Feb. 2, 2010

Center Valley, Pa. - An equal distribution of honors highlights this week's Patriot League Indoor Track and Field awards, with scholar-athletes from six different institutions earning nods. In addition, Colgate and American pick up their first weekly awards of the season during a week of competition that featured six Army athletes surpassing IC4A-qualifying marks and a seventh improving on a previous time.

Patriot League Indoor Track and Field Release - 2.2.10

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Male Track Athlete of the Week

Kyle Clayton, Lafayette Sr., Manasquan, N.J.

Clayton had a banner week individually as he helped the Leopards edge rival Lehigh. He posted victories in the 60-meter dash (6.87), 200-meter dash (22.40) and the long jump (7.43 m). All three marks qualified him for IC4As.

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Female Track Athlete of the Week

Elise DeRoo, Colgate So., Newton, Conn.

DeRoo ran a personal-best 5:00.85 in the mile, helping the Raiders take first in the Class of `32 Invitational in Hamilton. Her time also qualified her for ECACs and is the top mark in the event in the Patriot League this season.

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Male Field Athlete of the Week

Mark Van Orden, Navy Sr., Morris Plains, N.J.

Van Orden remained undefeated in the weight throw this season after posting a first-place 18.31-meter toss at the Wesley A. Brown Invitational. The mark is his season best and is also tops in the League, and he further improved his IC4A standing.

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Female Field Athlete of the Week

Ashley Atwell, Lehigh Sr., Sugar Land, Texas

Atwell finished first in the pole vault in Lehigh's victory over Lafayette, reaching 3.60 meters, which is tied for League-best in the event this season. Atwell also qualified for ECACs.

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Male Rookie of the Week

Alex Lyons, American Fr., LaGrange, Ill.

Lyons set a personal best in the 1,000-meter run, breaking the tape in an IC4A-qualifying time of 2:28.46. His time was good for second place at the George Mason Patriot Games.

M-F Athletic/Patriot League Female Rookie of the Week

Sasha Hornock, Bucknell Fr., Dover, Pa.

Hornock improved on her personal best in the long jump for the second week in a row, taking first at the Bison Open with a 5.39-meter effort. She also finished second in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.93.

Honorable Mention Performances Last Week

Andrew Hanko, Navy Jr., Montville, N.J.

Hanko's 14:21.50 in the 5,000 meters at the Wesley A. Brown Invitational was a personal best, Academy record and IC4A qualifier.

Sarah Moniz, Bucknell Jr., Topsfield, Mass.

Moniz took first in the 3,000 meters at the Penn State National Invitational. Her time of 9:55.35 surpassed the ECAC-qualifying mark.

Nick Ray, Lehigh Sr., Charlotte, N.C.

Ray hit a personal best in the shot put (16.29 meters) against Lafayette, improving his IC4A standing.

Alexandra Doersam, Lehigh So., Islip, N.Y.

Doersam won two events (60-meter dash, long jump) and took second in the 200 meters as the Mountain Hawks defeated Lafayette.

Nick Orzol, Lafayette Fr., Mercerville, N.J.

Orzol finished second in the 60-meter hurdles against Lehigh, but his time of 8.24 gets him into the IC4As.

Patriot League Notebook

Navy, Bucknell Ranked In Regional Poll
Both the Navy and Bucknell men appear in the USTFCCCA's first regional rankings of the indoor season, which were released yesterday. Navy debuted at No. 4 in the Mid Atlantic rankings with 193.88 points. Bucknell follows closely at No. 5 on the Mid Atlantic list with 157.80 points.

Qualifications Abound
It was another busy week for Patriot League scholar-athletes relative to IC4A and ECAC qualifications. Army had an especially productive weekend, with six athletes qualifying for IC4As and Domonick Sylve improving his standing in the 60-meter dash. Colgate's Dan Gleason and Elise DeRoo qualified for IC4As and ECACs, respectively, in the mile. Andrew Hanko's record-breaking performance for Navy also qualified him for IC4As in the 5,000-meter run. Kyle Clayton of Lafayette posted three IC4A-qualifying marks against Lehigh (60-meter dash, 200 meters and long jump). Isaiah Bell (Bucknell, 60-meter dash), Sarah Moniz (Bucknell, 3,000 meters), Ashley Atwell (Lehigh, pole vault), Alex Lyons (American, 1,000 meters), Darren Harris (Bucknell, DMR) and Nick Orzol (Lafayette, 60-meter hurdles) were other League competitors who eclipsed qualifying marks in this week's events. In addition, Nick Ray of Lehigh (shot put), Mark Van Orden of Navy (weight throw) and Bucknell's Chelsey Musante (shot put, weight throw) surpassed IC4A or ECAC marks, though they had already qualified earlier this season.

Lyons, DeRoo Honored For First Time
Alex Lyons, this week's M/F Athletic Male Rookie of the Week, is the first award winner from American this season. The honors are also noteworthy because he is the first winner of the award so far this year not to be from Bucknell. Three different Bison had captured the award previously. Similarly, Colgate sophomore Elise DeRoo is the first Raider to capture a weekly honor this season, as she was named M/F Athletic Female Track Athlete of the Week.

League Championships Are Almost Here
Don't look now, but the regular season is rapidly drawing to a conclusion for Patriot League schools. Most institutions are scheduled for competition leading right up to the League Championships at Army on Feb. 19-21, but not all. American concludes its regular season this weekend at the New Balance Invitational in New York, N.Y. Bucknell is idle until the Bison Winter Classic next weekend. All other schools are booked right up until the championship weekend at West Point.

Army Men, Bucknell Women Picked
Army has been selected to successfully defend its men's League crown this season, while Bucknell has been voted as the top team in the women's poll. The voting was done by head coaches and sports information directors around the League. Army, who won its 13th men's Patriot League Championship last season and three of the last four, topped the preseason voting with 96 points and 12 first-place votes. The Bucknell women, who finished second at the Patriot League Championship last season behind Navy, received 11 first-place votes and 93 points. The Midshipmen received five first-place votes and finished second overall in the preseason voting with 89 points.

So What's The Standard?
The latest qualifying standards for both the IC4A and ECAC championships for indoor track and field can be found in the sidebar on the right hand side of the track and field page at PatriotLeague.com.

Team Notebooks

American The men dominated the distance events at the George Mason Patriot Games, going 1-2-3 in the mile, taking the top four spots in the 1,000-meter run and Josh Olson winning the 3,000-meter event. Erin Koch won the women's 1,000-meter event, while the Eagles also took second and fifth in the 3,000-meter. The Eagles head to New York, N.Y. on Friday and Saturday for the New Balance Invitational.

Army Both the men and women finished eighth at the College Invitational at the Armory in New York, N.Y. Domonick Sylve set a personal best in the 60-meter dash, and five members of the men's team eclipsed IC4A-qualifying standards. McKenzie Majchrzak tied a career best in the high jump. On Saturday the Black Knights visit Annapolis, Md., for the Star Meet at Navy.

Bucknell Sarah Moniz won the 3,000-meter run at the Penn State National Invitational, while Sasha Hornock, Casey Krause and Lindsay Appel were winners at the Bison Open in Lewisburg. Heptathletes Ryan White finished third at Penn State and Andrew Powell finished fourth at the Bison Open to lead the men over the weekend. John Picardo also finished seventh in the 500-meter run during the weekend's events.

Colgate Dan Gleason won the mile with a personal best, Dan Schwaibold took first in the 500-meter run and Elise DeRoo ran the best mile in the Patriot League this season as both teams won the Class of '32 Invitational in Hamilton. Chelsea Burns and Kendall Lyons also went 1-2 in the 1,000-meter run, and Ashley Niness was tops in the 500-meter dash. Both are back in action at the Syracuse Invitational on Saturday. The men will also be represented at the Yale Invitational.

Holy Cross Six women posted New England Championship-qualifying times as the Crusaders took ninth at the Boston Indoor Games. Erin Linnehan qualified in the 55-meter hurdles and Paige Sutherland did so in the mile. Senior Timothy Richard also qualified for New Englands in the 5,000-meter run. Both squads head to the Maine Open on Saturday.

Lafayette The men notched a close five-point win over Lehigh, while the women dropped a 100-81 decision to the Mountain Hawks in Bethlehem. Kyle Clayton was a quadruple winner (60- and 200-meter dashes, long jump and 4x400 meter relay). Kerriann Borke also won the 60-meter hurdles and triple jump for Lafayette, and the women also picked up wins in the 200-meter dash, the mile and the shot put. The New Balance Invitational is next for the Leopards on Friday and Saturday in New York, N.Y.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks split a dual meet with Lafayette, with the women taking the victory while the men dropped a tight five-point decision. Alexandra Doersam set a new indoor record in the long jump (18-5) while also winning the 60-meter dash and finishing runner-up in the 200 meters. Nick Ray swept the shot put and weight throw and Franklin Johnson qualified for IC4As while winning the triple jump. The Mountain Hawks head to New York City for the New Balance Invitational on Friday and Saturday.

Navy The men won seven events and produced 10 IC4A-qualifying marks at the Wesley A. Brown Invitational in Annapolis. Mark Van Orden improved on his standing again in the weight throw, eclipsing 60 feet for the first time this year. Andrew Hanko also set a facility record in the 5,000-meter run. Meanwhile, the women took three victories at the Patriot Games in Fairfax, Va. Jess Palacio won the 800 meters, Amanda Phelps took first in the weight throw and Kristin Smith won the high jump. A freshman, Smith is now 4-0 in the high jump this year.