Division III New England title in the shot put. His mark moves him into the top 15 in NCAA Division III this season.
 
Southern Maine recorded 31 points to finish 10th overall. The Huskies entered the day with 18 points after seniors Christian Burke (York, Maine) and Michael D'Amico (Belgrade Lakes, Maine/Messalonskee) placed first and second in the heptathlon on the first two days of the event.
 
Freshman Dylan Courtney (Hampden, Maine/Hampden Academy) also scored points for the Huskies by placing sixth in the pole vault with a mark of 4.60m to match his personal-best.
 
Track Event Highlights:

• The 4x800 relay team of senior Michael Cyr (Caribou, Maine), freshman Conner Smith (Durham, Maine/Freeport), senior Camden Bessey (Westbrook, Maine) and senior Aidan Pecoraro (Westbrook, Maine) placed 12th with a season-best time of 8:13.25.
• The team of Smith, Bessey, Pecoraro and Cyr also placed 15th in the distance medley relay with a time of 10:40.82.
• Senior Pashalis Pashalidis (Palo Alto, Cali) placed 16th in the 600 meters with a time of 1:25.94.

 
Field Event Highlights:

• Sophomore Tim Bowler (Danvers, Mass.) placed 13th in the weight throw with a toss of 15.40m.
• Freshman Tyler Bryant (South Portland, Maine) placed 17th in the high jump with a mark of 1.85m.

 
Up Next:
Qualified members of the team will compete at the New England Intercollegiate Amateur Athletic Association (NEICAAA) Championships at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston on March 6-7.