IOWA CITY, Iowa - Western Illinois track & field returned from a month-long layoff to compete at the Iowa Open on Saturday afternoon at the UI Recreation Building.

Junior Nathaniel Marshall led the way for the Leathernecks, winning the weight throw with a career-best toss of 62-01.00, also the second-best in program history. The mark is  good for the 15th-best in Division I this season, as well.

Senior Dana LaRue won the shot put with a throw of 48-05.50. She also set a new career mark in the weight throw with a toss of 60-03.00, moving her into fourth in program history.

In the 1,000-meter run, senior Chelsea Lynes finished in 2:59.57 to win her first event of the 2012-13 season.

Freshman Brandon Clabough picked up his first collegiate victory by clearing 13-11.25 in the pole vault.

Western also received four more second-place finishes, one apiece from freshman Haley Calvert, senior Jamario Taylor, sophomore Jared Rohn, and junior Leonard Overstreet.

Calvert's leap of 34-04.00 in the triple jump was good for second in her collegiate debut.

Taylor, who currently ranks in the top 20 nationally in the high jump, finished second with a jump of 6-10.75.

In the pole vault, Rohn finished just behind Clabough by clearing 12-11.50.

Overstreet rounded out Western's top-two finishes with a leap of 22-02.50 in the long jump.

Myelle Vann narrowly missed her first collegiate win, finishing the 400-meter dash in 1:00.97, less than three-quarters of a second behind the winner.

The Leathernecks will be back in action next weekend, as the team travels to the University of Illinois Invitational on Saturday, marking the first meet to which the full squad will travel.

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