March 24, 2009

Center Valley, Pa. - While American, Army, Holy Cross and Navy have already opened up competition for the spring, all eight Patriot League teams will be in action this Saturday as they march toward the Patriot League Championships. Student-athletes from Army and Navy earned the first Patriot League track and field Athlete of the Week honors of the season.

Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Release - 3.24.09

M-F Athletic Male Track Performer of the Week

Domonick Sylve, Army So., Long Beach, Calif.

Sylve qualified for NCAA Regionals in the first outdoor meet of the season in the 110m hurdles with a time of 14.24. Sylve also placed fourth in the 100m dash with a time of 11.18 and ran a leg on Army's IC4A-qualifying 4x100m team that placed second at the team unscored USF Bulls Invitational.

M-F Athletic Female Track Performer of the Week

Ebony Thomas, Army Jr., Philadelphia, Pa.

Thomas was within the 96th-percentile of the NCAA Regional qualifying time with her 24.89 performace in the 200m dash at the USF Bulls Invitational. The junior also ran anchor leg on both the 4x100m and 4x400m teams, which took third and fourth-place, respectively, at the meet.

M-F Athletic Male Field Performer of the Week

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

Van Orden achieved the NCAA Regional-qualifying mark in the hammer throw with a toss of 58.94m (193' 44") at the team unscored Point Loma Invite in San Diego. Van Orden also qualified for IC4As in the event.

M-F Athletic Female Field Performer of the Week

Geryah White, Army Sr., Tampa, Fla.

White earned a fourth-place finish in the shot put at the USF Bulls Invite with a toss of 13.60m (44' 7 1/2"). White's toss was within the 95th-percentile of the NCAA Regional qualifier and qualified her for the ECAC Championships in the event.

M-F Athletic Male Rookie of the Week

Trent Kraychir, Army Fr., Twentynine Palms, Calif.

Kraychir qualified for IC4As and was within the 94th-percentile of the NCAA Regional qualifying mark with his hammer throw of 53.77m (176' 4 1/2"). This was Kraychir's first collegiate attempt at the hammer throw.

M-F Athletic Female Rookie of the Week

Christine Scales, Navy Fr., Monte Sereno, Calif.

Scales won the high jump and tied for first in the pole vault as she helped the Mids finish first of four teams at the Navy Invitational. Scales' high jump of 1.60m (5' 3") was within the 90th-percentile of the NCAA Regional qualifying mark.

Patriot League Notebook

Army Men, Navy Women Top 2009 Preseason Poll

Fresh off their 2009 Patriot League Indoor Track and Field title wins, the Army men and Navy women topped the 2009 Outdoor Track and Field Preseason Poll. On the men's side, Army led the pack with 96 overall points and 12 first-place votes, while archrival Navy earned the second spot with 82 points and two first-place votes. Bucknell rounded out the top-three with 80 overall points and the remaining two first-place votes. Lehigh (60 points), American and Lafayette (44), Colgate (24) and Holy Cross (16) rounded out the men's poll.

For the women, Navy received 11 first-place votes and 95 overall points. The Mids were followed by Bucknell with 85 overall points and two first-place votes, and Army with the remaining three first-place votes and 76 overall points. Lehigh (56 points), Holy Cross (54), Lafayette (36), Colgate (32) and American (14) rounded out the poll.

All Eight Patriot League Teams In Action On Saturday

While American, Army, Holy Cross and Navy have already opened up competition for the spring, all eight Patriot League teams will be in action this Saturday as they march toward the Patriot League Championships. Army starts the day off at 9 a.m. with the Dick Shea Invite, while Colgate and American men will head to Navy for a 10 a.m. meet. The Navy women will participate in the Towson Invite at 10 a.m. as well. Bucknell will split its squads on Saturday, as the Bison will compete at both the Maryland and Susquehanna Invites. The Colgate women will take on Ithaca on Saturday, and Holy Cross will travel to Bryant for a dual meet. Lehigh will also split its squad on Saturday, as the Mountain Hawks will compete in both the Seven Way Meet, hosted by Lafayette, and the final day of the Winthrop Invite.

For More Information

IC4A/ECAC and NCAA Outdoor Qualifying standards can be found on the Track and Field page on the Patriot League website at www.PatriotLeague.com.

2009 Patriot League Championships

The 2009 Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Championships will be held at Army's Shea Stadium in West Point, N.Y., Friday and Saturday, May 1 and 2, 2009. For more information about the 2009 Championships, please visit the 2009 Outdoor Track and Field Championships page on the Patriot League website at www.PatriotLeague.com.

Team Notebooks

American American competed at the team unscored Coastal Carolina Meet on March 13 and 14, where Carlos Jamieson took a share of first place in the 1500m run with a time of 3:59.69. The women also competed at the Navy Invitational last weekend, where they finished fourth of four teams and went 0-3 in duals. American will next compete at the Navy Invite (M) and Maryland Invite (M/W).

Army The Black Knights competed at the team unscored USF Bulls Invitational last Friday to open up the spring campaign. Freshman Jari Ross took fourth place in the triple jump at the meet with a leap of 10.81m (35' 5 3/4"). Army will host the Dick Shea Invite on Friday and Saturday.

Bucknell The Bison had no scheduled events last week. Bucknell will compete in the Susquehanna and Maryland Invites this weekend.

Colgate Colgate had no scheduled events last week. The Raiders will compete in the Navy Invitational (M) and at Ithaca (W) on Saturday.

Holy Cross The Crusaders opened the spring season at the Husky Spring Open, where senior Brad Mish won the 10,000m run with a time of 30:57.25. Mish's time was in the 93rd-percentile of the NCAA Regional qualifying time. Holy Cross will compete at Bryant on Saturday.

Lafayette The Leopards had no scheduled events last week. Lafayette will open up the outdoor season at the Seven Way Meet on Saturday.

Lehigh The Mountain Hawks had no scheduled events last week. Lehigh will open the season Thursday through Saturday at the Winthrop Invite, and Saturday at the Seven Way Meet in Easton.

Navy The Navy men posted four wins, three IC4A marks and their first regional qualifier in their outdoor opener in San Diego last weekend. The women finished first of four teams and went 3-0 in duals at the Navy Invite on Saturday. The Midshipmen men will host Colgate, Penn and American at the Navy Invite on Saturday, while the women will compete at the Towson Invite.