Dec. 1, 2009

Returning 33 athletes and adding another 17 allocates a very obtainable goal for Saint Joseph's head coach Mike Glavin to lead his charges to SJU's first Atlantic 10 track title.

The Hawks will find their leadership in tri-captains Steve Young, Drew Brandt, and Steven Philbrook. Young emerged in 2008 as one of the top middle distance threats in the region, qualifying for the IC4A Championships in five events (indoor 1,000m, 4x800m, and distance medley relay; outdoor 800m and 4x800m). Young will attempt to surpass great expectations as the 2008-09 track season rolls along. On the other hand, Brandt is the top 400m sprinter on the team, with Philbrook consistently improving his trade in the 400m intermediate hurdles.

The three track captains are joined by a trio of senior cross country captains, Kyle Murray, Jonathan Sclafani, and Jimmy Jennings.

Murray, a 2007 All-Atlantic 10 and a 2008 NCAA All-Region cross country runner, returns as a graduate student. Murray is a top performer in distance and the steeplechase and looks to improve on his impressive fifth place, NCAA Regional-qualifying performance at the A-10s in the steeplechase last season.

Sclafani and Jennings return as top finishers in distance events. Sclafani was a cross country All-Atlantic 10 All-Conference performer and looks to improve his times in distance events, while Jennings looks to improve upon his notable sixth-place finish in the A-10's after being hindered by injury all season.

In addition to the captains, senior leadership will also come from seniors Joseph Glasnovich and George Wittmann, who will look to make a difference on the squad in the middle distance and long distance events.

A solid and talented group of juniors provide Glavin with sufficient depth for the championship meets in most facets of the sport, especially relays.

Brian Guterl leads the junior class as a cross country NCAA Regional team member and a top distance performer. George Arcarola, Jesse Brooks, Luke Fischer, Guterl, Christopher Lau, Jared Sabre, and Brian Smith were featured as the core of the 4x400m, 4x800m, and Distance Medley Relays, earning All-Atlantic-10 Second Team honors last season.

Rising juniors who made big strides last season are Vince Collins and Kevin Donnelly in distance events.

The sophomore class brings back a variety of talent to sprints, jumps, distance, and middle distance events. Returning to the sprint crew with standout Tom DiNatale leading the way are Michael Gallagher, Kevin Myslinski, David Smith, and Dylan Wenik. Returning jumpers are Victor DiNoia and John DiPersio.

The middle distance lineup is sustained by Adam Drastura, Logan Hohs, Murphy O'Donnell, Ian O'Hara, Royce Scrivano, and Ray Weir, while team Rookie of the Year, Kevin McDonnell leads the way in the long distance sector along with Ryan Birchmeier and David Evans.

The batch of newcomers arriving on Hawk Hill will add much depth to the distance and middle distance variety, while adding a quartet of sprinters and a jumper to the mix.

Joining the middle distance runners will be freshmen Daniel Da Costa, John Eastman, Ryan Garvin, Kyle Gorczynski, Kyle Lampart, David Manion, and Andrew Townsend. Additions to the distance crew are Drew Cogley, Gregory Etter, Conor Logan, Jonathan Mazzio, and Vincent Nicastro.

A trio of freshmen - Garret Barbalinardo, Tyler Gofus, and Connor Hubschman - join the long sprinters, while sophomore transfer Lanre Fajimolu is an addition to short sprints and freshman Vinh Nghi To will join the jumpers.

SCHEDULE

For the indoor portion of the schedule SJU opens with six one-day meets at Haverford (Dec. 5), Princeton (Dec. 11), Delaware (Jan. 8), Penn State (Jan. 9), Gotham Cup (Jan. 15), and Princeton again (Jan. 23).

The remainder of the indoor slate includes two-day meets at the Penn State National Invitational (Jan. 29-30) and the Yale Invitational (Feb. 5-6). A trip to the Lafayette-Rider meet and trips back to Delaware and Haverford are among the last qualifying opportunities for the athletes leading into the A-10 Championships.

The two-day Atlantic 10 meet takes place once again at Rhode Island on Feb. 19-20, followed by the NYU Fastrack meet on Feb. 26 and the IC4A Championships on March 6-7.

The Hawks head outdoors to the Leopard Invitational at Lafayette March 27 before traveling south to Williamsburg for the Colonial Relays April 2-3.

Virginia's Onesty Invitational (April 10), Princeton's Larry Ellis Invitational (April 17) and the prestigious Penn Relays (April 23-25) lead up to the A-10 Outdoor Championships at Massachusetts (May 1-2).

Saint Joseph's will participate in the Swarthmore Last Chance meet on May 10 before the ECAC Championships on May 15-16 at Princeton.