NEW LONDON, Conn.— Junior Julian Ivarra (Plano, Texas) finished fifth in the 5000 meters and senior Eric Bottern (St. Paul, Minn.) and sophomore Max Gregoire (Tyngsborough, Mass.) took sixth place in their events to highlight a number of strong performances on the opening day of competition at the Silfen Track & Field Invitational at Connecticut College on Friday.

Ivarra finished fifth in the 5000 with a time of 15:12.53, just two seconds off his season best. Gregoire recorded a top-10 finish by placing sixth in the 800 meters with a time of 1:57.60.

Bottern placed sixth in the discus with a season-best throw of 135-feet, 8-inches that ranks as the second-best mark in his career and the third-best in program history. Sophomore Joseph Addotta (Ridgefield, Conn.) came in 13th in the discus with a throw of 117-feet, 9-inches.

First-year Almond Nickerson IV (Darien, Conn.) placed ninth in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a season-best time of 10:09.61, and classmate Nico Manolakos (Shrewsbury, Mass.) finished 17th in the 800 with a time of 2:00.27.

The second day of competition at the Silfen Invitational begins on Saturday at 10 a.m.