PHILADELPHIA – Graduate student Zach Michon tore down a 35-year-old school record in the 5000m and graduate student Justin Moscoe (400m), graduate student John Walker (1500m), and junior Kyle Magee (400m hurdles) won their events to lead the Saint Joseph's men's track and field squad at the unscored Penn Challenge, held at Penn's Franklin Field on Saturday evening.
 
Michon didn't waste any time in his return to the track, cruising through his 5000m race in 13:53.05 to take home the new program record in the event; the previous record (13:57.94) was set by Steve Ave in 1986. The graduate student standout improved upon his previous PR in the event (14:10.53, April 2019) by 17.48 seconds en route to a second-place finish in a field of 23, missing the win to Penn's Ryan Renken by just .27 seconds.
 
"When the pandemic got bad last spring and shut down all of the spring sports, I didn't know it was going to be over a full year before I would race again," reflected Michon following his record-breaking performance. "Running the school record in the 5k in my first race after all of this time feels like such a reward for my constant hard work. I knew that when the opportunity to get back on the track came, I would be extra hungry to race. I had a very good idea of where my fitness was going into the race, and it was a blessing to be given the opportunity to run fast in a race that was set up to do so."
 
Michon came back for his final year of eligibility for a chance at the big stage. Saturday's race was a big step in that direction.
 
"I'm glad to have posted a solid time for NCAA regionals early on in the season to remove that burden from my shoulders. Today gave some great results all around, and I'm so happy to be back doing what I love with the team. Also, shoutout to Matt Scarpill for some immaculate pacing."
 
All three of SJU's individual champions turned in collegiate-best performances in their events.
 
Moscoe took home the 400m title in a 48.69, crossing first in the field of nine to take home his fifth collegiate victory, and first on the outdoor scene.
 
In his first race back since November 2, 2019, Walker made a statement as the graduate student crossed the 1500m in a collegiate-best time of 3:47.74 to edge out four Penn runners for the title in a field of 25. The win marked the sixth of Walker's career and his first in the 1500m.
 
Magee recorded a collegiate-best 400m hurdles time of 54.54 to place first in the field of six, taking home the second 400m hurdles win of his career and third overall victory.
 
Notable performances out of the returners came from senior Sebastian Eaton (200m, 22.43) and junior Kris Edobi (400m, 49.79), both of whom won their sections en route to fifth-place finishes.

In his collegiate debut, freshman Patrick Fehm earned a pair of top-three finishes, placing second in a high jump field of nine (6' 4 3/4" PR) and third in a triple jump field of seven (45' 1 3/4" PR).
 
In their collegiate debuts, freshman John Salt placed third in the long jump field of seven (21' 10" PR) and sixth in the 110m hurdles (17.65 PR) while freshman Donald Adams placed fourth in both the 100m (11.21 PR) and long jump (21' 8 3/4" PR). Freshman Tommy Johnson added a sixth-place finish in the 800m (1:58.09 PR).
 
Saint Joseph's returns to action next Saturday, April 3 at the Penn Big 5 Meet. Start time at Penn's Franklin Field in Philadelphia is set for noon.