NORTHAMPTON, Mass.  –  Westfield State junior John Nekitopoulos won the 1000 and the 3000 meters to lead the Owls' men's track and field team's results at the 2024 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Indoor Track and Field Championship on Saturday afternoon at Smith College.

Nekitopoulos got his steps in for the day as he won the 1000 meters in 2:44:09 and the 3000 meters in a time of 9:30.45.  He placed second in the mile run, and ran the anchor leg of the Owls winning 4x800 relay team.

Rowan Gottschall took second place in the 600 (1:27.89), with teammates Nick Hanley, Alphonso Lopez and Colin Mahoney all scoring points in the event by placing in the top six.

The Owls also scored well in the 3000, where Abdi Nassir took third and Tyler Meunier sixth behind Nekitopoulos.

Other top scorers for Westfield included Ali Warsame who placed third in the triple jump, and John Ware, who was third in the 60 hurdles

Both the 4x200 and the 4x400 relay teams placed second.

The Owls finished second in the team scoring with 139 points.   Bridgewater State won the meet with 263 points, racking up their points in the 200 and 400, and the throwing events.  Fitchburg was third with 99, and Worcester State fourth with 35.