Franklin men's track and field concluded the HCAC Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Saturday, finishing with 86 points to claim fifth place.

Freshman Joe Johnson returned for day three, competing in the javelin. Johnson tossed 61.18 meters (200 feet, 8 inches), taking the gold medal by five meters. His mark also breaks his own school record, sets an HCAC meet record, and currently puts him 16th in Division III.

The men's 4x100 relay, consisting of freshman Myles Baker, Logan Page, Gabriel Gomes and sophomore Brayden Wilkins, crossed the line in 42.36 seconds to claim second place. That time puts them at number three in school history.

In the men's 1,500-meter run, junior Nathan Furnish secured eighth place with a new personal best of 4:06.48.

Wilkins returned later in the meet for the 100-meter dash, where he crossed in 10.86 to collect the title of Fastest Man in the HCAC. Baker, after being projected not to score in the event, finished in sixth (11.08). Wilkins came back for the 200, running 21.42 for a new personal best and the gold medal. That mark breaks a school record set in 1998 and puts him at number three in conference history. As of now, he holds the 27th-best mark in Division III.

The 400-meter squad claimed two of the top six spots in the final. Steven Scott ran a season-best 49.36 to take third place, while freshman teammate Austin Menefee crossed in sixth (51.12).
Junior Russell Bilohlavek ran a 57.11 in the 400 hurdles to position himself on the podium in third place. His mark puts him fifth in school history.

Sophomore William Hirsch rounded out the scoring for the meet in the 5,000, going 15:26.72 to place second.

At the end of the meet, Wilkins was tabbed as the HCAC Sprinter of the Year award. The last Grizzly to claim that title was Brandon Welti in 2008. Not to be outdone, Johnson snagged the conference's Newcomer of the Year award. Georard Mitchell, in 2010, had been the last Grizzly to be so honored.

Franklin athletes will now set their sights on last-chance qualifying meets in hopes of advancing to the NCAA Division III outdoor championships.