MIDDLEBURY, Vt. -- The Bates distance medley relay team took fourth place and senior captain Charlie Hansen matched his personal record in the pole vault on the first day of the New England Division III Indoor Championships for the men's track and field team. 

Senior John Mieszczanski (Chelmsford, Mass.), senior Garrett Evans (Sauquoit, N.Y.), first-year Aidan Rooney (Bay Shore, N.Y.), and sophomore Ned Farrington (Cohasset, Mass.) combined to race to the finish in 10:13.47. The three teams ahead of them all broke the previous meet record in the event of 10:10.99, which had stood for 12 years. The fourth-place finish for Bates was good for five points. 

In the pole vault, Hansen (Washington, D.C.) cleared the bar at 4.30 meters, matching a personal record he set last week at the Bowdoin Invitational. His performance was good for a tie for eighth place and a half point for Bates.

The heptathlon also got underway on Friday, with senior captain Liam Evans (Sauquoit, N.Y.) placing second in the shot put (10.91 meters), third in the 60 meter dash (7.41 seconds), fifth in the high jump (1.75 meters), and ninth in the long jump (5.77 meters).

The majority of the events take place Saturday, with the Bobcats hoping to pick up big points in the throws early on at 10:30am all the way through the 4x800 relay at 2:30pm. Bates is currently in sixth place out of 13 scoring teams overall.