Tuesday, April 30, 2019

The long chain of goodbyes




As we bid farewell to April (although it sure felt like early March today) and welcome in the month of May (which will feel like early April, according to the forecasts!), we enter those few weeks that I refer to as the long series of goodbyes for our graduating seniors, culminating in a few weeks with commencement (graduation). Or, as Billy Joel once sang: "Life is a series of hellos and goodbyes, I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again." On Tuesday, it was the first of the "lasts" as several (but not all) seniors had their "last" track workout. There were "retirement balloons" for Jess and Hannah and the men organized "throwback singlet day" today. Not everyone was doing a track workout so it wasn't the full team thing that we've had in the past, but it was representative enough, as you can see in these many photos. After having been through this "Goodbye Season" for decades, the best advice I can give our soon-to-be graduates is to savor every moment ... every "last" there is, because these are moments and days that will last (pun intended) a lifetime. And for our non-seniors? Same advice: Savor every moment, because your own "lasts" will be here before you know it.

Sunday, April 28, 2019

Big PR for Katie Miale at 20km racewalk


Congrats to senior racewalker Katie Miale for noticing a personal-best time by 5 minutes, 30 seconds for the 20km distance, with a time of 1:50:58 in New Jersey on Sunday morning. In so doing, she inches closer to the Olympic Trials standard of 1:48:00, already achieved by her teammates Lauren Harris and Kayla Shapiro. This big jump will give her a big boost of confidence. “I’m glad I put myself out there and I think I can get the standard the next time around,’’ she wrote in a post-race text along with these splits and this photo.

USATF-NJ 20km racewalk championships
Harry Wright Lake, Whiting, NJ
Katie Miale 1:50:58
1,250-meter lap splits: 6:35, 6:31, 6:36, 6:37, 6:40, 6:47 (first 10km = 53:09); 6:41, 6:53, 6:50, 7:04, 7:22, 7:34, 7:54, 7:31 (second 10km = 57:49)


Yale Springtime Invitational: Men's/women's results and splits

The meet is called the Yale "Springtime" Invitational, but rarely does it feel like "springtime" at Yale for this meet, despite it being the last Sunday in April. Once again, it was damp, rainy and downright chilly toward the end. Fortunately, it was a quick meet and we are already on the way home now, which will enable us to get plenty rested and ready for our upcoming championship meets. A few strong performances today, with sprinters Camille McHenry and Jeremy Mooney both posting excellent races in the 100 and 200 dashes, and PR times from Jill Laliberte and Talia Cutrone in the 1,500. And we were visited by Marist Running Royalty in Will and Britt Griffin, who raced the 5k/3k respectively. There are no better human beings on the planet than Will and Britt, and it is always truly wonderful to see them. 

Yale Springtime Invitational
New Haven, CT
Sunday, April 28, 2019
Women’s results and splits
100-meter dash
5. Camille McHenry 12.97
200-meter dash
5. Camille McHenry 26.20
400-meter dash
2. Debbie Boerke 59.24
1,500-meter run
12. Jill Laliberte 5:00.09
79, 2:40 (81), 4:03 (83), 5:00.09 (57.09)
14. Talia Cutrone 5:00.93
80, 2:41 (81), 4:04 (83), 5:00.09 (56.09)
19. Kayla Sexton 5:12.74
75, 2:37 (82), 4:06 (89), 5:12.74 (1:06.74)
3,000-meter run
7. Brittany Griffin (Sound Runner Racing/Marist alum) 10:30.91
400-meter hurdles
1-Debbie Boerke 1:03.95
Men’s results and splits
100-meter dash
6. Jeremy Mooney 11.40
200-meter dash
6. Jeremy Mooney 22.87
400-meter dash
12. Andrew Lafferty 56.30
800-meter run
7. Cole Ziskind 2:00.58
9. Aidan Sweeney 2:01.81
1,500-meter run
5. James Draney 4:08.68
63, 2:09 (66), 3:17 (68), 4:08.68 (51.68)
6. Brad Rynkowski 4:08.78
63, 2:09 (66), 3:17 (68), 4:08.78 (51.78)
8. Dan Hillman 4:13.35
64, 2:10 (66), 3:19 (69), 4:13.35 (54.35)
5,000-meter run
9. Will Griffin (Sound Runner Racing/Marist alum) 16:04.62
73, 2:29 (76), 3:45 (76), 5:02 (77)
6:19 (77), 7:37 (78), 8:56 (79), 10:14 (78)
11:34 (80), 12:53 (79), 14:11 (78), 15:28 (77)
16:04.62 (36.62)
11. Will Esposito 16:23.01
73, 2:28 (75), 3:45 (77), 5:03 (78)
6:20 (77), 7:40 (80), 9:00 (80), 10:22 (82)
11:44 (82), 13:06 (82), 14:28 (82), 15:45 (77)
16:23.01 (38.01)
1,600-meter relay
3. Marist (Jon Green 55.03, Cole Ziskind 53.01, Andrew Lafferty 57.08, Aidan Sweeney 54.78) 3:39.89

Saturday, April 27, 2019

Penn Relays: Lauren Harris gets 2nd in racewalk!



It was a great morning at Penn Relays for sophomore racewalker Lauren Harris, who shattered her previous personal-best at 5,000 meters by 54 seconds! Lauren got second in the Olympic Development race in a highly competitive time of 23:23.89. Afterwards, she was interviewed about her race. Our racewalkers continue to be great ambassadors for our school and our program. Very exciting.

Penn Relays
Franklin Field, Philadelphia
Saturday, April 27, 2019
Olympic Development 5,000-meter racewalk
2. Lauren Harris 23:23.89
5. Kayla Shapiro (unattached/Walk USA) 25:22.87

Penn Relays: Men's 4x400 relay scratched

A last-minute injury to our leadoff leg for the men's 4x400 meter relay led to our scratching the event. Coach Horton (and the relay) did NOT travel to Philly on Friday, thus avoiding the rain, wind and tornado warning as well! It's a bummer that the guys couldn't experience Penn Relays, but it's probably for the best as we focus on upcoming championships.

Friday, April 26, 2019

Penn Relays: Thursday night distance results

Highlight of the evening was sophomore Maria Smith's ECAC qualifying mark in the 3,000-meter run, inching closer to the school record in the event. It's always great to be at Penn Relays for the Thursday night distance races. While our other athletes fell a bit short of their pre-race goals, we are always proud of their representation of our school and our program at this portion of the historic meet.


Penn Relays
Franklin Field, Philadelphia
April 25, 2019
Thursday night distance race results
Women’s 3,000-meter run
14. Maria Smith 9:55.97 *ECAC qualifier
76, 2:36 (80), 3:55 (79), 5:15 (80)
6:36 (81), 7:58 (82), 9:17 (79), 9:55.97 (37.97)
21. Denise Grohn 10:32.05
77, 2:37 (80), 3:56 (79), 5:19 (83)
6:47 (88), 8:18 (91), 9:49 (91)
10:32.05 (43.05)
Women’s 5,000-meter run
37. Hayley Collins 17:14.74
82, 2:43 (81), 4:05 (82), 5:26 (81)
6:49 (83), 8:11 (82), 9:35 (84), 10:58 (83)
12:21 (83), 13:45 (84), 15:09 (84), 16:33 (84)
17:14.74 (41.74)
Men’s 5,000-meter run
88. Palmer Weimann 15:27.79
74, 2:27 (73), 3:35 (68), 4:45 (70)
5:57 (72), 7:10 (73), 8:25 (75), 9:39 (74)
10:56 (77), 12:15 (79), 13:32 (77), 14:49 (77)
15:27.79 (38.79)

Monday, April 22, 2019

What’s next: Penn Relays and Yale

Busy schedule continues with the following: Penn Relays on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and Yale Springtime Invitational on Sunday. On Thursday night, we have four athletes competing: Maria Smith and Denise Grohn in the women’s 3km (8:25 p.m. start); Hayley Collins in the women’s 5km (8:40 p.m. start); Palmer Weimann in the men’s 5km (9:20 p.m. start). On Friday afternoon, our men’s 4x400 relay team will take to the Franklin Field track, with the tentative lineup slated to be Santosh Krishnan, Tanner Senius, Matthew Hawker and Josh Hindle. And finally on Saturday morning, racewalkers Lauren Harris and Kayla Shapiro (unattached) will tackle the 5km distance at 8 a.m. And then on Sunday, a small, partial squad will head off to nearby New Haven for the annual post-Penn meet at Yale. And then? A week later, it’s the MAAC Outdoor Championships, this year at Monmouth, on May 4-5.

Gregg takes to the trails in a big way





Got these photos and an email from Marist Running Alum Bryan “Gregg” Buttigieg (no relation to the presidential candidate!) from the Pacific Northwest, where he won his first trail race, the Spring Run for Fun at Redmond Watershed. Gregg ran the 5.02-mile course in 31:06, 1:01 off the course record, and filed this race report: “It was real neat! This dude went out blazing and I reeled him in at mile 3. It was an old growth forest, not too rooty, not super wide of a trail, kinda windy, rolling hills, packed down dirt today. Perfect conditions ~ 50 degrees sunny trail was shaded. I think I’ll get into this trail racing scene.” That new Marist singlet is looking good, Gregg! See you this summer.

Duggan sighting … in Baltimore



You never know when and where Marist Running Alum Will Duggan will appear. During his four years here, he would randomly appear and disappear at a moment’s notice (his teammates know exactly what I’m talking about), and apparently the same is true post-graduation. Earlier this month, Duggan showed up in LizzyLand (aka Baltimore), as I got the following photos and texts from Marist Running Alum Lizzy Peper: “Hi Pete! Had a surprise run in with Duggan at the Sole of the City 10K - a race in Baltimore with 4,000+ runners that is put on by Charm City Run and starts and finishes from one of our stores. He won first in the 20-24 age group and we both enjoyed post-run Natty Bohs (a classic Baltimore beer). It really is a small world and was great to see the Marist logo again!”

Happy Earth Day. Emphasis on “happy”


Today, apparently, is Earth Day. Wonderful concept and thoughts. I endorse them all. I especially endorse THIS: At all your friendly Stewart’s Shops (and, let’s face it, is there a more friendly place on the planet than Stewart’s?), you get FREE coffee if you bring in your own refillable mug. In celebration of Earth Day. Free joe on the go. All day. Tremendous.

Ghost of my former self


Met the boys – Schneider and Davey O – for a 7-mile run last week, slightly longer for a Friday. This was a different loop for a quiet Friday, from a rural elementary school, one that took us on hilly dirt roads in breathtakingly beautiful horse and farm country in the town of Pleasant Valley. Reminded us all why we love Dutchess County so much. Dave O’s got a new toy, a fully functioning Garmin watch (his previous Apple running watch was about as reliable as bad weather forecasts), and now he’s on Strava (social media for runners), which means he actually cares about the run’s statistics because he posts them for all the world to see. As I said, this is a hilly run, on dirt roads (see Strava stats above). Hills are not my forte, but I did my best hanging with the boys this morning. In the latter stages of the run, the last long pull just took the life out of my legs – not an unusual occurrence, as I am the caboose of this small running group. Dave O took off – gotta pad those Strava stats! – and Schneider was nice enough to do a ‘mon back (circling back to collect the detritus of this slow, washed-up body). Schneider’s a great, kind soul and a good friend, but he also knows how to push my washed-up running legs. My breathing was still labored as the road flattened out. But he wouldn’t let me settle into some default, deadbeat 10-minute pace. He kept pushing and my breathing took a long time to settle. Finally, it settled into a steady hum fast pace, one in which I could talk to him in measured gasps. And then it hit me, like the Springsteen classic song “Glory Days.” This is what it was like. This is what it felt like, back when I was a regular runner, able to push at a semi-legit fast pace, indefinitely. On this day, the slightest incline would set my breathing back into the death rattle hill climb mess. But on this flat stretch, for about three-quarters of a mile, we were cruising, feeling good, talking a little. And I thought to myself: This. This is what it felt like. Like a part of me that had passed away of natural causes, coming back to life. How cool is this? It’s cool because I know I can’t do it anymore, for real, on a regular basis, in runs and certainly in races. I’m done as a competitive runner, been done for a while, and I’m completely OK with that. But to get a small glimpse back in that world, every once in a while, to rise from the ashes as a runner, even for a just a few minutes, felt really, really good. Good Friday started out with a good Friday run. Very neat.

Sunday, April 21, 2019

Wolfie Invitational: Men's results and splits

Highlight of the day for the men was Brian Henderson's dominant victory in the open 800. He led for most of the race in that stiff breeze and ran a pretty competitive time. Other highlights: Sprinters battled well into that stiff wind all day; Zeng just called me out (literally) for not mentioning his first collegiate steeple (he kicked down Kutch, who had another strong race) and Moe's first collegiate 5k; both did well. Noteworthy that the boys are actually reading and commenting to me about the blog. Neat! Thanks again to manager Ari Meyer and assistant coach Nick Cruz for compiling the splits to the best of their ability in that weather.

Wolfie Invitational
Stony Brook University
Saturday, April 20, 2019
Men’s results and splits
100-meter dash
10. Jeremy Mooney 11.83
200-meter dash
5. Jeremy Mooney 23.10
22. Santosh Krishnan 24.38
24. Josh Hindle 24.53
27. Pat Beglane 25.49
400-meter dash
17. Jon Green 53.40
21. Pat Beglane 54.41
22. Santosh Krishnan 54.94
24. Andrew Lafferty 55.65
800-meter run
1-Brian Henderson 1:56.65
11. Matthew Hawker 2:01.46
1,500-meter run
9. Christopher Tibbetts 4:09.32
65, 2:11 (66), 3:20 (69), 4:09.32 (49.32)
10. Aidan Sweeney 4:13.00
67, 2:17 (70), 3:26 (69), 4:13.00 (47.00)
12. Brad Rynkowski 4:16.00
67, 2:17 (70), 3:26 (69), 4:16.00 (50.00)
12. Sam Goldzweig 4:16.00
65, 2:16 (71), 3:25 (69), 4:16.00 (51.00)
19. Cole Ziskind 4:28.00
68, 2:18 (70), 3:33 (75), 4:28.00 (55.00)
5,000-meter run
3-Michael Kennedy 15:16.71
74, 2:26 (72), 3:39 (73), 4:51 (72)
6:02 (71), 7:15 (73), 8:25 (70), 9:38 (73)
10:53 (75), 12:07 (74), 13:21 (74), 14:37 (76)
15:16.71 (39.71)
4-James Moehringer 15:26.60
73, 2:26 (73), 3:39 (73), 4:52 (73)
6:03 (71), 7:16 (73), 8:30 (74), 9:46 (76)
11:02 (76), 12:19 (77), 13:36 (77), 14:50 (74)
15:26.60 (36.60)
5-Conor Stack 15:34.09
73, 2:26 (73), 3:39 (73), 4:51 (72)
6:05 (74), 7:16 (71), 8:33 (77), 9:51 (78)
11:08 (77), 12:26 (78), 13:44 (78), 14:59 (75)
15:34.09 (35.09)
6-Elias Platanias 15:47.44
74, 2:26 (72), 3:40 (74), 4:52 (72)
6:06 (74), 7:21 (75), 8:39 (78), 9:56 (77)
11:14 (78), 12:33 (79), 13:52 (79), 15:10 (78)
15:47.44 (37.44)
8-Dan Hillman 16:18.36
74, 2:26 (72), 3:40 (74), 4:53 (73)
6:09 (76), 7:27 (78), 8:47 (89), 10:09 (82)
11:30 (81), 12:51 (81), 14:16 (85), 15:42 (86)
16:18.36 (36.36)
3,000-meter steeplechase
4. Brendan Zeng 10:05.28
71, 2:27 (76), 3:49 (82), 5:14 (85), 6:40 (86), 8:02 (82), 9:23 (81), 10:05.28 (42.28)
5. Patrick Kutch 10:05.30
73, 2:29 (76), 3:48 (79), 5:09 (81), 6:32 (83), 7:57 (85), 9:22 (85), 10:05.30 (43.30)
7. Alex Hogue 10:19.28
72, 2:31 (79), 3:54 (83), 5:17 (83), 6:43 (86), 8:09 (86), 9:34 (85), 10:19.28 (47.28)
9. Matthew Ronan 10:57.41
72, 2:31 (79), 3:57 (86), 5:28 (91), 7:01 (93), 8:35 (94), 10:12 (87), 10:57.41 (45.41)
1,600-meter relay
8. Marist (Santosh Krishnan, Josh Hindle, Cole Ziskind, Matthew Hawker) 3:34.07

Wolfie Invitational: Women's results and splits


Here are "most" of the results ... timing company snafu led to some questionable hand times, and Camille McHenry's excellent 100-meter dash apparently is lost somewhere in cyberspace (hopefully, it will be found). Thanks to Ari Meyer and assistant coach Nick Cruz for collaborating on the splits in terrible conditions.

Wolfie Invitational
Stony Brook University
Saturday, April 20, 2019
Women’s results
200-meter dash
12. Camille McHenry 25.90
800-meter run
13. Jess Howe 2:32.30
1,500-meter run (FAT not functioning, hand timed)
4. Kerry Gaye 4:46.00
74, 2:25 (71), 3:52 (77), 4:46.00 (54.00)
8. Boushra Belkhir 4:50.00
74, 2:26 (72), 3:53 (77), 4:50.00 (57.00)
10. Maddie Tooker 4:57.00
75, 2:32 (77), 3:57 (85), 4:57.00 (1:00.00)
11. Kayla Sexton 4:58.00
72, 2:31 (79), 4:00 (89), 4:58.00 (58.00)
15. Jess Howe 5:05.00
77, 2:41 (84), 4:06 (85), 5:05.00 (59.00)
16. Samantha DeStefani 5:07.00
77, 2:41 (84), 4:06 (85), 5:07.00 (1:01.00)
3,000-meter run
11. Hannah Albert 11:41.50
84, 2:52 (88), 4:25 (93), 6:01 (96)
7:39 (98), 9:16 (97), 10:54 (98), 11:41.50 (47.50)

Wolfie Invitational: We Play Track


Just getting back home from a long day in the strong wind and driving rain down at Stony Brook University; we drove vans today, and the results were just posted, so we’ll get them up here at some point on Sunday. Anyway. When the weather conditions turn nasty like this, the idea of personal-best or very competitive race times go out the window. This can be discouraging to our athletes, but instead we relayed an encouraging message to our athletes: Let’s go out there and Play Track today! Some background: Way back in the mid-1980s, when I was a track/XC runner at Marist, another Marist student happened upon me and another running teammate in the dorms. This kid was a bit of a lunkhead, a big football and baseball and basketball fan who if I recall played football and/or intramurals and about whom I definitely recall knew nothing about our sport. He says to us: “Yo. Guys. You Play Track?!?” Uh. Well. We don’t actually “play” track, dude. We “run” track or we “do” track. It’s not a ball sport that you “play.” You play baseball. You play football. You play lacrosse. You don’t “play” track or swimming or crew. My old teammates and I chuckle at this memory. But as I grow older as a coach, and as I tend to implore my athletes at times to “just race” and forget about the data and the clock and all of it, and just beat runners from other teams, it dawned on me: In so doing, we are actually “playing track.” It becomes a win/loss, zero-sum game, like the “other” sports.

And so today, as the wind destroyed umbrellas, challenged tent structures, made it difficult at times just to stand upright – and, in the case of freshman Samantha DeStefani in the 1,500-meter race, literally blew her off the track and into the high jump apron for a few strides, which led me to say “hey kid, don’t fall off the track!” to which she laughed hysterically mid-race – we said “screw it, just play track.” The message really resonated with our seniors, who only have a few more weeks to “play track.” And in so doing, it made standing, cheering and competing in the challenging weather on Saturday afternoon a little more manageable and a lot more fun.

Saturday, April 20, 2019

Bryan Clay Invitational: Full results




Below are the full results from the past two days at the Bryan Clay Invitational, including last night's 1,500-meter run sections and photos from those races (again, courtesy of Debbie Boerke). We are leaving soon (via van) for Stony Brook, so those soggy and windy results won't be posted here till later tonight. Our California crew has a day out there to enjoy and explore (and do their long run at Angeles National Forest!) before returning home on Easter Sunday.


Bryan Clay Invitational
Azusa Pacific University
Cougar Athletic Stadium, Azusa, CA
Thursday and Friday, April 18-19
Thursday results
3,000-meter steeplechase
60. Jordan Casey 11:15.27
68. Alexandra Bartolotta 11:22.15
5,000-meter run, section 4
8. Gianna Tedeschi 17:01.63
Friday results
Men’s 800
46. Drew Burns 1:51.64 (first place in section 7)
Women’s 400 hurdles
15. Debbie Boerke 1:02.16
1,500-meter run invitational
134. Denise Grohn 4:40.43
1,500-meter run open
67. Maria Smith 4:41.63
74. Shea Bohan 4:42.51
93. Rebecca Walters 4:45.30

Bryan Clay Invitational: Debbie Boerke 15th in 400 hurdles


Senior captain Debbie Boerke placed 15th overall in the 400-meter hurdles in a time of 1:02.16. While that's an ECAC qualifying mark, it fell short of her goal in this meet. It's a bummer, but now we take aim at upcoming championship meets. Thanks to Jordan Casey for sharing these excellent photos of Debbie!

Friday, April 19, 2019

Bryan Clay Invitational: Drew Burns wins heat in 800!


Congrats to senior captain Drew Burns, who won heat 7 of the 800-meter run out in California in 1:51.64, the second fastest time in school history in the event. And he won the heat decisively, with second place clocking in at 1:53.02 (as you can see above). Very proud of Drew for repping the red and white on the big stage.

Wolfie Invitational: UPDATED START TIME, 1 p.m.

Due to the inclement weather forecast for tonight and early tomorrow, Saturday's meet at Stony Brook will NOW START AT 1 p.m. Here is the schedule again, with updated entries for our team.

Wolfie Invitational
Stony Brook University
Saturday, April 20, 2019
Order of events, time schedule and entries, NOW STARTING AT 1 P.M.
12.55pm: National Anthem
1.00pm: Steeple - Women
1.15pm: Steeple - Men: Alexander Hogue, Patrick Kutch, Matthew Ronan, Brendan Zeng
1.30pm: 4 X 100m - Women
1.35pm: 4 X 100m - Men
1.40pm: 1500m - Women: Kerry Gaye, Boushra Belkhir, Kayla Sexton, Maddie Tooker, Jess Howe, Samantha DeStefani
2.00pm: 1500m - Men: Christopher Tibbetts, Sam Goldzweig, Brad Rynkowski, Aidan Sweeney, Cole Ziskind
2.20pm: 100H - Women
2.30pm: 110H - Men
2.40pm: 5000m - Women
3.00pm: 3000m - Men: Charles Roy
3:10pm: 400m - Women
3:20pm: 400m - Men: Santosh Krishnan, Jon Green, Patrick Beglane, Andrew Lafferty
3:35pm: 100m - Women: Camille McHenry
3.50pm: 100m - Men: Jeremy Mooney
4:05pm: 800m - Women: Jess Howe
4:15pm: 800m - Men: Brian Henderson, Matthew Hawker
4:25pm: 400H - Women
4:35pm: 400H - Men
4:45pm: 200m - Women: Camille McHenry
5:00pm: 200m - Men: Jeremy Mooney, Josh Hindle, Santosh Krishnan, Patrick Beglane
5:15pm: 3000m - Women: Hannah Albert
5:30pm: 5000m - Men: Michael Kennedy, James Moehringer, James Draney, Conor Stack, Elias Platanias, Dan Hillman
5:50pm: 4x 400m - Women
6.00pm: 4 x400m - Men: Marist A

Bryan Clay Invitational: Women's 5k result



Thanks again to Debbie Boerke for sharing these photos of Gianna Tedeschi in heat 4 of the 5,000-meter run. Gianna got eighth place in 17:01.63, just a few ticks slower than her personal-best time from Colonial Relays a few weeks ago. Strong, solid performance. The rest of our athletes compete later today. Here's the schedule again, for today:


Bryan Clay Invitational
Azusa Pacific University
Cougar Athletic Stadium, Azusa, CA
Friday, April 19
Event 31: Men’s 800, 1:55 p.m.
Drew Burns (section to be determined)
Event 32: Women’s 800, 2:45 p.m.
Gianna Mastromatteo (section to be determined)
Event 34: Women’s 400 hurdles, 4:05 p.m.
Debbie Boerke (section to be determined)
Event 40: 1,500-meter run invitational, 8:35 p.m.
Denise Grohn: section 1 of 10
Event 42: 1,500-meter run open, 10:05 p.m.
Shea Bohan: section 2 of 9
Maria Smith: section 4 of 9
Rebecca Walters: section 5 of 9

Thursday, April 18, 2019

Bryan Clay Invitational: Women's steeplechase results




Thanks to Debbie Boerke for sending along these amazing action shots of Jordan Casey (11:15.27, 60th place) and Ali Bartolotta (11:22.15, 68th place) from this afternoon's 3,000-meter steeplechase race at the Bryan Clay Invitational in California. These results were definitely a bit off what our ladies were hoping for, but as you can tell by the photos, the effort was certainly there on a warm afternoon. Hopefully it'll cool down for Gianna Tedeschi's 5,000-meter run, which goes off at around 11 p.m. Eastern time. Will update that result in the morning.

Wolfie Invitational: Schedule and entries

Below is the order of events and entries for Saturday's meet at Stony Brook. Right now, the weather's not looking that favorable -- heavy rain and wind, mostly in the morning. There is a chance the meet could be delayed for a few hours to let the worst of the weather pass. We'll see. Any updates will be posted here.


Wolfie Invitational
Stony Brook University
Saturday, April 20, 2019
Order of events and entries, starting at 11 a.m.
4x100 relay: No entry
1,500-meter run: Kerry Gaye, Boushra Belkhir, Kayla Sexton, Maddie Tooker; Christopher Tibbetts, Sam Goldzweig, Brad Rynkowski, Aidan Sweeney, Cole Ziskind
110/100 hurdles: No entries
3,000-meter run: Hannah Albert, Charles Roy
400-meter dash: Josh Hindle, Santosh Krishnan, Jon Green, Patrick Beglane, Andrew Lafferty
100-meter dash: Jeremy Mooney, Camille McHenry
3,000-meter steeplechase: Alexander Hogue, Patrick Kutch, Matthew Ronan, Brendan Zeng, Samantha DeStefani
800-meter run: Jess Howe, Brian Henderson, Matthew Hawker
400-meter hurdles: No entries
200-meter dash: Camille McHenry, Jeremy Mooney, Josh Hindle, Santosh Krishnan, Patrick Beglane
5,000-meter run: Michael Kennedy, James Moehringer, James Draney, Conor Stack, Elias Platanias, Dan Hillman
4x400 relay: Marist A

Bryan Clay Invitational: Reach the beach!


After practice yesterday, Coach Chuck and our athletes did some southern California style sightseeing. We get down to business today with a few of our athletes racing in the afternoon/evening distance events.

Wednesday, April 17, 2019

Bryan Clay Invitational: Wednesday morning practice

Thanks to Coach Chuck for sending me this picture from Glendale Community College, where our team had a pre-meet practice in the California sun. Our athletes will hit the track out there starting tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing and hearing how it goes out there.

Bryan Clay Invitational: Schedule of events


April is the busiest month on our calendar, the these next few weeks are jam-packed with activity. Coach Chuck brought 10 athletes out to California this week for the Bryan Clay Invitational at Azusa Pacific University in the Los Angeles area. We’ll have a few athletes racing on Thursday in the distance events, and the remainder of our athletes on Friday afternoon and evening. The remainder of our team will be at Stony Brook University on Saturday for the Wolfie Invitational. Below is a schedule of events in which we have athletes competing out in California.

Bryan Clay Invitational
Azusa Pacific University
Cougar Athletic Stadium, Azusa, CA
Thursday and Friday, April 18-29
Schedule of Marist athletes entered
Thursday (all times Pacific)
Event 6: 3,000-meter steeplechase, 4:20 p.m.
Alexandra Bartolotta: section 3 of 6
Jordan Casey: section 4 of 6
Event 20: 5,000-meter run, heat 4, 8:00 p.m.
Gianna Tedeschi
Friday (all times Pacific)
Event 31: Men’s 800, 1:55 p.m.
Drew Burns (section to be determined)
Event 32: Women’s 800, 2:45 p.m.
Gianna Mastromatteo (section to be determined)
Event 34: Women’s 400 hurdles, 4:05 p.m.
Debbie Boerke (section to be determined)
Event 40: 1,500-meter run invitational, 8:35 p.m.
Denise Grohn: section 1 of 10
Gianna Mastromatteo: section 1 of 10
Event 42: 1,500-meter run open, 10:05 p.m.
Shea Bohan: section 2 of 9
Maria Smith: section 4 of 9
Rebecca Walters: section 5 of 9

Tuesday, April 16, 2019

Newport Marathon: Omar and Billy, 2:52:12

Thanks to Ken Walshak for providing this awesome post-race photo.

Congrats to loyal Marist Running Alums Omar Perez and Billy Posch. These boys train together all year long and on Saturday they raced together all 26.2 miles long at the Newport Rhode Races Marathon in Newport, RI. They finished together in 2:52:12, with relatively even 13.1-mile splits of 1:25:22/1:26:51. This was Bill’s first marathon and a Boston Marathon qualifier for both. Very proud of these men. Nicely done!

Monday, April 15, 2019

Elizabeth Wasserman: 2:45:00 at Boston! Olympic Trials qualifier!



Huge, huge, HUGE congrats to Marist Running Alum Elizabeth Wasserman, who had a monster effort at the Boston Marathon today. Elizabeth ran 2:45:00 and hit the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials Marathon standard to the second! The standard is 2:45:00. How cool is THAT? Elizabeth went out hard (1:20:01) and hung on for a remarkable four-minute PR. It’s all the more remarkable because she injured her hip in the “gross sleet and slush” of the Celebrate Life Half Marathon last month in Sullivan County, a race she won easily. She had to take a week off and said she could barely run a mile, just a few weeks ago. Miraculously, she nailed this race, and speculated that she may have been able to go even faster with 100 percent training over the final few weeks. Regardless … this was an awesome run and we are so proud of Elizabeth. We always felt she had the ability to move up successfully to the marathon, but who could have predicted that she would get this fast this quickly, just two years after graduating from Marist? It’s awesome. Nicely done, Elizabeth! Thanks to Annie Gould for texting me these pix.


Sunday, April 14, 2019

Bison Outdoor Classic: Men's complete results


Here are the results from the weekend. As with the women’s post, there are no splits here (other than the relay) because the split notebook is a soaked mess from the rain. The highlight, of course, was the thrilling 4x800 relay that won and qualified for IC4As. This was no sure thing and getting it done at the end of the meet, when the first turn was basically under water, was a significant accomplishment. Very happy for the men. Special shout-out to senior captain Drew Burns, who along with twin sister Emily, celebrated his 22nd birthday and keyed the relay qualifying mark. And also to Young Cole Ziskind, who broke 2:00 in the 800-meter run by the slimmest of margins (1:59.99). It’s why we come here every year.

Bison Outdoor Classic
Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium
Bucknell University
Saturday and Sunday, April 13-14
Men’s results
100-meter dash
35. Jeremy Mooney 11.53
200-meter dash
36. Jeremy Mooney 23.43
400-meter dash
33. Josh Hindle 51.52
36. Santosh Krishnan 51.85
47. Patrick Beglane 53.02
800-meter run
102. Young Cole Ziskind 1:59.99
112. Matthew Hawker 2:01.96
Unseeded 1,500 run
4. Drew Burns 3:55.39 *IC4A qualifier
63, 2:07 (64), 3:09 (62), 3:55.39 (46.39)
13. James Moehringer 3:56.77
63, 2:07 (64), 3:08 (61), 3:56.77 (48.77)
96. James Draney 4:06.38
62, 2:08 (66), 3:16 (68), 4:06.38 (50.38)
100. Brendan Zeng 4:08.33
64, 2:11 (67), 3:19 (68), 4:08.33 (49.33)
Mile run
7-Aidan Sweeney 4:27.09
67, 2:12 (65), 3:19 (67), 4:27.09 (68.09)
12-Sam Goldzweig 4:34.92
67, 2:12 (65), 3:20 (68), 4:34.92 (74.92)
15-Brad Rynkowski 4:41.08
67, 2:13 (66), 3:22 (69), 4:41.08 (79.08)
3,000-meter run
5-Conor Stack 8:54.18
69, 2:21 (72), 3:31 (70), 4:42 (71)
5:55 (73), 7:08 (73), 8:22 (74), 8:54.18 (32.18)
8-Patrick Kutch 9:03.83
71, 2:22 (71), 3:35 (73), 4:47 (72)
6:00 (73), 7:15 (75), 8:29 (74), 9:03.83 (34.83)
Invitational 5,000-meter run
64. Palmer Weimann 15:04.51
73, 2:24 (71), 3:36 (72), 4:47 (71)
5:58 (71), 7:11 (73), 8:23 (72), 9:35 (72)
10:28 (73), 12:03 (75), 13:17 (74), 14:30 (73)
15:04.51 (34.51)
Unseeded 5,000-meter run
71. Graham Strzelecki 15:42.97
73, 2:26 (73), 3:40 (74), 4:55 (75)
6:10 (75), 7:26 (76), 8:42 (76), 9:58 (76)
11:16 (78), 12:44 (78), 13:52 (78), 15:07 (75)
15:42.97 (35.97)
Unseeded 10,000-meter run
31. Riley Hughes 33:16.45
78, 2:34 (76), 3:50 (76), 5:07 (77)
6:24 (77), 7:41 (77), 8:59 (78), 10:17 (78)
11:35 (78), 12:53 (78), 14:13 (80), 15:33 (80)
16:54 (81), 18:16 (82), 19:38 (82), 21:01 (83)
22:23 (82), 23:45 (82), 25:07 (82), 26:29 (82)
27:51 (82), 29:11 (80), 30:33 (82), 31:54 (81)

33:16.45 (82.45)
1,600-meter relay
5-Marist (Santosh Krishnan, Josh Hindle, Tanner Senius, Patrick Beglane) 3:30.15
3,200-meter relay
1-Marist A (Brian Henderson 1:56.24, James Moehringer 1:55.60, Drew Burns 1:52.97, Christopher Tibbetts 1:55.89) 7:40.68 *IC4A qualifier
6-Marist B (Brendan Zeng 1:58.28, Matthew Hawker 1:58.61, Aidan Sweeney 1:59.13, Cole Ziskind 2:03.88) 7:59.89

Bison Outdoor Classic: Women's complete results


Here are the complete results for the weekend. Splits may be updated eventually, but the split notebook is soaked from the afternoon rain. Thanks to team manager Ari Meyer for doing a great job with all the splits. I’ll do my best to update them at some point, once the notebook dries out. Sunday started with several big-PRs in the 3,000-meter run, led by Gianna Tedeschi’s wire-to-wire victory and ECAC qualifying mark. And it was capped with a victory in the 3,200-meter relay in a steady rainfall, which started at around 1 p.m. and didn’t stop for the rest of the meet. Another great weekend in Lewisburg.

Bison Outdoor Classic
Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium
Bucknell University
Saturday and Sunday, April 13-14
Women’s results
100-meter dash
36. Camille McHenry 13.01
200-meter dash
20. Camille McHenry 26.48
400-meter run
49. Grace Cepeda 1:02.96
800-meter run
31-Shea Bohan 2:15.44
49-Maria Smith 2:18.35
103. Jillian Laliberte 2:25.73
108. Maddie Tooker 2:26.63
117. Jess Howe 2:30.80
Invitational 1,500 run
29. Gianna Mastromatteo 4:33.18 *ECAC qualifier
71, 2:27 (76), 2:40 (73), 4:33.18 (53.18)
Unseeded 1,500 run
8. Jordan Casey 4:40.76
73.5, 2:31.5 (78.0), 3:47 (75.5), 4:40.76 (53.76)
59. Rebecca Walters 4:52.03
79, 2:35 (76), 3:53 (78), 4:52.03 (59.03)
83. Kayla Sexton 4:58.38
76, 2:38 (82), 4:00 (82), 4:58.38 (58.38)
3,000-meter run
1-Gianna Tedeschi 9:55.98 *ECAC qualifier
75, 2:34 (79), 3:54 (80), 5:15 (81)
6:34 (79), 7:56 (82), 9:17 (81), 9:55.98 (38.98)
5-Kerry Gaye 10:22.55
84, 2:47 (83), 4:09 (82), 5:32 (83)
6:57 (85), 8:22 (85), 9:45 (83), 10:22.55 (37.55)
7-Boushra Belkhir 10:23.66
84, 2:47 (83), 4:09 (82), 5:32 (83)
6:57 (85), 8:22 (85), 9:44 (82), 10:23.66 (39.66)
13-Emily Burns (unattached) 10:35.48
84, 2:47 (83), 4:11 (84), 5:36 (85)
7:01 (85), 8:28 (87), 9:53 (85), 10:35.48 (42.48)
19-Talia Cutrone 10:50.73
85, 2:50 (85), 4:17 (87), 5:46 (89)
7:14 (88), 8:44 (90), 10:10 (86), 10:50.73 (40.73)
37-Hannah Albert 11:36.92
90, 2:59 (89), 4:29 (90), 6:03 (94)
7:39 (96), 9:15 (96), 10:51 (96), 11:36.92 (45.92)
Invitational 10,000-meter run
11. Hayley Collins 35:40.96 *ECAC qualifier
85, 2:49 (84), 4:13 (84), 5:38 (85)
7:02 (84), 8:26 (84), 9:51 (85), 11:16 (85)
12:41 (85), 14:05 (84), 15:30 (85), 16:55 (85)
18:21 (86), 19:46 (85), 21:13 (87), 22:40 (87)
24:07 (87), 25:35 (88), 27:02 (87), 28:29 (87)
29:56 (87), 31:23 (87), 32:50 (87), 34:17 (87)
35:40.96 (83.96)
1600m splits: 5:38, 5:38, 5:39, 5:45, 5:49, 5:48
400-meter hurdles
2-Debbie Boerke 1:01.93 *ECAC qualifier
3,000-meter steeplechase
38. Samantha DeStefani 12:02.63

87, 2:55 (88), 4:25 (90), 6:05 (90), 7:47 (92), 9:29 (92), 11:12 (93), 12:02.63 (50.63)
1,600-meter relay
10-Marist (Grace Cepeda, Camille McHenry, Debbie Boerke, Kayla Sexton) 4:12.65
3,200-meter relay
1-Marist (Shea Bohan 2:20.90, Rebecca Walters 2:23.82, Gianna Mastromatteo 2:16.79, Maria Smith 2:23.00) 9:24.50

Bison Outdoor Classic: Visiting Matty’s grave


As many alert blog followers know, the Bucknell meet is one of the highlights of my coaching year, as well as our team’s schedule. It’s always a great meet with fast and friendly competition, at a truly wonderful venue. This year was no exception, as our results were filled with personal-best times and ECAC/IC4A qualifying marks. Happens every year. The outdoor magic carpet. The track, Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium, is named after one of the greatest ballplayers who ever lived and a true American hero, a character in history of whom I am very fond. So yeah, Bucknell has a special place in my heart. We arrived at the track early on Sunday morning and there was a little time to spare, so I set out for a brisk walk, in search of a good cup of coffee and a little solitude before a long day at the track. As I was leaving the stadium parking lot, Bucknell head track coach Kevin Donner was driving in. He rolled down his window and said, “hey Pete, hop in, I’ll take you to Matty’s grave.” Donner is a big baseball historian and he knows I am too, so this was a treat. A short drive to the other side of campus and there we were. Donner said he comes to the gravesite every once in a while to pay his respects and for solitude, and sometimes admirers leave baseballs there. This was a big deal for me and made this morning walk extra special. I did a few laps around the cemetery on the mild and sunny morning (which would soon turn into a rain-soaked afternoon). And yes, I found a really good cup of coffee on the way back. Very, very neat way to spend the start of my day at one of the neatest places on our track schedule. OK!

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Bison Outdoor Classic: Day 1 results

Some great highlights on an awesome weather day -- sunny and warm in the afternoon, which led into a cool and dry and still evening, perfect for the distance races. A pair of ECAC/IC4A qualifiers in the 1,500 (Gianna Mastromatteo and Drew Burns). A pair of big-time PRs in the 1,500 (James Moehringer and Jordan Casey, with Moe missing IC4As by a few tenths of a second); Hayley Collins with a very big and huge PR in the 10,000 and an ECAC qualifying mark; Palmer Weimann with a season-best time in the 5,000. Will update with splits in all races tomorrow after the meet, with complete results from both days.


Christy Mathewson Memorial Stadium
Bucknell University
Saturday, April 13
Day 1 women’s results
Invitational 1,500 run
29. Gianna Mastromatteo 4:33.18 *ECAC qualifier
Unseeded 1,500 run
8. Jordan Casey 4:40.76
59. Rebecca Walters 4:52.03
83. Kayla Sexton 4:58.38
3,000-meter steeplechase
38. Samantha DeStefani 12:02.63
Invitational 10,000-meter run
11. Hayley Collins 35:40.96 *ECAC qualifier
Day 1 men’s results
Unseeded 1,500 run
4. Drew Burns 3:55.39 *IC4A qualifier
13. James Moehringer 3:56.77
96. James Draney 4:06.38
100. Brendan Zeng 4:08.33
Invitational 5,000-meter run
64. Palmer Weimann 15:04.51
Unseeded 5,000-meter run
71. Graham Strzelecki 15:42.97
Unseeded 10,000-meter run
31. Riley Hughes 33:16.45

Bucknell Bison Outdoor Classic: Day 1 in pictures

It was an eventful day under the sun and then the lights at Christy Mathewson Stadium. Freshman Samantha DeStefani face-planted in the steeplechase but lived to tell about it. Senior Drew Burns had a monster PR and qualified for IC4As in the 1,500, and then shared the moment with his good friends afterwards. Sophomore Gianna Mastromatteo qualified for ECACs in the 1,500 in thrilling fashion. Hopeful for more highlights, starting early on Sunday morning.