Aug. 28, 2009

Garden City, N.Y. - The 2008 men's and women's cross country season was filled with many ups and downs from start to finish. Head coach Adam Siepiola led his team to two All-Conference titles, numerous All-Conference awards, had his second national qualifier, three All-Region honorees and a top-five finish on each side at the regional. The men accomplished their season goals, but were not complacent while the women, however, heading into the region with high expectations and a #1 ranking, fell short of their dreams of a national berth.

Never the less, the 2009 squads are reloaded and poised to remain a contender in the region and in their new conference, the Northeast 10. Siepiola has a positive outlook on the season and is expecting big things from his team. "Most of the kids have been in our system for a few years now and they know what it's going to take to achieve our goals."

On the men's side, they lose Sean Harte to graduation, but have a good group that is willing and able to step up and fill his vacant role. It will be the juniors and seniors that will lead the way. Senior, Jeff Perez and juniors Ryan Pezzulo, Adam Clark, and Tom Eickelberg will carry most of the load on their legs. Pezzulo is a talented runner who is used to the training as it showed with a race that made a statement at last year's regional meet. "He should be a top-five finisher this year, but more importantly, on any given day, he could put himself in a position for a regional title," describes Siepiola of his front runner. He'll be joined by Clark up front, who, made a huge step last year and is expected to make and even greater improvement this year.

Fellow junior, Eickelberg, has had a very strong summer of training which awarded him with superb triathlon results and should translate over to the fall. Perez, during the 2008 season, got off to a great start but faded toward the latter part of the season. "If he can carry that momentum until the end, he should be a strong factor among the team."

Carlos Techera is a fifth year senior who took off all of last year. The coaching staff agrees that, "If he can keep it together and stay focused, he has the talent to be one of the better runners on the team." A huge factor and reason for the team's success lay within sophomore Angel Ortega, who came into Adelphi as one of the region's top two or three freshman and should be a top-15 runner on the regional level this fall.

Rounding out the returners will be national qualifier in the 800, Bailey Ince along with fellow track guys, Joey Singer, Corey Green and Obed Bienne. "Ince has worked hard all summer and has the talent to translate to a solid cross country runner," stated Siepiola. Singer, Green and Bienne will all run the cross country season to build up strength and endurance for their respective track events.

The new Panthers joining the team have a lot to offer and are a talented group of runners. Leading the way are high school teammates from Wantagh, Tommy Clark and Andrew Coelho. Siepiola says of the younger Clark sibling, "Tom is a very talented kid who will be a major contributor if he can stay healthy." Coelho is described as a "work horse" who will see results the more miles he puts in.

Their fellow freshmen consist of Jamal Habash, Ian Leavitt, Steve Michelman, Joseph Sanchez, and Eric De La Haba. "Habash is an 800 meter runner who is looking to build his strength and stamina for the track season while Sanchez will translate his soccer and track experience to the cross country course" said Siepiola.

"Michelman showed a lot of growth his senior year of high school and if he can continue to make strides, he'll contribute to the team. Leavitt and De La Haba are both very passionate about the sport and like all the newcomers, will need some time to adjust to the collegiate training system," Siepiola says of the freshmen class.

The men's goal remains relatively the same; ideally, they'll settle for a top-four regional finish, but could make a run at top-three. Siepiola describes the men's goal, "with the move to the NE-10, the conference is now home to the top-four teams in the region which makes the conference championships a regional preview. With that said, the regional goals parallel the conference goal."Additionally, Siepiola would like to send an athlete, two if possible, to the national meet.

The women look to improve on their third place regional finish from 2008.

On the women's side, they lose just one runner, Anene, a two-time national qualifier. However, the team is filled with talent, hard workers and a great mix of new comers and returners to fill the void she left. This combination is exactly what is needed to make a trip to nationals as a team. Siepiola says of the team and their goal, "The key to making this a reality is to keep the runners healthy. Minor, nagging injuries prevented the women from performing at the level they were capable of last November."

Leading the way for the women will be Danielle Lyons and Danielle Matteo. "Lyons is unquestionably one of the top kids in the region and a four-time national qualifier over 800 meters," Siepiola says of his runner. "With her talent and determination, she should be one of the team's top runners." Next to Lyons is Matteo. "She's had a very strong summer of training and combined with her work ethic, should translate to be one of the top runners in the region as well as on the team."

Following will be seniors Jenilee Fuertes and Heather Troutman, junior Catherine Connors and sophomore Kristin Wojtuniak. Fuertes had a rough start to last season but rounded into form toward the end. "Troutman has had a solid, consistent summer base and is expected to be up near the front group while Connors came up big last year down the home stretch and should be in the top-five," Seipiola says of his returners. "Wojtuniak is one of the more talented girls on the team, but was hampered by injuries. However, if she can remain healthy, she can finish among the top-five in the region."

Capping off the returners are Kristin and Kaitlin Meyer, Kristin Eberhardt and Danielle Malise. "Kristen worked very hard over the summer and the results should show this fall. Kaitlin is coming off of what could have been a career ending injury; anything she can contribute would be huge for the team," he says of the Meyer twins.

Eberhardt has battled injuries all throughout her career, but when healthy, she rounds into form quickly and could be a factor. Malise enters her first cross country season, and with a year of track experience under her belt, she should adapt to the sport very quickly.

The newcomers have much to offer to the team and will help in achieving the team's goals. Gina Cristaldi is one of the top recruits as she is predicted to be one of the best freshmen in the region. Siepiola says of the talent, "she will absolutely have an immediate impact on the season."

Emily Moore, a transfer from Manhattan College, "has had success on the track and if she can learn to enjoy cross country, she could come up big during the season." Cassie Papandrew is the type of runner where as the distance increases, she gets better. Look for a solid progression from her throughout the season.

The final recruits are Katie Hundertmark, Meaghan McCormack and Rosie Vassilatos who are all eager to test themselves on the collegiate level. Once they adapt to Siepiola's system, they should be very competitive and solid cross country runners.

The women's goal can be summed up in one word; Nationals. According to Siepiola, "as long as the girls give everything they have, they will succeed. Last year was a little disappointing, but by no means a failure". They have the right tools, the drive and the willingness to work hard everyday to achieve this goal, so look for the female Panthers to make a splash on the National scene.

Schedule

The Panthers will kick off their 2009 campaign with a trip up to North Easton, Massachusetts on August 29 to take part in the Skyhawk Relays. The unique cross country race is a relay of three people each of who cover two miles. "It's a good segue for the newcomers to shift from a high school race to a collegiate environment, "Siepiola describes. "It's also a good meet to get the kinks out for the returners and help in shifting from summer training to the competitive portion of our season."

The following week, the teams will stay local and attempt to defend their Hofstra Invitational title in front of friends and family. Last year, both the men and women swept the team titles against division one teams such as Hofstra University, St. John's and NJIT. After a week off of racing, they'll gear up for the first 8k of the season at the UMass Dartmouth Invitational on September 19.

The schedule heats up on October 2 when they travel to Lehigh, Pennsylvania to participate in the Paul Short Run. The meet features some of the top teams across each division and should, like in years past, be a fast and competitive race. Conference championships follow just over three weeks later in Colchester, Vermont. By this time, the Harriers will be rounding into form and they'll get a preview of the regional meet as it approaches in the following two meets. The East Region Championships at Franklin Park in Boston, Massachusetts on November 8 is one of the most important meets as it is the stepping stone toward Nationals. If either the men or women can finish in the top-two, they'll earn a national berth.

The schedule continues on for one last meet in Evansville, Indiana for those who qualify for the Division II National Championship. For those that do not, IC4A's will be held the same day, November 21, at Van Courtland Park in the Bronx.