UMF Men’s Track and Field Captures 1st NAC Championship in Program History

WATERVILLE — The University of Maine at Farmington men’s track and field team dominated the competition on Friday and Saturday, capturing the 2025 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championship. The win marks the Beavers’ first NAC Championship in program history.

The Beavers left no doubt, earning 227 points — 78 more than the runners-up from Thomas College. In total, the Beavers won nine events, including both relays, en route to the monumental victory.

The event kicked off Friday afternoon with two events: the pole vault and the high jump. Farmington got off to a fast start as Seamus Reeve (Kittery, Maine) scored ten huge points by earning the NAC title in the pole vault. Reeve cleared the 3.35-meter mark to capture first place, becoming the first Beaver in program history to win the pole vault at the NAC Championship. First-year Owen Booker (Lisbon, Maine) finished just behind Reeve, placing second overall after clearing the 3.20-meter mark on his first attempt.

In the high jump on Friday, Ben Vachon (Portland, Maine) set a program record and qualified for the New England Championship after clearing 1.90 meters. Vachon claimed second overall, earning eight big points. Booker placed sixth overall in the event after clearing the 1.80-meter mark.

Senior Justin Castaldo (Scarborough, Maine) earned a pair of victories on Saturday, winning NAC Championship titles in both the 1,500 and 800 meters. Castaldo ran away from the rest of the field in the 800 meters, finishing with a time of 1:58.17 — six seconds faster than the second-place finisher. In the 1,500 meters, Castaldo finished two seconds ahead of teammate Ethan Linscott (Lakeville, Maine), who took home second place. Castaldo posted a time of 4:10.21. As a team in the 1,500 meters, Farmington had four of the top six finishers: Castaldo (1st), Linscott (2nd), Alexander Gagnon (Goffstown, N.H.) (5th), and Jimmy Reel (Nashua, N.H.) (6th).

Linscott and Connor Freeman (Bath, Maine) also scored meaningful points in the 800 meters. Linscott finished third with a time of 2:07.77, while Freeman was fifth with a time of 2:11.41.

Farmington scored massive points in the 5,000 meters, with five of the six scoring runners being Beavers. Andrew LaFlamme (Nashua, N.H.) finished first with a time of 16:16.15, a second and a half faster than David Hileman of Husson, who placed second. Gagnon placed third (16:23.81), Reel was fourth (16:43.05), James Riley finished fifth (16:55.56), and Samuel Perkins (Jay, Maine) was sixth (17:19.54). In total, the five Beavers combined to earn 23 points in the event.

Nate Trussell (Berwick, Maine) had a strong day for Farmington, earning 26 individual points. He placed first overall in the 110-meter hurdles, second in the 100 meters, and second in the 400-meter hurdles. Trussell finished the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 16.11 seconds to take first place. He posted a time of 11.75 in the 100 meters to earn second place, and in the 400-meter hurdles, he finished just 0.11 seconds out of first, clocking in at 1:02.60.

Logan Burns (Islesboro, Maine) and Reeve placed third and fourth, respectively, in the 100 meters, combining for ten more points for Farmington. Burns finished with a time of 11.88 seconds, just ahead of Reeve’s 11.92-second finish.

Farmington’s distance runners continued their outstanding performance in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, sweeping the top three spots. LaFlamme finished first (10:58.45), Freeman was second (11:03.22), and Perkins third (11:08.09).

After his second-place finish on Friday, Vachon returned Saturday with two more strong performances. He placed second in the long jump (6.46 meters) and third in the triple jump (12.14 meters).

Burns and Booker also scored points in both the long jump and triple jump. Burns placed third in the long jump with a jump of 6.38 meters, and Booker was fifth at 6.30 meters. In the triple jump, Burns placed fifth (11.98 meters) and Booker was sixth (11.95 meters).

In the throws, sophomore Alex Crews (Winslow, Maine) had an impressive day. Crews was crowned NAC Champion in the shot put and took second in the hammer throw. His winning throw in the shot put measured 13.68 meters — more than six feet further than any other competitor. In the hammer throw, Crews’ best attempt was 40.85 meters.

The Beavers also dominated both the 4×100 and 4×400-meter relays. In the 4×100, the team of Trussell, Burns, Reeve, and Vachon posted a time of 44.41 seconds, over a second faster than Thomas College. In the 4×400, Burns, Booker, Linscott, and Castaldo posted a time of 3:41.46 to earn the top spot.

The Beavers will enjoy this historic win as they prepare for the New England Championships next weekend at the Coast Guard Academy.