The Missouri Southern men’s track and field team returned to action last weekend in its first meet of the new year, hosting the two-day 2015 MSSU Open on Mercy Track Meet inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.

“It’s our first meet back from break so we’re just trying to see where everybody’s at and go from there,” said assistant coach Jamie Burnham. “Our goal is just to have everybody run a good race and finish their event to get some motivation for our next time out.”

The team’s last outing was the season-opening MSSU Early Bird Invite on Dec. 6, 2014.

During the first day of the Open on Mercy meet, sophomore thrower Bryan Burns earned a provisional, finishing second in the weight throw by heaving the weight a distance of 56-04.75. Junior thrower Nicklas Polizzi finished sixth with a length of 52-02.00. Meanwhile, senior sprinter Jeff Fraley qualified first, collecting a provisional in the prelims of the 60m dash in a time of 6.79. Junior sprinter Erron Holley narrowly missed out on qualifying for the finals, running a time of 7.09 in his leg of the prelims.

Day two of the meet brought more success for Fraley as he bested his prelim time by .03 to win the 60m dash.

Fraley wasn’t done; he decided to run his first career race in the 600-yard dash. Call it beginner’s luck or pure athleticism, either way, Fraley impressed, finishing with a time of 1:13.83, just one second off the school record for the event and good for fourth place.

“My goal was to break the record in the 600,” said Fraley. “I’ve got a good shot at both the 400 and the 60 for nationals and that’s my goal, national champ. We all want to win conference; I think we all should win conference. Staying healthy is the biggest thing.”

Members of the team recently elected Fraley and fellow senior Jacob Rowe as team captains in their final season.

“My goal today was just to work on technique and positions and get ready for the tail end of conference,” said Rowe, who finished second in the long jump. “I feel better than I have for a while; my goal is to jump big, qualify for nationals, get a big team at nats, and win conference.”

As Fraley and Rowe come to the end of their college careers, they are looking to go out with a bang.

“It’s sad all the fun is coming to an end,” said Rowe. “The team camaraderie will be gone, but it’s helping a lot because I appreciate it even more.”

The Lions will be back on the track today for the UCM invitational in Warrensburg.