Ready or not, here comes track!
The first meet of the indoor season is Saturday. Here is the complete indoor schedule. Pretty similar to past years ...
Sat, 12.4.10: Yale Season Opener
Fri, 1.7.11: Metro Coaches Collegiate at the NYC Armory
Fri, 1.14: NYC Gotham Cup, Armory
Sun, 1.23: GBTC Invitational, Harvard (still awaiting acceptance from GBTC to participate in this event?)
Fri/Sat, 1.28-1.29: Terrier Invitational, Boston University (mostly men's team, some women)
Saturday, 1.29: Metropolitan Championships, Armory (women only)
Fri/Sat, 2.4-2.5: New Balance Invitational, Armory
Fri/Sat, 2.11-2.12: Valentine Invitational, BU
Fri, 2.18: MAAC Championships, Armory
Fri, 2.25: Armory Collegiate, Armory
Sat/Sun, March 5-6: IC4A at BU; ECAC at Reggie Lewis
Monday, November 29, 2010
Gobble, gobble
Speaking of leftovers, here are a few road race morsels from Long Island ...
On Thursday at the Garden City Turkey Trot 5-miler, Marist Running was well-represented. Our own Quimes DelaCruz, fresh off his stellar XC season, was second in 25:19.5. Running right up his heels and running like he was 10 years younger and still in college, 30-year-old Marist alum (class of 2002) Mike Nehr was third overall and won his age group in 25:20.5 -- an amazing run from the ageless star.
Setting the early pace was current team captain Pat Duggan, who came in sixth overall in 26:19.5 -- much like Quimes, Duggan was coming off a great XC season.
On Sunday at Rob's Run XC 5km in Syosset, Marist Alum Matt Walsh was second overall in 15:44, overcoming a very fast opening mile. He trailed only Chris Mammone, one of the best runners on the Island, who won in 15:31.
On Thursday at the Garden City Turkey Trot 5-miler, Marist Running was well-represented. Our own Quimes DelaCruz, fresh off his stellar XC season, was second in 25:19.5. Running right up his heels and running like he was 10 years younger and still in college, 30-year-old Marist alum (class of 2002) Mike Nehr was third overall and won his age group in 25:20.5 -- an amazing run from the ageless star.
Setting the early pace was current team captain Pat Duggan, who came in sixth overall in 26:19.5 -- much like Quimes, Duggan was coming off a great XC season.
On Sunday at Rob's Run XC 5km in Syosset, Marist Alum Matt Walsh was second overall in 15:44, overcoming a very fast opening mile. He trailed only Chris Mammone, one of the best runners on the Island, who won in 15:31.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Luke's updated splits
Hello and happy post-Thanksgiving to all. Hope your holiday was a nice one.
A quick update on Luke Shane's phenomenal marathon run last week at Philadelphia. Our guy did NOT run the crazy negative splits as advertised and posted on the preliminary results, but he DID run an incredibly even effort -- which is just as good, if not better!
Here are the numbers:
First 13.1: 1:21:15
Second 13.1: 1:21:37
Final time: 2:42:52
Pretty sweet stuff.
This is basically an "off" week here at Blog Central. However, we will be down at Bowdoin Park on Saturday for the NXN Regionals. It will be cold, but sunny.
Enjoy your leftovers. Back to work on Monday.
A quick update on Luke Shane's phenomenal marathon run last week at Philadelphia. Our guy did NOT run the crazy negative splits as advertised and posted on the preliminary results, but he DID run an incredibly even effort -- which is just as good, if not better!
Here are the numbers:
First 13.1: 1:21:15
Second 13.1: 1:21:37
Final time: 2:42:52
Pretty sweet stuff.
This is basically an "off" week here at Blog Central. However, we will be down at Bowdoin Park on Saturday for the NXN Regionals. It will be cold, but sunny.
Enjoy your leftovers. Back to work on Monday.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
IC4A/ECAC in pictures
Thanks to Kathy Gould for these fine photos from Saturday of our lead runners (Matt Flint, Kiersten Anderson -- both from Section 2!), our women's team huddle, and some old coach with Girma and Vess -- that's a lot of school records in one small photo.
If I do not post again in a few days ... Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!
If I do not post again in a few days ... Happy Thanksgiving to one and all!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Luke rocks in Philly!
Big, big congrats to junior Luke Shane of the Marist College cross country team!
Our guy Luke ran a huge PR this morning at the Philadelphia Marathon.
Luke ran 2:42:52, a 15-minute improvement over his race at Vermont in May. And get this: It was basically 1 minute per mile faster than his 3:08 at Philly in 2009.
More stats:
--Luke was 53rd overall out of 8695 finishers so far.
--Luke was 7th in the 20-24 age group.
--Luke ran a major negative split. First half in 1:23:57. Second half in 1:18:55. Nicely done!
Luke has already signed up for the 2011 Boston Marathon. After recovering from this stellar effort, he will start his buildup for that.
Good stuff.
Our guy Luke ran a huge PR this morning at the Philadelphia Marathon.
Luke ran 2:42:52, a 15-minute improvement over his race at Vermont in May. And get this: It was basically 1 minute per mile faster than his 3:08 at Philly in 2009.
More stats:
--Luke was 53rd overall out of 8695 finishers so far.
--Luke was 7th in the 20-24 age group.
--Luke ran a major negative split. First half in 1:23:57. Second half in 1:18:55. Nicely done!
Luke has already signed up for the 2011 Boston Marathon. After recovering from this stellar effort, he will start his buildup for that.
Good stuff.
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Hello there, Mr. Schab
Kudos to loyal alums Mike Schab (2005) and Colleen Ryan (2009) for their extraordinary effort to come and see the team on Saturday!
A bleary-eyed Schabby was coming off an insanely long work shift as a stage hand on some Top Secret Celebrity Project that I’m not supposed to talk about. And he’s got another extended gig coming up later tonight! Sleep was never a big priority for the Schabster, anyway.
Here’s an interesting Schab fact. In his last days of college, he was one of the last hold-out dinosaurs who refused to get a cell phone. Our boy has made a complete about-face now, and has some fancy Blackberry with all the bells and whistles, and Internet – of course. Schab told me today that his “home page” on his mobile device is this very blog. So naturally, that deserves a mention here.
As does Our Favorite Babysitter Colleen, who basically drove through the night from Kentucky to come to Vanny and see us. Honestly, this might have been the best surprise of the day! The stunned reaction and hugs that Col received from her former teammates was great.
A bleary-eyed Schabby was coming off an insanely long work shift as a stage hand on some Top Secret Celebrity Project that I’m not supposed to talk about. And he’s got another extended gig coming up later tonight! Sleep was never a big priority for the Schabster, anyway.
Here’s an interesting Schab fact. In his last days of college, he was one of the last hold-out dinosaurs who refused to get a cell phone. Our boy has made a complete about-face now, and has some fancy Blackberry with all the bells and whistles, and Internet – of course. Schab told me today that his “home page” on his mobile device is this very blog. So naturally, that deserves a mention here.
As does Our Favorite Babysitter Colleen, who basically drove through the night from Kentucky to come to Vanny and see us. Honestly, this might have been the best surprise of the day! The stunned reaction and hugs that Col received from her former teammates was great.
10 years after ...
The IC4A cross country meet means a lot to me. Actually, all IC4A meets are loaded with significance – in all three seasons.
The cross country meet is tinged with bittersweet feelings, as it is the end of the line for graduating seniors in a sport they have probably done for 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8 years. And while there are two more seasons of track, there is nothing like the team-bonding camaraderie that is fostered with cross country. I have had many a graduating senior shed a tear or three at the finish line at Vanny on IC4A Saturday.
Today, there were no tears that I could find. Instead, there was nothing but goofing, smiling and food. Oh man. The food was great! Thanks again, Loyal Parents of Marist Running!!!
One of my fondest memories in my earlier coaching career with the men’s team came at the IC4A Championships in 2000 at Van Cortlandt Park. We had come off a disappointing finish at the MAAC meet in Disney (not a Magical trip!) a few weeks earlier. But we knew we had a GREAT team. We just needed to prove it. At the 2000 IC4A meet, we proved it.
We were in the University Race back then. I knew we had a chance to do well. Imagine my surprise when, off in the distance, I saw Mikey Nehr – my brash and confident junior out of West Babylon – coming out of the woods in first place! He was followed closely by several of his teammates who were running in the top 10. And then P-Diddy (Pat Driscoll) topped it off with the race of his XC race of his life as our fifth man … and we won the meet! Awesome!
Somewhere on my office wall, I have a wrinkled and fading picture of the top 7 from that day, next to the first-place plaque that will forever hang in there. While the memory of that fine day lingers, what’s more rewarding is that, 10 years later, there is still a strong bond with those guys.
In fact, of the 7 runners on that championship team, no fewer than four of them were at Vanny today to cheer on the 2010 Running Red Foxes: Chris and Greg Salamone, Mike Nehr and Pat Driscoll. Awesome. The other three guys were Kirk Dornton, with whom I talk and see frequently, and whose wedding I will gladly attend next summer; Jason Grady, now a successful local coach and with whom I see and talk frequently at meets; and Jamal Padgett, who not surprisingly fell off the face of the earth … but with whom I still have random and bizarre contact, and whose wedding I was invited to but was unable to attend, a few summers ago.
I’ll never forget Reese’s (that’s Greg Salamone, by the way) comments after we won. He said something to the effect of: “Pete, you should just quit now, how can it get any better than this?” Well, 10 years later, I am reporting to you that it does get better, and not just because the team is running strong. It gets better because you guys stay in touch and keep coming back, and you were joined by other alums on Saturday, and family, and friends.
Now in the Championship Division, the men did not win today. But they ran pretty darn well, and finished off an excellent season, a season in which one alum asked me over the phone if it was our “best team ever.” That’s a debate for another day, if at all.
This much is not subject to debate: If I am fortunate enough to be alive and coaching our program in 2020, at the IC4A meet, it is my fervent hope and desire that graduating seniors Duggan, Keegan, Web, Zak, Vess, Hink and all the other 2010 XC men come back to see their gray-bearded coach doing his thing with a crop of athletes that are currently in grade school – which is where they were back in 2000. And maybe the 2000 champions, older and perhaps grayer themselves, will still be in the house as well.
More than any trophies, records and the like, that’s what this is all about, isn’t it?
The cross country meet is tinged with bittersweet feelings, as it is the end of the line for graduating seniors in a sport they have probably done for 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8 years. And while there are two more seasons of track, there is nothing like the team-bonding camaraderie that is fostered with cross country. I have had many a graduating senior shed a tear or three at the finish line at Vanny on IC4A Saturday.
Today, there were no tears that I could find. Instead, there was nothing but goofing, smiling and food. Oh man. The food was great! Thanks again, Loyal Parents of Marist Running!!!
One of my fondest memories in my earlier coaching career with the men’s team came at the IC4A Championships in 2000 at Van Cortlandt Park. We had come off a disappointing finish at the MAAC meet in Disney (not a Magical trip!) a few weeks earlier. But we knew we had a GREAT team. We just needed to prove it. At the 2000 IC4A meet, we proved it.
We were in the University Race back then. I knew we had a chance to do well. Imagine my surprise when, off in the distance, I saw Mikey Nehr – my brash and confident junior out of West Babylon – coming out of the woods in first place! He was followed closely by several of his teammates who were running in the top 10. And then P-Diddy (Pat Driscoll) topped it off with the race of his XC race of his life as our fifth man … and we won the meet! Awesome!
Somewhere on my office wall, I have a wrinkled and fading picture of the top 7 from that day, next to the first-place plaque that will forever hang in there. While the memory of that fine day lingers, what’s more rewarding is that, 10 years later, there is still a strong bond with those guys.
In fact, of the 7 runners on that championship team, no fewer than four of them were at Vanny today to cheer on the 2010 Running Red Foxes: Chris and Greg Salamone, Mike Nehr and Pat Driscoll. Awesome. The other three guys were Kirk Dornton, with whom I talk and see frequently, and whose wedding I will gladly attend next summer; Jason Grady, now a successful local coach and with whom I see and talk frequently at meets; and Jamal Padgett, who not surprisingly fell off the face of the earth … but with whom I still have random and bizarre contact, and whose wedding I was invited to but was unable to attend, a few summers ago.
I’ll never forget Reese’s (that’s Greg Salamone, by the way) comments after we won. He said something to the effect of: “Pete, you should just quit now, how can it get any better than this?” Well, 10 years later, I am reporting to you that it does get better, and not just because the team is running strong. It gets better because you guys stay in touch and keep coming back, and you were joined by other alums on Saturday, and family, and friends.
Now in the Championship Division, the men did not win today. But they ran pretty darn well, and finished off an excellent season, a season in which one alum asked me over the phone if it was our “best team ever.” That’s a debate for another day, if at all.
This much is not subject to debate: If I am fortunate enough to be alive and coaching our program in 2020, at the IC4A meet, it is my fervent hope and desire that graduating seniors Duggan, Keegan, Web, Zak, Vess, Hink and all the other 2010 XC men come back to see their gray-bearded coach doing his thing with a crop of athletes that are currently in grade school – which is where they were back in 2000. And maybe the 2000 champions, older and perhaps grayer themselves, will still be in the house as well.
More than any trophies, records and the like, that’s what this is all about, isn’t it?
Reflections on women's meet and season
Reflections on women’s meet and season
Seeing freshman Kiersten Anderson entering the Back Hills on Saturday in the lead – IN THE LEAD! – gave me goosebump chill flashbacks to that 2000 meet when Mike Nehr won the University Division race for the men. Kiersten wound up second in yet another amazing performance.
While I am not admittedly the “keeper of the numbers” for the women’s team as I am for the men’s team, I think it’s safe to say that Kiersten had one of the best freshman XC seasons of any women’s runner we’ve had. And she did that despite battling through early- and mid-season injuries that nearly curtailed the whole season. It was great to see.
This fall’s season was a rough one for our ladies, it really was. We had a lot of unexpected twists and turns, and in some cases the results were less than what we were hoping for. But, from my glass-half-full perspective, here’s what I saw: Effort. Strong effort, in pretty much every meet and every race.
Despite the bad breaks, the ladies that ran gave it their all and rarely got discouraged by what we were enduring. And that was gratifying to see. Nothing is guaranteed for the future, but I believe it is bright for our women’s program. Coach Chuck is recruiting hard to build up our depth, and our luck is already improving in the injury department.
Hopefully, this will start to manifest itself in track, and then big-time next fall. I have faith that’s exactly what will happen.
Seeing freshman Kiersten Anderson entering the Back Hills on Saturday in the lead – IN THE LEAD! – gave me goosebump chill flashbacks to that 2000 meet when Mike Nehr won the University Division race for the men. Kiersten wound up second in yet another amazing performance.
While I am not admittedly the “keeper of the numbers” for the women’s team as I am for the men’s team, I think it’s safe to say that Kiersten had one of the best freshman XC seasons of any women’s runner we’ve had. And she did that despite battling through early- and mid-season injuries that nearly curtailed the whole season. It was great to see.
This fall’s season was a rough one for our ladies, it really was. We had a lot of unexpected twists and turns, and in some cases the results were less than what we were hoping for. But, from my glass-half-full perspective, here’s what I saw: Effort. Strong effort, in pretty much every meet and every race.
Despite the bad breaks, the ladies that ran gave it their all and rarely got discouraged by what we were enduring. And that was gratifying to see. Nothing is guaranteed for the future, but I believe it is bright for our women’s program. Coach Chuck is recruiting hard to build up our depth, and our luck is already improving in the injury department.
Hopefully, this will start to manifest itself in track, and then big-time next fall. I have faith that’s exactly what will happen.
Crunching some IC4A numbers
As I said in a previous post, I definitely have more of a records database stored for our men’s team. Here is some historical perspective and analysis of our IC4A history as a team, and our current VCP history on the “construction course,” and why the 2010 meet on balance was a strong effort top to bottom for the men.
Team history
Since our win in the University Division at this meet in 2000, here is what we have done each year since.
2001: 11th place, 391 points
2002: 12th place, 313 points (All-East, Kirk Dornton, 20th place, 25:50)
2003: 11th place, 263 points
2004: 5th in University Division with 145 points
2005: 2nd in University Division with 98 points
2006: 5th place, 161 points (All-East: David Raucci, 13th place, 25:32.9; Girma Segni, 15th place, 25:37.5)
2007: 8th place, 216 points (All-East: Girma Segni, 14th place, 25:36; David Raucci, 15th place, 25:38)
2008: 3rd place, 102 points (All-East: David Raucci, 2nd place, 25:13; Girma Segni, 16th place, 25:43; Tim Keegan, 22nd place, 25:49; Will Griffin, 25th place, 25:54)
2009: 6th place, 153 points (All-East: Matt Flint, 12th place, 25:48.5; Will Griffin, 23rd place, 26:07.7)
2010 Men’s team standings
1-Duke 44, 2-Duquesne 141, 3-Harvard and Central Connecticut 147, 5-Marist 162, 6-George Mason 189, 7-Columbia 190, 8-Albany 201, 9-William & Mary 209, 10-Syracuse 239, 11-Iona 273, 12-Princeton 318, 13-Delaware 340, 14-Boston College 344, 15-La Salle and Rider 346, 17-U Mass 446, 18-St. Joseph’s 489, 19-Boston University 551
Individual results analysis:
This year’s “construction course” was much better than last year. However, I will still consider it “more difficult” than the Original VCP course in this regard: The amount of flat terrain between the Back Hills and Cemetery Hill is significantly shorter than the original. That makes the back end of the course harder.
Having said that, the Championship Division race today was as deep and as fast as I can ever remember it! The conditions were pretty good; the strong winds that were forecast never materialized. It was chilly, but it was above average racing weather, in my opinion.
IC4As is an odd meet. It’s a week after Regionals, which for most is a tough and draining race. Some programs do not bring their “A game” squads. We usually choose to bring our best team. Once again, we were without the services of Adam Vess. Today, Vess’ absence was finally felt, as our gap from 4 man to 5 man was larger than we would have liked. Such is life, and this is how it is during a long cross country season.
Again, though, look at these numbers below, and you’ll see significant improvement for almost every member of the team. Listed here are today’s results again, with the previous VCP “construction course” personal-best times in parenthesis. In many cases, there is a startling improvement in performance, which is exactly what we are looking for (**indicates a (in most cases, significant) VCP construction PR)
7-Matt Flint 25:11.5 (25:48.5)**
14-Arquimedes DelaCruz 25:26.4 (27:00.2)**
26-Will Griffin 25:32.6 (26:07.7)**
34-Ken Walshak 25:47.8 (26:25.28)**
84-Tim Keegan 26:32.6 (26:26.2)
90-Pat Duggan 26:38.7 (26:57.98)**
98-Nick Webster 26:45.1 (26:47.22)**
114-Joel Moss 26:58.3 (27:37.75)**
124-Ryan Scrudato 27:08.9 (first time at VCP)
129-Mike Nicoletti 27:14.5 (27:38.04)**
148-Nick Hughes 27:49.4 (27:12.90). Note: Knee injury.
Coaches Association race
5-Brian Townsend 27:05.1 (28:46.0)**
7-Nick Salek 27:16.6 (28:31)**
8-Isaiah Miller 27:22.9 (28:01)**
12-Ryan Brown 27:30.9 (28:40.7)**
14-Kevin O’Sullivan 27:41.1 (first time at VCP)
15-Mike Keegan 27:42.4 (28:35)**
17-Billy Posch 27:44.1 (27:26.92). Note: Foot injury.
21-Ryan Fitzsimons 27:56.2 (29:54.2)**
22-Zak Smetana 28:04.7 (27:04.5)
28-Ben Windisch 28:16.0 (first time at VCP)
32-Pat Deedy 28:24.2 (28:13)
35-Will Schanz 28:31.3 (28:25)
37-Billy Hild 28:36.9 (30:18)**
44-Doug Ainscow 28:48.3 (28:48)
49-Brendan Green 29:55.8 (30:53.4)**
Team history
Since our win in the University Division at this meet in 2000, here is what we have done each year since.
2001: 11th place, 391 points
2002: 12th place, 313 points (All-East, Kirk Dornton, 20th place, 25:50)
2003: 11th place, 263 points
2004: 5th in University Division with 145 points
2005: 2nd in University Division with 98 points
2006: 5th place, 161 points (All-East: David Raucci, 13th place, 25:32.9; Girma Segni, 15th place, 25:37.5)
2007: 8th place, 216 points (All-East: Girma Segni, 14th place, 25:36; David Raucci, 15th place, 25:38)
2008: 3rd place, 102 points (All-East: David Raucci, 2nd place, 25:13; Girma Segni, 16th place, 25:43; Tim Keegan, 22nd place, 25:49; Will Griffin, 25th place, 25:54)
2009: 6th place, 153 points (All-East: Matt Flint, 12th place, 25:48.5; Will Griffin, 23rd place, 26:07.7)
2010 Men’s team standings
1-Duke 44, 2-Duquesne 141, 3-Harvard and Central Connecticut 147, 5-Marist 162, 6-George Mason 189, 7-Columbia 190, 8-Albany 201, 9-William & Mary 209, 10-Syracuse 239, 11-Iona 273, 12-Princeton 318, 13-Delaware 340, 14-Boston College 344, 15-La Salle and Rider 346, 17-U Mass 446, 18-St. Joseph’s 489, 19-Boston University 551
Individual results analysis:
This year’s “construction course” was much better than last year. However, I will still consider it “more difficult” than the Original VCP course in this regard: The amount of flat terrain between the Back Hills and Cemetery Hill is significantly shorter than the original. That makes the back end of the course harder.
Having said that, the Championship Division race today was as deep and as fast as I can ever remember it! The conditions were pretty good; the strong winds that were forecast never materialized. It was chilly, but it was above average racing weather, in my opinion.
IC4As is an odd meet. It’s a week after Regionals, which for most is a tough and draining race. Some programs do not bring their “A game” squads. We usually choose to bring our best team. Once again, we were without the services of Adam Vess. Today, Vess’ absence was finally felt, as our gap from 4 man to 5 man was larger than we would have liked. Such is life, and this is how it is during a long cross country season.
Again, though, look at these numbers below, and you’ll see significant improvement for almost every member of the team. Listed here are today’s results again, with the previous VCP “construction course” personal-best times in parenthesis. In many cases, there is a startling improvement in performance, which is exactly what we are looking for (**indicates a (in most cases, significant) VCP construction PR)
7-Matt Flint 25:11.5 (25:48.5)**
14-Arquimedes DelaCruz 25:26.4 (27:00.2)**
26-Will Griffin 25:32.6 (26:07.7)**
34-Ken Walshak 25:47.8 (26:25.28)**
84-Tim Keegan 26:32.6 (26:26.2)
90-Pat Duggan 26:38.7 (26:57.98)**
98-Nick Webster 26:45.1 (26:47.22)**
114-Joel Moss 26:58.3 (27:37.75)**
124-Ryan Scrudato 27:08.9 (first time at VCP)
129-Mike Nicoletti 27:14.5 (27:38.04)**
148-Nick Hughes 27:49.4 (27:12.90). Note: Knee injury.
Coaches Association race
5-Brian Townsend 27:05.1 (28:46.0)**
7-Nick Salek 27:16.6 (28:31)**
8-Isaiah Miller 27:22.9 (28:01)**
12-Ryan Brown 27:30.9 (28:40.7)**
14-Kevin O’Sullivan 27:41.1 (first time at VCP)
15-Mike Keegan 27:42.4 (28:35)**
17-Billy Posch 27:44.1 (27:26.92). Note: Foot injury.
21-Ryan Fitzsimons 27:56.2 (29:54.2)**
22-Zak Smetana 28:04.7 (27:04.5)
28-Ben Windisch 28:16.0 (first time at VCP)
32-Pat Deedy 28:24.2 (28:13)
35-Will Schanz 28:31.3 (28:25)
37-Billy Hild 28:36.9 (30:18)**
44-Doug Ainscow 28:48.3 (28:48)
49-Brendan Green 29:55.8 (30:53.4)**
ECAC/IC4A results from today
What a great day at Van Cortlandt Park!
The weather was awesome -- the forecasted strong winds never really materialized.
The post-race parents' tailgate was incredible -- alumni and athletes from other teams even crashed it. The more the merrier! Thanks to all who contributed the great bounty of food.
And oh yeah ... the teams ran pretty well, too.
Individually for the women, freshman Kiersten Anderson had a banner day. She was 2nd in the ECAC University Division race in 18:10.3 on the 5K course. Coach Chuck provided me with the following highlights:
--She earned ECAC University All-East honors (goes to top-25 finishers)
--She tied the best individual finish in school history (Addie DiFrancesco from 2008)
--Her 18:10.3 breaks Liza Grudzinski's VCP school record of 18:23, set in 2002. Nicely done!!
In addition:
--Erin O'Reilly ran a VCP personal-best time
--Briana Crowe ran an overall 5km cross country personal-best time
Here is the complete stats for the women.
ECAC University Division Championships
Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx
5-kilometer course
Women’s team standings:
1-U Albany 49, 2-Monmouth 99, 3-Towson 104, 4-St. John’s 161, 5-Marist 179, 6-Binghamton 209, 7-Sacred Heart 219, 8-Bucknell 281, 9-Pittsburgh 288, 10-Fordham 307, 11-Holy Cross 321, 12-Rider 323, 13-Central Connecticut 330, 14-New Hampshire 346, 15-Robert Morris 358, 16-Fairfield 361, 17-Temple 447, 18-Hofstra 464, 19-Manhattan 491, 20-Seton Hall 548, 21-NJIT 575, 22-Siena 614, 23-Longwood 619
Individual results
2-Kiersten Anderson 18:10.3 *ECAC University Division All-East
35-Erin O’Reilly 19:16.6
40-Briana Crowe 19:20.9
50-Katie Messina 19:35.0
53-Kathryn Sheehan 19:36.3
77-Julie Hudak 20:00.4
79-Kara Lightowler 20:03.3
96-Jillian Corley 20:16.5
97-Kelley Hanifin 20:17.0
110-Kelley Gould 20:25.5
139-Dayna McLaughlin 20:53.0
152-Allyson O’Brien 21:08.7
Coaches Association Race results
7-Tara Nuccitelli 20:18.1
14-Elizabeth O’Brien 20:36.3
15-Miy Mahran 20:44.9
18-Becca Denise 21:00.9
26-Kim Bartlett 21:34.7
27-Laura Lindsley 21:39.7
29-Colleen Smith 21:44.4
39-Natalie Rowland 23:01.4
44-Ashley Jensen 23:15.7
The men had a pretty strong day as well. Our gap from 4 to 5 hurt us, but overall everyone ran great with a lot of current VCP personal-best times (as you will see). More number-crunching analysis of that in a future post.
The fifth-place finish was the second highest in school history (we were 2nd in 2008) and we were just 21 points out of second place today.
Matt Flint and a hard-charging Quimes DelaCruz earned All-East honors and both ran big PRs. Will Griffin and Fab Freshman Kenny Walshak finished out strong varsity seasons with big PRs as well.
The guys in the Coaches Association race really rocked it too. In particular, Big Blog Follower Billy Hild improved his time from Mets by 1:48. Nicely done, Mr. Fresh!
It was a great way for this awesome senior class to go out.
More analysis later ...
Men’s team standings
1-Duke 44, 2-Duquesne 141, 3-Harvard and Central Connecticut 147, 5-Marist 162, 6-George Mason 189, 7-Columbia 190, 8-Albany 201, 9-William & Mary 209, 10-Syracuse 239, 11-Iona 273, 12-Princeton 318, 13-Delaware 340, 14-Boston College 344, 15-La Salle and Rider 346, 17-U Mass 446, 18-St. Joseph’s 489, 19-Boston University 551
Individual results
7-Matt Flint 25:11.5 *IC4A Championship All-East (personal best)
14-Arquimedes DelaCruz 25:26.4 *IC4A Championship All-East (personal best)
26-Will Griffin 25:32.6 (personal best)
34-Ken Walshak 25:47.8 (personal best)
84-Tim Keegan 26:32.6
90-Pat Duggan 26:38.7 (personal best)
98-Nick Webster 26:45.1 (personal best)
114-Joel Moss 26:58.3 (personal best)
124-Ryan Scrudato 27:08.9 (personal best)
129-Mike Nicoletti 27:14.5 (personal best)
148-Nick Hughes 27:49.4
Coaches Association race
5-Brian Townsend 27:05.1 (personal best)
7-Nick Salek 27:16.6 (personal best)
8-Isaiah Miller 27:22.9 (personal best)
12-Ryan Brown 27:30.9 (personal best)
14-Kevin O’Sullivan 27:41.1 (personal best)
15-Mike Keegan 27:42.4 (personal best)
17-Billy Posch 27:44.1
21-Ryan Fitzsimons 27:56.2 (personal best)
22-Zak Smetana 28:04.7
28-Ben Windisch 28:16.0 (personal best)
32-Pat Deedy 28:24.2
35-Will Schanz 28:31.3
37-Billy Hild 28:36.9 (personal best)
44-Doug Ainscow 28:48.3 (personal best)
49-Brendan Green 29:55.8 (personal best)
The weather was awesome -- the forecasted strong winds never really materialized.
The post-race parents' tailgate was incredible -- alumni and athletes from other teams even crashed it. The more the merrier! Thanks to all who contributed the great bounty of food.
And oh yeah ... the teams ran pretty well, too.
Individually for the women, freshman Kiersten Anderson had a banner day. She was 2nd in the ECAC University Division race in 18:10.3 on the 5K course. Coach Chuck provided me with the following highlights:
--She earned ECAC University All-East honors (goes to top-25 finishers)
--She tied the best individual finish in school history (Addie DiFrancesco from 2008)
--Her 18:10.3 breaks Liza Grudzinski's VCP school record of 18:23, set in 2002. Nicely done!!
In addition:
--Erin O'Reilly ran a VCP personal-best time
--Briana Crowe ran an overall 5km cross country personal-best time
Here is the complete stats for the women.
ECAC University Division Championships
Van Cortlandt Park, Bronx
5-kilometer course
Women’s team standings:
1-U Albany 49, 2-Monmouth 99, 3-Towson 104, 4-St. John’s 161, 5-Marist 179, 6-Binghamton 209, 7-Sacred Heart 219, 8-Bucknell 281, 9-Pittsburgh 288, 10-Fordham 307, 11-Holy Cross 321, 12-Rider 323, 13-Central Connecticut 330, 14-New Hampshire 346, 15-Robert Morris 358, 16-Fairfield 361, 17-Temple 447, 18-Hofstra 464, 19-Manhattan 491, 20-Seton Hall 548, 21-NJIT 575, 22-Siena 614, 23-Longwood 619
Individual results
2-Kiersten Anderson 18:10.3 *ECAC University Division All-East
35-Erin O’Reilly 19:16.6
40-Briana Crowe 19:20.9
50-Katie Messina 19:35.0
53-Kathryn Sheehan 19:36.3
77-Julie Hudak 20:00.4
79-Kara Lightowler 20:03.3
96-Jillian Corley 20:16.5
97-Kelley Hanifin 20:17.0
110-Kelley Gould 20:25.5
139-Dayna McLaughlin 20:53.0
152-Allyson O’Brien 21:08.7
Coaches Association Race results
7-Tara Nuccitelli 20:18.1
14-Elizabeth O’Brien 20:36.3
15-Miy Mahran 20:44.9
18-Becca Denise 21:00.9
26-Kim Bartlett 21:34.7
27-Laura Lindsley 21:39.7
29-Colleen Smith 21:44.4
39-Natalie Rowland 23:01.4
44-Ashley Jensen 23:15.7
The men had a pretty strong day as well. Our gap from 4 to 5 hurt us, but overall everyone ran great with a lot of current VCP personal-best times (as you will see). More number-crunching analysis of that in a future post.
The fifth-place finish was the second highest in school history (we were 2nd in 2008) and we were just 21 points out of second place today.
Matt Flint and a hard-charging Quimes DelaCruz earned All-East honors and both ran big PRs. Will Griffin and Fab Freshman Kenny Walshak finished out strong varsity seasons with big PRs as well.
The guys in the Coaches Association race really rocked it too. In particular, Big Blog Follower Billy Hild improved his time from Mets by 1:48. Nicely done, Mr. Fresh!
It was a great way for this awesome senior class to go out.
More analysis later ...
Men’s team standings
1-Duke 44, 2-Duquesne 141, 3-Harvard and Central Connecticut 147, 5-Marist 162, 6-George Mason 189, 7-Columbia 190, 8-Albany 201, 9-William & Mary 209, 10-Syracuse 239, 11-Iona 273, 12-Princeton 318, 13-Delaware 340, 14-Boston College 344, 15-La Salle and Rider 346, 17-U Mass 446, 18-St. Joseph’s 489, 19-Boston University 551
Individual results
7-Matt Flint 25:11.5 *IC4A Championship All-East (personal best)
14-Arquimedes DelaCruz 25:26.4 *IC4A Championship All-East (personal best)
26-Will Griffin 25:32.6 (personal best)
34-Ken Walshak 25:47.8 (personal best)
84-Tim Keegan 26:32.6
90-Pat Duggan 26:38.7 (personal best)
98-Nick Webster 26:45.1 (personal best)
114-Joel Moss 26:58.3 (personal best)
124-Ryan Scrudato 27:08.9 (personal best)
129-Mike Nicoletti 27:14.5 (personal best)
148-Nick Hughes 27:49.4
Coaches Association race
5-Brian Townsend 27:05.1 (personal best)
7-Nick Salek 27:16.6 (personal best)
8-Isaiah Miller 27:22.9 (personal best)
12-Ryan Brown 27:30.9 (personal best)
14-Kevin O’Sullivan 27:41.1 (personal best)
15-Mike Keegan 27:42.4 (personal best)
17-Billy Posch 27:44.1
21-Ryan Fitzsimons 27:56.2 (personal best)
22-Zak Smetana 28:04.7
28-Ben Windisch 28:16.0 (personal best)
32-Pat Deedy 28:24.2
35-Will Schanz 28:31.3
37-Billy Hild 28:36.9 (personal best)
44-Doug Ainscow 28:48.3 (personal best)
49-Brendan Green 29:55.8 (personal best)
Thursday, November 18, 2010
Potter mania
The new Harry Potter movie debuts tonight. This is a BIG DEAL for many people, including many members of the Marist Running Family. I had no idea what a big deal this is. Until today.
Remember that I am a total pop-culture illiterate. I don't watch movies. Other than baseball and weather, I do not watch TV. In the car, I listen to NPR and sports talk -- not necessarily in that order. (By the way, don't even GET ME STARTED on the AL Cy Young Award winner announcement today ... but that's another story!)
This new Harry Potter movie is also a BIG DEAL in my house. On Friday night, my wife and two older kids are going to see the new movie in the theater. James (the youngest) and I are staying home, hosting a bunch of men's cross country runners/video game enthusiasts that you might know, for a night of pizza and Mario Kart. James will be thrilled to be surrounded by a bunch of overgrown children with whom he can play.
Tonight, as I type this, we are hosting a mini-Harry Potter party in our den. Along with our children, we have several neighborhood kids and friends over to watch the sixth (I think?) HP movie -- the most recent one before the new one -- as a primer for the Big Night at the Movies tomorrow night.
The quest for this HP movie basically consumed me during practice time today. Sophomore Billy Posch, a huge Potter fan, said he had the movie we needed. Great! He brought it down to practice on Wednesday. However, upon further investigation, all he had was Disc 2 -- you know, out-take, special effects, and the like. Not good.
And then, as I was teaching class this morning, the alarming text from Posch came: "Pete having a little prblem cant find the movie ill keep looking though."
Immediately, panic set in. What to do? We have a mini-Potter Party planned in the den ... and no movie! What, am I gonna put in my Yankeeography DVDs? Sure, that would go over great with the kids!
Posch kept looking. Word spread around the men's and women's teams. Urgent, urgent, coach Pete needs Harry Potter DVD. Texts were exchanged. Rooms were searched. Fortunately, a "friend of Andrew James" came through with a somewhat sketchy version of the video. Good enough, bro! We are about 40 minutes into it, and everyone is happy.
Final note: I am not mad at Posch. In fact, I am touched (but not surprised) but his incredible kindness. After failing to come up with the elusive movie, Billy offered to go to Blockbuster and rent it for us! A sweet sentiment, a generous offer, that will not be forgotten.
And now ... back to ignoring the movie and stewing over the AL Cy Young Award ...
Remember that I am a total pop-culture illiterate. I don't watch movies. Other than baseball and weather, I do not watch TV. In the car, I listen to NPR and sports talk -- not necessarily in that order. (By the way, don't even GET ME STARTED on the AL Cy Young Award winner announcement today ... but that's another story!)
This new Harry Potter movie is also a BIG DEAL in my house. On Friday night, my wife and two older kids are going to see the new movie in the theater. James (the youngest) and I are staying home, hosting a bunch of men's cross country runners/video game enthusiasts that you might know, for a night of pizza and Mario Kart. James will be thrilled to be surrounded by a bunch of overgrown children with whom he can play.
Tonight, as I type this, we are hosting a mini-Harry Potter party in our den. Along with our children, we have several neighborhood kids and friends over to watch the sixth (I think?) HP movie -- the most recent one before the new one -- as a primer for the Big Night at the Movies tomorrow night.
The quest for this HP movie basically consumed me during practice time today. Sophomore Billy Posch, a huge Potter fan, said he had the movie we needed. Great! He brought it down to practice on Wednesday. However, upon further investigation, all he had was Disc 2 -- you know, out-take, special effects, and the like. Not good.
And then, as I was teaching class this morning, the alarming text from Posch came: "Pete having a little prblem cant find the movie ill keep looking though."
Immediately, panic set in. What to do? We have a mini-Potter Party planned in the den ... and no movie! What, am I gonna put in my Yankeeography DVDs? Sure, that would go over great with the kids!
Posch kept looking. Word spread around the men's and women's teams. Urgent, urgent, coach Pete needs Harry Potter DVD. Texts were exchanged. Rooms were searched. Fortunately, a "friend of Andrew James" came through with a somewhat sketchy version of the video. Good enough, bro! We are about 40 minutes into it, and everyone is happy.
Final note: I am not mad at Posch. In fact, I am touched (but not surprised) but his incredible kindness. After failing to come up with the elusive movie, Billy offered to go to Blockbuster and rent it for us! A sweet sentiment, a generous offer, that will not be forgotten.
And now ... back to ignoring the movie and stewing over the AL Cy Young Award ...
Quick notes on Saturday
Looking forward to our season-ending IC4A/ECAC meet at Van Cortlandt Park ...
1. Team Parents are planning a post-race feed (I'm trying to secure a Marist tent, but it may become a flying hazard ... more on that next) at the park. Thanks in advance to all that are contributing. Should be fun.
2. Just checked Accuweather.com. It will be sunny. It will be windy. Very windy. As in, exclamation point windy, on that site. So maybe that tent isn't a good idea?
The wind is coming out of the west, which is not great but not terrible either. The worst wind at Vanny is from the south, because it is in your face a lot. West wind is a crosswind for some of the race. Advice to racers: Don't break the wind for your fellow competitors. Draft.
See you soon ...
1. Team Parents are planning a post-race feed (I'm trying to secure a Marist tent, but it may become a flying hazard ... more on that next) at the park. Thanks in advance to all that are contributing. Should be fun.
2. Just checked Accuweather.com. It will be sunny. It will be windy. Very windy. As in, exclamation point windy, on that site. So maybe that tent isn't a good idea?
The wind is coming out of the west, which is not great but not terrible either. The worst wind at Vanny is from the south, because it is in your face a lot. West wind is a crosswind for some of the race. Advice to racers: Don't break the wind for your fellow competitors. Draft.
See you soon ...
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Fan mail from across the river
Received this email earlier this week ...
"Pete, congratulations on another successful season. I am not surprised because your runners are just a hard working bunch. I see them running through Highland, especially on Tillson and Vineyard avenues. They have run completely uphill since getting off the Walkway and they do not seem the least bit tired. Keep up the good work and see you at the Mid-Hudson Bridge tolls."
The person who sent the e-mail is a toll collector on the bridge, and a loyal Red Fox supporter. I see him at Marist basketball games all the time.
It's nice for our athletes to be recognized in a positive fashion by members of the community.
Each year, without fail, we usually get one complaint call about "those damn Marist runners hogging the road and getting in the way of cars."
So positive e-mail about our running on the roads is always nice.
"Pete, congratulations on another successful season. I am not surprised because your runners are just a hard working bunch. I see them running through Highland, especially on Tillson and Vineyard avenues. They have run completely uphill since getting off the Walkway and they do not seem the least bit tired. Keep up the good work and see you at the Mid-Hudson Bridge tolls."
The person who sent the e-mail is a toll collector on the bridge, and a loyal Red Fox supporter. I see him at Marist basketball games all the time.
It's nice for our athletes to be recognized in a positive fashion by members of the community.
Each year, without fail, we usually get one complaint call about "those damn Marist runners hogging the road and getting in the way of cars."
So positive e-mail about our running on the roads is always nice.
IC4A/ECAC information
Hello all. Here is information regarding Saturday's races at Van Cortlandt Park.
9:30 a.m.: ECAC (women's) Coaches' race. We will have several ladies running in this race.
9:40 a.m.: IC4A (men's) Coaches' race. We will have MANY men running in this race
10:30 a.m.: ECAC Championship race. We will NOT be in this race.
11 a.m.: IC4A Championship race. We will run 12 men in the varsity in this race.
11:45 a.m.: ECAC University Division race. We will run 12 women in the varsity in this race.
12:15 p.m.: IC4A University Division race. We will NOT be in this race.
The weather forecast is calling for a sunny and breezy day, highs in the upper 40s to near 50. Not too shabby for November 20.
Hope to see you there.
9:30 a.m.: ECAC (women's) Coaches' race. We will have several ladies running in this race.
9:40 a.m.: IC4A (men's) Coaches' race. We will have MANY men running in this race
10:30 a.m.: ECAC Championship race. We will NOT be in this race.
11 a.m.: IC4A Championship race. We will run 12 men in the varsity in this race.
11:45 a.m.: ECAC University Division race. We will run 12 women in the varsity in this race.
12:15 p.m.: IC4A University Division race. We will NOT be in this race.
The weather forecast is calling for a sunny and breezy day, highs in the upper 40s to near 50. Not too shabby for November 20.
Hope to see you there.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Regionals in pictures
Thanks to Mr. Anderson (Kiersten's dad) and Mr. Webster (Nick's dad) for providing the above photos from a sunny Saturday in Connecticut.
The best/worst action photo has to be Quimes (Crazy Q) DelaCruz, stunningly leading the pack!
Saturday, November 13, 2010
NCAA Regionals: A perfect 10th
It was certainly a memorable day at the regionals on Saturday. So many things made this a day that this old coach will recall for a long time. Here’s a random list of post-weekend thoughts from a record-breaking day for the Running Red Foxes …
--Entering the meet, our men’s team was ranked 14th in the region. Although I believed we were better than that, I also felt it was a fair ranking in that all the teams in front of us – not to mention a few behind us and even a couple that were unranked – are extremely solid programs.
In my humble opinion, the region was the deepest it had ever been. As always, the Ivy League teams were strong. This was one of those years where I felt every Ivy League team could have finished ahead of us, even if we were at our best. Add to that the fact that there were three America East schools that were ranked ahead of us, not to mention the usual front-running suspects with the national rankings, and it was getting very crowded up there trying to nudge our way back into the top 10. Realistically, we could have run our very best race and finished no higher than 12th.
Of course, things happen – to us, to all teams. It is the nature of the pressure-cooker race that is NCAA Regionals. I cannot analyze other teams' performances because I do not have enough information on them. In our case, our tough-luck, top-flight runner – Adam Vess – DNFed despite giving it a valiant effort. He blacked out on the course, but fortunately did no major damage to his body (we hope).
It’s how your team reacts to these difficulties that makes it worth it, and our varsity men really answered the call.
--For four years (2005 through 2008), we always discussed the potent 1-2 punch of Girma Segni and David Raucci. Quietly and steadily, the 1-2 punch of juniors Matt Flint and Will Griffin have done what I thought could not be repeated so soon in my coaching tenure. And, they have done it with toughness and consistency that is so appreciated. Today was no different.
--At one point, relatively early in the race, I was freaking out because I could not see Will (after the mile) and could not see Flint (around 4km). I wasn’t the only one that missed Flint, which of course led to a panic attack on my part. It was crowded out there, and they were plugging away with the best runners in our region. A couple of frantic cell calls to Tommy Lipari, who told me they were both running great, calmed my nerves.
--Sophomore Quimes DelaCruz inexplicably went out like a bat out of hell. He was in the top 10 early in the race, and I was convinced our boy Q had lost his mind once and for all. I could hear his crazed voice in my head. He was probably thinking: “Das right, das right, I’m the Greatest and I’m gonna show the world I’m the Greatest.” Oh boy. He did fade a bit, but he recovered late in the race and passed many runners from 8km to 10km – as instructed. He might be nuts, but he does listen, Most of the time, anyway.
--Ken Walshak ran his usual solid race that we have come to expect of him. He is a freshman, but Kenny runs with the tenacity, toughness and consistency of upperclassmen like Will and Flint. And he does not scare on a big stage like this.
--Senior Nick Webster made the day. He ran tough and smart early, and he had an eye-popping kick. This was clearly his finest hour as a collegiate cross country runner. It is particularly gratifying for me, because Web was our alternate for the past two regional meets – at best, a difficult proposition (Side note: Freshman Nick Hughes filled this role today in a classy manner; his time will come). Being the Fine Citizen of our program for four years, Web never complained about his fate and always supported the team. For him to nail this race perfectly and fill that crucial 5th scoring spot for us is something I will never forget.
--While senior captain Timmy Keegan did not score, he went out hard, raced tough and really pushed our team to perform well. I fully expect Tim to finish his XC career with a flourish on a course (VCP) that he has had plenty of success on during his great four-year run.
--The team support was phenomenal. I was so glad to see about a dozen of our guys make the long road trip on Saturday morning to support the varsity men. I vaguely remember body-slamming Ryan Scrudato and Joel Moss (and maybe others?) in excitement toward the end of the meet.
--Freshman Billy Hild boldly predicted a ninth-place finish by our men before the race. While I felt that anything was possible, that was certainly a pie-in-the-sky goal. I told Billy if our men did that, I would kiss him on the cheek for his great faith in our team. We were pretty close to his pre-race prediction, but thankfully I did not have to smooch his prickly, unshaven face.
--The family support was great, as usual. It is never taken for granted. Thank you all!
A quick note on the women’s race: From my perspective, I felt our ladies competed well and visually to me seemed to compete better than at MAACs. Kiersten Anderson went out very hard and hung tough for a strong placement. According to my calculations, she was the ninth freshman in the field – very excellent! The rest of our scoring ladies finished in a tight pack and ran reasonably well – but our region is very deep, and those places piled up quickly in front of us.
The XC season wraps up next Saturday at the IC4A/ECAC meet. We hope to see many family, friends and alumni there. More on that early next week.
NCAA Northeast Regional
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hammonasset State Park, Madison, CT
Men’s team standings:
1-Syracuse 56, 2-Iona 63, 3-Providence 113, 4-Dartmouth 138, 5-Columbia 146, 6-Cornell 232, 7-Boston U 239, 8-Brown 240, 9-U Mass 264, 10-Marist 288, 11-Yale 304, 12-Harvard 327, 13-U Albany 357, 14-Binghamton 397, 15-Northeastern 399, 16-Central Connecticut 403, 17-Buffalo 459, 18-Army 478, 19-Boston College 487, 20-Stony Brook 510, 21-Maine 596, 22-Fordham 617, 23-Vermont 649, 24-Connecticut 659, 25-Colgate 662, 26-Hartford 748, 27-Sacred Heart 754, 28-Wagner 770, 29-New Hampshire 778, 30-Manhattan 788, 31-Niagara 832, 32-Hofstra 873, 33-Fairfield 941, 34-Quinnipiac 1032, 35-Siena 1046
Marist finishers
10,000 meters
30. Matt Flint 30:52.7
38. Will Griffin 31:04.9
61. Arquimedes DelaCruz 31:29.5
72. Ken Walshak 31:42.8
87. Nick Webster 31:56.6
128. Tim Keegan 32:38.3
DNF – Adam Vess
Women’s team standings
1-Syracuse 78, 2-Stony Brook 83, 3-Providence 87, 4-Boston College 92, 5-Columbia 206, 6-Cornell 209, 7-Brown 226, 8-Dartmouth 271, 9-New Hampshire 273, 10-Boston U 315, 11-Yale 323, 12-Iona 332, 13-Connecticut 353, 14-Harvard 389, 15-Colgate 394, 16-Maine 395, 17-Army 480, 18-Vermont 482, 19-U Mass 493, 20-Quinnipiac 536, 21-Holy Cross 613, 22-Rhode Island 700, 23-Marist 712, 24-Northeastern 729, 25-Binghamton 753, 26-Buffalo 754, 27-Central Connecticut 854, 28-St. John’s 860, 29-Fordham 870, 30-Sacred Heart 900, 31-Niagara 901, 32-Fairfield 923, 33-Manhattan 952, 34-Hofstra 1011, 35-Siena 1078
Marist finishers
6,000 meters
52-Kiersten Anderson 21:29.6
153-Briana Crowe 23:01.7
162-Katie Messina 23:08.2
176-Erin O’Reilly 23:18.4
177-Kathryn Sheehan 23:20.5
184-Jillian Corley 23:39.8
DNF – Julie Hudak
--Entering the meet, our men’s team was ranked 14th in the region. Although I believed we were better than that, I also felt it was a fair ranking in that all the teams in front of us – not to mention a few behind us and even a couple that were unranked – are extremely solid programs.
In my humble opinion, the region was the deepest it had ever been. As always, the Ivy League teams were strong. This was one of those years where I felt every Ivy League team could have finished ahead of us, even if we were at our best. Add to that the fact that there were three America East schools that were ranked ahead of us, not to mention the usual front-running suspects with the national rankings, and it was getting very crowded up there trying to nudge our way back into the top 10. Realistically, we could have run our very best race and finished no higher than 12th.
Of course, things happen – to us, to all teams. It is the nature of the pressure-cooker race that is NCAA Regionals. I cannot analyze other teams' performances because I do not have enough information on them. In our case, our tough-luck, top-flight runner – Adam Vess – DNFed despite giving it a valiant effort. He blacked out on the course, but fortunately did no major damage to his body (we hope).
It’s how your team reacts to these difficulties that makes it worth it, and our varsity men really answered the call.
--For four years (2005 through 2008), we always discussed the potent 1-2 punch of Girma Segni and David Raucci. Quietly and steadily, the 1-2 punch of juniors Matt Flint and Will Griffin have done what I thought could not be repeated so soon in my coaching tenure. And, they have done it with toughness and consistency that is so appreciated. Today was no different.
--At one point, relatively early in the race, I was freaking out because I could not see Will (after the mile) and could not see Flint (around 4km). I wasn’t the only one that missed Flint, which of course led to a panic attack on my part. It was crowded out there, and they were plugging away with the best runners in our region. A couple of frantic cell calls to Tommy Lipari, who told me they were both running great, calmed my nerves.
--Sophomore Quimes DelaCruz inexplicably went out like a bat out of hell. He was in the top 10 early in the race, and I was convinced our boy Q had lost his mind once and for all. I could hear his crazed voice in my head. He was probably thinking: “Das right, das right, I’m the Greatest and I’m gonna show the world I’m the Greatest.” Oh boy. He did fade a bit, but he recovered late in the race and passed many runners from 8km to 10km – as instructed. He might be nuts, but he does listen, Most of the time, anyway.
--Ken Walshak ran his usual solid race that we have come to expect of him. He is a freshman, but Kenny runs with the tenacity, toughness and consistency of upperclassmen like Will and Flint. And he does not scare on a big stage like this.
--Senior Nick Webster made the day. He ran tough and smart early, and he had an eye-popping kick. This was clearly his finest hour as a collegiate cross country runner. It is particularly gratifying for me, because Web was our alternate for the past two regional meets – at best, a difficult proposition (Side note: Freshman Nick Hughes filled this role today in a classy manner; his time will come). Being the Fine Citizen of our program for four years, Web never complained about his fate and always supported the team. For him to nail this race perfectly and fill that crucial 5th scoring spot for us is something I will never forget.
--While senior captain Timmy Keegan did not score, he went out hard, raced tough and really pushed our team to perform well. I fully expect Tim to finish his XC career with a flourish on a course (VCP) that he has had plenty of success on during his great four-year run.
--The team support was phenomenal. I was so glad to see about a dozen of our guys make the long road trip on Saturday morning to support the varsity men. I vaguely remember body-slamming Ryan Scrudato and Joel Moss (and maybe others?) in excitement toward the end of the meet.
--Freshman Billy Hild boldly predicted a ninth-place finish by our men before the race. While I felt that anything was possible, that was certainly a pie-in-the-sky goal. I told Billy if our men did that, I would kiss him on the cheek for his great faith in our team. We were pretty close to his pre-race prediction, but thankfully I did not have to smooch his prickly, unshaven face.
--The family support was great, as usual. It is never taken for granted. Thank you all!
A quick note on the women’s race: From my perspective, I felt our ladies competed well and visually to me seemed to compete better than at MAACs. Kiersten Anderson went out very hard and hung tough for a strong placement. According to my calculations, she was the ninth freshman in the field – very excellent! The rest of our scoring ladies finished in a tight pack and ran reasonably well – but our region is very deep, and those places piled up quickly in front of us.
The XC season wraps up next Saturday at the IC4A/ECAC meet. We hope to see many family, friends and alumni there. More on that early next week.
NCAA Northeast Regional
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hammonasset State Park, Madison, CT
Men’s team standings:
1-Syracuse 56, 2-Iona 63, 3-Providence 113, 4-Dartmouth 138, 5-Columbia 146, 6-Cornell 232, 7-Boston U 239, 8-Brown 240, 9-U Mass 264, 10-Marist 288, 11-Yale 304, 12-Harvard 327, 13-U Albany 357, 14-Binghamton 397, 15-Northeastern 399, 16-Central Connecticut 403, 17-Buffalo 459, 18-Army 478, 19-Boston College 487, 20-Stony Brook 510, 21-Maine 596, 22-Fordham 617, 23-Vermont 649, 24-Connecticut 659, 25-Colgate 662, 26-Hartford 748, 27-Sacred Heart 754, 28-Wagner 770, 29-New Hampshire 778, 30-Manhattan 788, 31-Niagara 832, 32-Hofstra 873, 33-Fairfield 941, 34-Quinnipiac 1032, 35-Siena 1046
Marist finishers
10,000 meters
30. Matt Flint 30:52.7
38. Will Griffin 31:04.9
61. Arquimedes DelaCruz 31:29.5
72. Ken Walshak 31:42.8
87. Nick Webster 31:56.6
128. Tim Keegan 32:38.3
DNF – Adam Vess
Women’s team standings
1-Syracuse 78, 2-Stony Brook 83, 3-Providence 87, 4-Boston College 92, 5-Columbia 206, 6-Cornell 209, 7-Brown 226, 8-Dartmouth 271, 9-New Hampshire 273, 10-Boston U 315, 11-Yale 323, 12-Iona 332, 13-Connecticut 353, 14-Harvard 389, 15-Colgate 394, 16-Maine 395, 17-Army 480, 18-Vermont 482, 19-U Mass 493, 20-Quinnipiac 536, 21-Holy Cross 613, 22-Rhode Island 700, 23-Marist 712, 24-Northeastern 729, 25-Binghamton 753, 26-Buffalo 754, 27-Central Connecticut 854, 28-St. John’s 860, 29-Fordham 870, 30-Sacred Heart 900, 31-Niagara 901, 32-Fairfield 923, 33-Manhattan 952, 34-Hofstra 1011, 35-Siena 1078
Marist finishers
6,000 meters
52-Kiersten Anderson 21:29.6
153-Briana Crowe 23:01.7
162-Katie Messina 23:08.2
176-Erin O’Reilly 23:18.4
177-Kathryn Sheehan 23:20.5
184-Jillian Corley 23:39.8
DNF – Julie Hudak
NCAA Regionals results
Below are regionals results from today, a freakishly beautiful day weather-wise. The men set a program-best by placing 10th overall with 288 points (in 2008, we were 10th with 294 points). The guys ran really well.
More commentary and notes from the weekend when I can, just wanted to get this out there in the blogosphere quickly ...
NCAA Northeast Regional
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hammonasset State Park, Madison, CT
Men’s team standings:
1-Syracuse 56, 2-Iona 63, 3-Providence 113, 4-Dartmouth 138, 5-Columbia 146, 6-Cornell 232, 7-Boston U 239, 8-Brown 240, 9-U Mass 264, 10-Marist 288, 11-Yale 304, 12-Harvard 327, 13-U Albany 357, 14-Binghamton 397, 15-Northeastern 399, 16-Central Connecticut 403, 17-Buffalo 459, 18-Army 478, 19-Boston College 487, 20-Stony Brook 510, 21-Maine 596, 22-Fordham 617, 23-Vermont 649, 24-Connecticut 659, 25-Colgate 662, 26-Hartford 748, 27-Sacred Heart 754, 28-Wagner 770, 29-New Hampshire 778, 30-Manhattan 788, 31-Niagara 832, 32-Hofstra 873, 33-Fairfield 941, 34-Quinnipiac 1032, 35-Siena 1046
Marist finishers
10,000 meters
30. Matt Flint 30:52.7
38. Will Griffin 31:04.9
61. Arquimedes DelaCruz 31:29.5
72. Ken Walshak 31:42.8
87. Nick Webster 31:56.6
128. Tim Keegan 32:38.3
DNF – Adam Vess
Women’s team standings
1-Syracuse 78, 2-Stony Brook 83, 3-Providence 87, 4-Boston College 92, 5-Columbia 206, 6-Cornell 209, 7-Brown 226, 8-Dartmouth 271, 9-New Hampshire 273, 10-Boston U 315, 11-Yale 323, 12-Iona 332, 13-Connecticut 353, 14-Harvard 389, 15-Colgate 394, 16-Maine 395, 17-Army 480, 18-Vermont 482, 19-U Mass 493, 20-Quinnipiac 536, 21-Holy Cross 613, 22-Rhode Island 700, 23-Marist 712, 24-Northeastern 729, 25-Binghamton 753, 26-Buffalo 754, 27-Central Connecticut 854, 28-St. John’s 860, 29-Fordham 870, 30-Sacred Heart 900, 31-Niagara 901, 32-Fairfield 923, 33-Manhattan 952, 34-Hofstra 1011, 35-Siena 1078
Marist finishers
6,000 meters
52-Kiersten Anderson 21:29.6
153-Briana Crowe 23:01.7
162-Katie Messina 23:08.2
176-Erin O’Reilly 23:18.4
177-Kathryn Sheehan 23:20.5
184-Jillian Corley 23:39.8
DNF – Julie Hudak
More commentary and notes from the weekend when I can, just wanted to get this out there in the blogosphere quickly ...
NCAA Northeast Regional
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Hammonasset State Park, Madison, CT
Men’s team standings:
1-Syracuse 56, 2-Iona 63, 3-Providence 113, 4-Dartmouth 138, 5-Columbia 146, 6-Cornell 232, 7-Boston U 239, 8-Brown 240, 9-U Mass 264, 10-Marist 288, 11-Yale 304, 12-Harvard 327, 13-U Albany 357, 14-Binghamton 397, 15-Northeastern 399, 16-Central Connecticut 403, 17-Buffalo 459, 18-Army 478, 19-Boston College 487, 20-Stony Brook 510, 21-Maine 596, 22-Fordham 617, 23-Vermont 649, 24-Connecticut 659, 25-Colgate 662, 26-Hartford 748, 27-Sacred Heart 754, 28-Wagner 770, 29-New Hampshire 778, 30-Manhattan 788, 31-Niagara 832, 32-Hofstra 873, 33-Fairfield 941, 34-Quinnipiac 1032, 35-Siena 1046
Marist finishers
10,000 meters
30. Matt Flint 30:52.7
38. Will Griffin 31:04.9
61. Arquimedes DelaCruz 31:29.5
72. Ken Walshak 31:42.8
87. Nick Webster 31:56.6
128. Tim Keegan 32:38.3
DNF – Adam Vess
Women’s team standings
1-Syracuse 78, 2-Stony Brook 83, 3-Providence 87, 4-Boston College 92, 5-Columbia 206, 6-Cornell 209, 7-Brown 226, 8-Dartmouth 271, 9-New Hampshire 273, 10-Boston U 315, 11-Yale 323, 12-Iona 332, 13-Connecticut 353, 14-Harvard 389, 15-Colgate 394, 16-Maine 395, 17-Army 480, 18-Vermont 482, 19-U Mass 493, 20-Quinnipiac 536, 21-Holy Cross 613, 22-Rhode Island 700, 23-Marist 712, 24-Northeastern 729, 25-Binghamton 753, 26-Buffalo 754, 27-Central Connecticut 854, 28-St. John’s 860, 29-Fordham 870, 30-Sacred Heart 900, 31-Niagara 901, 32-Fairfield 923, 33-Manhattan 952, 34-Hofstra 1011, 35-Siena 1078
Marist finishers
6,000 meters
52-Kiersten Anderson 21:29.6
153-Briana Crowe 23:01.7
162-Katie Messina 23:08.2
176-Erin O’Reilly 23:18.4
177-Kathryn Sheehan 23:20.5
184-Jillian Corley 23:39.8
DNF – Julie Hudak
Bowdoin Park workout on Friday
Thanks to Head Coach For A Day Tommy Lipari for organizing this very fine report of Friday's workout for the men's XC runners who are training hard for next week's IC4A meet.
11/12/2010 Bowdoin Park
3x Back Hills 3x 1000's
Name 1000 #1 (Slow way) 1000 #2 1000 #3 (Slow Way)
Duggan 3:02 3:00 3:05
Nicoletti 3:11 3:06 3:06
Windisch 3:10 2:57 3:05
Salek 3:04 3:03 3:04
Scrudato 3:06 3:06 3:05
Moss 3:10 3:06 3:07
Schanz 3:13 3:08 3:09
Clausen 3:15 3:06 3:03
Meegan 3:11 3:06 3:05
Havard 3:10 3:08 3:07
Izzy 3:08 2:57 3:02
Brown 3:09 3:06 3:05
O'sullivan 3:13 3:09 3:08
Hild 3:14 3:11 3:14
Doug 3:12 3:10 3:09
Green 3:17 3:12 3:14
Deedy 3:13 3:10 3:14
Zak 3:14 3:12 3:16
Townsend DNF Leg Pain
Reynolds DNS Blood Test
Head Coach Thomas Lipari
Assistant Curtis Jensen
Assistant Andrew James
11/12/2010 Bowdoin Park
3x Back Hills 3x 1000's
Name 1000 #1 (Slow way) 1000 #2 1000 #3 (Slow Way)
Duggan 3:02 3:00 3:05
Nicoletti 3:11 3:06 3:06
Windisch 3:10 2:57 3:05
Salek 3:04 3:03 3:04
Scrudato 3:06 3:06 3:05
Moss 3:10 3:06 3:07
Schanz 3:13 3:08 3:09
Clausen 3:15 3:06 3:03
Meegan 3:11 3:06 3:05
Havard 3:10 3:08 3:07
Izzy 3:08 2:57 3:02
Brown 3:09 3:06 3:05
O'sullivan 3:13 3:09 3:08
Hild 3:14 3:11 3:14
Doug 3:12 3:10 3:09
Green 3:17 3:12 3:14
Deedy 3:13 3:10 3:14
Zak 3:14 3:12 3:16
Townsend DNF Leg Pain
Reynolds DNS Blood Test
Head Coach Thomas Lipari
Assistant Curtis Jensen
Assistant Andrew James
Dinner with a coach
Friday was a pretty hectic day of travel.
After a romper-room like ride with the team from Marist to the park, they ran the course. And then it was time to take them to our hotel, which was nowhere near the course. We hit New Haven at rush hour (swell). I dropped off the team and then had to head right back out into rush hour traffic for the mandatory coaches meeting.
After the meeting, I was sitting in my van, answering text messages before driving back to the hotel. Christian Morrison, the Sacred Heart coach, was in another van and saw what I was doing. He invited me to dinner. It dawned on me that I was starving.
Christian was my college roommate for 3 years at Marist. We see each other often at meets, but we are usually busy attending to our teams. We talk at meets, but it's usually in passing. It was great to catch up with him in a quiet setting, over some NE clam chowder.
By the time I got back to the hotel, it was pretty late and it had been a long day. But at least the weather for today's meet looks pretty nice.
After a romper-room like ride with the team from Marist to the park, they ran the course. And then it was time to take them to our hotel, which was nowhere near the course. We hit New Haven at rush hour (swell). I dropped off the team and then had to head right back out into rush hour traffic for the mandatory coaches meeting.
After the meeting, I was sitting in my van, answering text messages before driving back to the hotel. Christian Morrison, the Sacred Heart coach, was in another van and saw what I was doing. He invited me to dinner. It dawned on me that I was starving.
Christian was my college roommate for 3 years at Marist. We see each other often at meets, but we are usually busy attending to our teams. We talk at meets, but it's usually in passing. It was great to catch up with him in a quiet setting, over some NE clam chowder.
By the time I got back to the hotel, it was pretty late and it had been a long day. But at least the weather for today's meet looks pretty nice.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Regionals information
I will be leaving tomorrow midday for the NCAA Regional meet, which is on Saturday.
Many team members are planning on making the 2-plus hour journey from Poughkeepsie to Madison, CT, to watch the races on Saturday. For those keeping score at home ...
--Women's race is at noon
--Men's race is at 1:15 p.m.
--For GPS, Mapquest or other unreliable navigation devices, the address for the meet is as follows:
Hammonassett State Park
1288 Boston Post Road
Madison, CT 06443
IC4A/ECAC athletes that are not racing at Regionals will be doing a workout tomorrow. Coach Chuck will touch base with the women before he leaves for CT in the afternoon.
The men have their workout (I handed it out today), which will be at Bowdoin Park. Tommy Lipari will be Acting Coach for the day. I trust Tom will do a great job in my role. Memo to Tom: Driving slowly, drinking coffee and complaining about the cold and the wind are optional.
See you all soon.
Many team members are planning on making the 2-plus hour journey from Poughkeepsie to Madison, CT, to watch the races on Saturday. For those keeping score at home ...
--Women's race is at noon
--Men's race is at 1:15 p.m.
--For GPS, Mapquest or other unreliable navigation devices, the address for the meet is as follows:
Hammonassett State Park
1288 Boston Post Road
Madison, CT 06443
IC4A/ECAC athletes that are not racing at Regionals will be doing a workout tomorrow. Coach Chuck will touch base with the women before he leaves for CT in the afternoon.
The men have their workout (I handed it out today), which will be at Bowdoin Park. Tommy Lipari will be Acting Coach for the day. I trust Tom will do a great job in my role. Memo to Tom: Driving slowly, drinking coffee and complaining about the cold and the wind are optional.
See you all soon.
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