MISSOULA, Mont. -- Saturday was another record-breaking day for the Montana Tech track & field program thanks to Cade VanVleet, and the Oredigger men rolled to a victory at University of Montana's Al Manuel Invitational. 

VanVleet shattered his previous mark in the men's discus, hurling it 51.14 meters on his way to victory in the event and an NAIA 'B' standard. The junior from Noxon topped his prior record from May 2023 by nearly 2.5m. 

VanVleet also took home victory in the shot put with his 16.47m toss, totaling 10 of the Diggers' 173 points en route to the meet win. Rocky Mountain was 19.5 points back as the runner-up. On the women's side, Tech tallied 96 team points for a third-place finish in the six-team field. The host Grizzlies scored their own dual meets with Montana State, and neither NCAA Division I institution was included in the Al Manuel standings. 

The Orediggers piled up five event wins on the men's side — two for VanVleet, Matthew Moreni in the 400m hurdles (54.97), Carter Henke in the 400m dash (50.65), and Jack Perry in the high jump (1.92m). Both Moreni and Perry moved into second on the Diggers' all-time leaderboard in their respective events. 

Tech swept the medals in the 400m hurdles. Adam Schrader took second behind Moreni in 55.70, and Morgan McClernan was third at 57.40. 

Abby Clark led the way for the Oredigger women, taking top honors in the high jump with a 1.62m leap. The senior's jump was just .05m off her own program record. 

Bella Bermingham (1,500m, 5:22.45), Alyssa Jany (3,000m Steeplechase, 11:41.12), and Ava Epler (Shot put, 11.49m) recorded runner-up finishes for Tech. Epler's toss moved her to second all-time in the program record book, and Jany improved her own hold on third in the Steeplechase. 

Montana Tech will continue the track & field season Thursday, April 10 at the Providence Open in Great Falls. 

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