Bethany

Grove City Wolverines - 2009 PAC Men's Track & Field Champions

STEVE CARR NAMED HEAD COACH AT THIEL (8/11/09)
Thiel College has hired Steve Carr as its new head men's & women's track & field coach. Carr, who replaces Ricardo Franklin, is a 13-year collegiate assistant who most recently spent three years as assistant coach at Wheaton (Mass.) College. Carr is a 1995 graduate of Allegheny College, where he was a four-year conference champion in the pole vault.

GENEVA HEAD COACH BRET OTTE RESIGNS (8/2/09)
Geneva head cross country and track & field coach Bret Otte has resigned to take the head track & field coaching position at his alma mater, Calvin College. Brian Yowler, who has served as Otte's cross country assistant for the past three years, was named the program's new head coach. A national search for a new track & field head coach is underway.

FRANKLIN RESIGNS AS THIEL T&F HEAD COACH
Thiel College head track & field coach Ricardo Franklin has resigned his position. A 2002 Thiel alumnus, Franklin recently completed his second season with the Tomcats. A national search to find Franklin’s replacement will begin immediately.

FOUR FROM PAC EARN ESPN XC/T&F HONORS
Four PAC student-athletes have been honored with selection to the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II College Division Cross Country/Track & Field teams for men and women, released by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) on June 4. On the women's side, Waynesburg senior Megan Grover (3.95 grade-point average, biology/pre-dental) was a first team selection, while second team honors went to Grove City senior Julia Seward (3.96, English) and Bethany junior Jodi Bodo (3.87, communication). The lone men's honoree on the first team was junior Derek Kruse (3.96, biology) of Grove City. Both Grover and Kruse now advance to the Academic All-America ballot.

THOMAS MORE TO ADD TRACK & FIELD PROGRAM
Thomas More College Director of Athletics Terry Connor announced on May 28 that the College will add men’s and women’s track & field to the school’s athletic department. The two teams will compete on the club level during the 2009-2010 academic year and the College will look at elevating the teams to varsity status the following year. When the teams are elevated to varsity status it will bring the number of total intercollegiate sports at Thomas More to 16.

TOMCAT TRIO EARNS ALL-AMERICA HONORS, BAUMGARD 12TH IN HIGH JUMP AT NCAAs
The final day of competition at the 2009 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio, concluded on May 23. Thiel College saw all three of its runners earn All-America honors with top eight performances. Junior Alex Eaton paced the Tomcats by placing second in the 400 meter dash with a school-record time of 47.56. Senior teammate Dorran Coley earned his fourth consecutive A-A honor in the 110 meter high hurdles after finishing sixth in 14.60. Finally, the Tomcat women were paced by Cara Riffe, who came in sixth in the 400 meter dash in 56.47. Washington & Jefferson was represented at nationals by senior Summer Baumgard, who placed 12th with a personal-best mark of 5-2 1/2.

THREE TOMCAT RUNNERS REACH NCAA FINALS
Three Thiel College runners each advanced to the finals in their respective events on day two of the 2009 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio on May 22. Thiel senior Dorran Coley advanced to the 110 meter high hurdle finals for the fourth time in his career with a prelim time of 14.55. His junior teammate, Alex Eaton, reached the finals in the 400 meter dash with a school-record time of 48.87, the third-best time in the preliminary heats. Finally, the Thiel women were well represented by junior Cara Riffe, who advanced to the finals with a school-record mark of 56.10. The finals for all three events will take place on Saturday, May 23.

PAC DUO COMPETES IN JAVELIN AT NCAAs
Two PAC track & field standouts competed in the javelin on Thursday, May 21 at the 2009 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio. On the men's side, Washington & Jefferson senior Curt Jones just missed the championship cut as he finished in 10th place with a toss of 189-8 (57.81m). In women's competition, Waynesburg sophomore Elisha Jones placed 11th overall with a toss of 132-11 (40.53m). The championships continue on Friday and Saturday (May 22-23).

SIX PAC T&F STANDOUTS QUALIFY FOR NCAAs
Six PAC track & field standouts from three different schools have qualified to compete at the 2009 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, taking place May 21-23 at Don Drumm Stadium at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio. Thiel leads the PAC contingent with three qualifiers: Alex Eaton (men's 400 meter dash), Dorran Coley (men's 110 meter high hurdles) and Cara Riffe (women's 400 meter dash). W&J is sending Curt Jones (men's javelin) and Summer Baumgard (women's high jump), while Waynesburg will send Elisha Jones (women's javelin)

PAC COMPETES AT ECAC D-III CHAMPIONSHIPS
Several PAC schools competed over the weekend at the ECAC Division III Track & Field Championships, hosted by Springfield College in Springfield, Mass. The conference was paced by the Waynesburg women, who finished seventh in team competition behind freshman Marybeth Rocco's winning toss in the javelin. Saint Vincent was led by Adam Smith, as the senior placed second in the 5,000 meter run to help the Bearcat men place 17th in men's competition. For Grove City, Chris Huber placed fourth in the shot put, while Bethany was paced by Jodi Bodo, who finished fifth in the 400 meter dash.

GCC MEN REPEAT AS TRACK & FIELD CHAMPS
The Grove City College men repeated as team champions at the 2009 PAC Track & Field Championships, hosted by Westminster at Harold Burry Stadium in New Wilmington, Pa. The Wolverine men posted 201 points to easily outdistance Washington & Jefferson (128). Alex Eaton was named men's track MVP, while W&J's Josh Buckley was men's field MVP. Coach of the Year laurels went to Mark FitzPatrick of W&J. Complete individual results are now online.

FOUR THIEL RUNNERS NAMED ALL-AMERICANS AT 2009 NCAA D-III INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 2009 NCAA Division III Indoor National Championships took place in Terre Haute, Ind. on March 13-14, resulting in four men's student-athletes from the conference earning All-America honors. Thiel College took home four of the awards en route to a ninth-place team finish: Alex Eaton was second in the 400 meter dash; Dorran Coley was third in the 55 meter high hurdles; and Deighton Williams and Ethan Rowe joined Eaton and Coley for a sixth-place finish in the 4x400 relay.

THIEL SENDS FIVE TO D-III INDOOR NATIONALS
The Thiel College men's track and field team will be sending five runners to the 2009 NCAA Division III Indoor National Championships at Terre Haute, Ind. on Friday, March 13.

PAC TEAMS, ATHLETES EARN USTFCCCA HONORS
Four track & field teams and seven student-athletes from the PAC have earned academic honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Waynesburg (3.44 GPA), Westminster (3.171 GPA) and Washington & Jefferson (3.10 GPA) were each named All-Academic Women's Teams for maintaining a team grade-point average of 3.0 or higher. In addition, six PAC individuals were tabbed to the All-Academic Women's team by posting a 3.25 GPA while meeting an NCAA Division III automatic or provisional qualifying standard: Jessica Cooper, Abbey Basta and Jill Diamond of Westminster; Ashley Dodd and Elisha Jones of Waynesburg; and Kelli Gee of W&J. On the men's side, Westminster (3.035) was the lone men's team represented, while Virgil Marshall of W&J was the lone male individual honored.

PAC PLACES 10 ON COSIDA/ESPN THE MAGAZINE ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT II XC/T&F TEAMS
A total of 10 PAC athletes (eight women, two men)bhave been named to the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II College Division Cross Country/Track & Field teams for men and women, announced on June 5 by the College Sports Information Directors of America. Five of the honorees were first team selections who now will move on to the Academic All-America ballot, with teams scheduled to be announced later in the month. Both men's honorees - seniors Tim Monaghan on Waynesburg and Virgil Marshall of W&J - were first team honorees. Women's first team selections were W&J senior Kelli Gee, Waynesburg junior Ashley Dodd, and Grove City junior Julia Seward. Second team laurels went to the Waynesburg duo of senior Michelle Cross and sophomore Melissa Cox, W&J senior Lauren Weinheimer, Westminster senior Leanna Stitt, and Bethany sophomore Jodi Bodo.

RECORD SEVEN PAC ATHLETES EARN ALL-AMERICA HONORS AT 2008 NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS
A conference-record seven PAC student-athletes (five men, two women) earned All-America honors at the 2008 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, which took place May 22-24 at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Leading the way on the men's side was Thiel freshman Josh Jones, who finished second in the nation in the high jump. Jones, the 2008 NCAA indoor high jump national champion, cleared 6-11 1/2 (2.12m), the same as national champion Cody Stelzer of Whitworth who won due to fewer jumps. Two PAC athletes earned A-A honors in the 110 meter high hurdles, as Thiel junior Dorran Coley placed third (14.39) while Bethany sophomore Matt Cruse was seventh (14.56). Tomcat senior Alex Eaton finished seventh in the 400 (48.02), while W&J senior Doug Melton was eighth in the discus (162-8, 49.59m) to round out the honorees. Thiel placed in a tie for 19th in the men's team race with 16 points. On the women's side, leading the way was Westminster senior Jessica Cooper, who placed third in the high jump (5-5 3/4, 1.67m), while freshman Elisha Jones of Waynesburg also earned All-America recognition in the javelin with a toss of 138-6 (42.22m). Westminster placed in a tie for 44th (6 points) in team competition. A complete recap of all 16 PAC men's & women's performers is online.

RECORD 16 PAC STUDENT-ATHLETES QUALIFY FOR NCAA D-III OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS
A conference-record 16 PAC student-athletes (11 women, five men) have qualified and been selected to compete at the 2008 NCAA Division III Men's & Women's Outdoor Track & Field Championships, scheduled for May 22-24 in Oshkosh, Wisc. Leading the men's qualifiers will be freshman Josh Jones of Thiel, the 2008 NCAA Division III indoor national champion in the high jump, who will look to capture the outdoor title as well. He is joined by Tomcat teammates Dorran Coley (110 high hurdles) and Alex Eaton (400) as well as Bethany's Matt Cruse (110 & 400 hurdles) and W&J's Doug Melton (discus). On the women's side, Westminster's Megan Harding (100) will join the qualifying Titan 4x100 relay team (Abbey Basta, Jill Diamond, Seun Olarewaju), while Patrice Page (400) headlines the Thiel 4x100 qualifying team (Kate DeGeorge, Chavonne Green, LaToya Locke). Locke will also compete in the triple jump at the national meet. Other PAC female qualifiers included Jessica Cooper of Westminster (high Jump) and the Waynesburg duo of Elisha Jones (javelin) and Ashley Dodd (pole vault).

MORGAN NAMED REGIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR
Thiel College head men's and women's track and field coach Clyde Morgan was named the Mideast Region Men's Track & Field Coach of the Year on May 21 by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). Morgan was also the 2008 PAC Men's Track & Field Coach of the Year.

WU'S JONES, W&J'S MELTON CAPTURE TITLES
AT 2008 ECAC OUTDOOR  CHAMPIONSHIPS
A pair of PAC athletes captured event titles at the 2008 ECAC Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, hosted by Springfield College in Springfield, Mass., on May 15-16. Waynesburg freshman Elisha Jones captured the women's javelin with a toss of 41.71 meters (136-10), while Washington & Jefferson senior Doug Melton won the men's discus with a mark of 46.45 meters (152-5).

PAC RECORDS FALL AS GROVE CITY CAPTURES 2008 PAC TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS
A total of 13 conference records were broken at the 2008 PAC Men's & Women's Track & Field Championships, which took place on Saturday, April 26, 2008 at Washington & Jefferson's Cameron Stadium in Washington, Pa. On the men's side, Grove City used a strong performance in the field events to narrowly hold off Thiel and give the Wolverines their fourth consecutive league men's crown. A new champion was crowned on the women's side, as Westminster outlasted defending champion W&J. Thiel swept the men's awards, with junior Dorran Coley named Track MVP, freshman Josh Jones being tabbed Field MVP, and Clyde Morgan earning Coach of the Year recognition. Westminster took all three women's awards, as junior Megan Harding was Track MVP, senior Jessica Cooper was Field MVP, and Tim McNeil was Coach of the Year. All-Conference performances are listed online.

2009 PAC MEN'S TRACK & FIELD
SCHEDULE/RESULTS
Saturday, April 25, 2009
2009 PAC Championships
Harold Burry Stadium
Westminster College - New Wilmington, Pa.

Men
1. Grove City - 202
2. Wash. & Jeff. - 128
3. Thiel - 125
4. Waynesburg - 59
5. Westminster - 47
6. Bethany - 27
Saint Vincent, Geneva - unscored

 

March 22
Track: Bill Moder, Waynesburg
Field: Curt Jones, Wash. & Jeff.

March 29
Track: Derek Kruse, Grove City
Field: Josh Buckley, Wash. & Jeff.

April 5

Track: Dorran Coley, Thiel
Field: Curt Jones, Wash. & Jeff.

April 12
Track: Alex Eaton, Thiel
Field: Justin Nock, Wash. & Jeff.

April 19
Track: Greg French, Wash. & Jeff.
Field: Clint Wilson, Bethany