Last year the Scots went down in history by placing third in the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. They are looking to build on that success, and they recently started their indoor track season.

Head coach for the Scots, Roger Haynes, is in his ninth year as head coach for the women and is starting off on the right foot in his 25th season as the indoor track and field coach for the men.

The Scots lost 11 male seniors and eight women seniors from last year, but have brought in several new faces. “We did lose a lot of seniors, but it hasn’t taken a toll as much as it has taken change. We just have been re-shaping our team and our roles on the team,” stated Katey Vaccarello, a junior for the Scots.

The Scots will be looking forward to great contributions from a large amount of incoming freshmen this year.

New faces for the women are: Mary Kate Beyer, Samantha Bleyaert, Maureen Dewan, Whitney Didier, Heather Hull, Kanisha Lampkin, Morgan Leffel, Jae Moore, Michelle Nutting, Allison Renfro and Sarah Stinson.

First year men for the Scots include: Nick Bennett, Timothy Bentz, Shawn Betar, Geoffrey Bird, Michael Blodgett, Matthew Boyd, Jared Cernansky, Sam Cokinos, Tyler Hannam, Jeremy Henkins, Logan Hohl, Derek Huff, Nick Law, Peyton Lumzy, Craig Maher, Brock McAnally, Knute Miller, Drew Petersen, Kyle Prout, Alan Rosiquez, Saidu Sesay and Scott Sheller.

Assistant coaches for the Scots include Brian Woodard, 11th year, and Dennis Staggs, 6th year. Star athlete, Dante Daniels, returns to the track as an assistant coach, along with Alex Stuart. Daniels and Stuart are in their first season coaching.

“Dante ran unattached against Knox in the 55-meter dash and placed first. He’s still got it!” added Vaccarello.

The Scots are in the early stages of the indoor season, as they participated in the Midwest Invitational on Jan. 26. The men tied for second place out of seven teams, and the women placed in fourth out of six teams.

The Scots then traveled west into Iowa for the Cornell Hilltop meet. “The track was nice, but it was a very difficult meet,” said Vaccarello. “Mary Kate Beyer and Kaile Schreiner did a great job in the 3000.”

Beyer finished first in the 3000 with a time of 10:57.99. Senior Jenny Babos placed fifth in the shot put and third in the weight toss. Babos’s weight toss flew 51’5-1/2, which was good for a provisional qualifying distance.

Other contributors for the Scots included Megan Clennon, a senior for the Scots, who finished second in the high jump. Senior Jess White placed first in the pole vault with a height of 11’5-3/4, to be eligible for a provisional qualifying height.

The Scots will compete in the Illinois Wesleyan Invitation on Sat., Feb. 9, in Bloomington, Ill., at 11:30 a.m. Vaccarello added, “We had a recovery week last week in practice in preparation for this weekend. Practice has helped us out; we will be more prepared for Wesleyan.”

As for the men, freshman Logan Hohl, sophomore Sean Wells, junior Luke Reschke and seniors Peter Sprecher and Zach Wilson contributed during the Hilltop Invitation.

Hohl placed third in the 200-meter and second in the 55-hurdles with a time of 7.73, which was a provisional qualifying time.

Reschke placed second in the 200-meter as Sprecher finished third in the pole vault. Wells jumped 6’2 in the high jump, placing him first in the competition during the invitational.

Wilson dominated the shot put, receiving first place with a distance of 50’5-1/2. He also placed first in the weight throw, qualifying him for provisionals with a toss of 58’11-1/4.

The men’s “A” 4X400 relay team also declared first place with a time of 3:24.21. The relay team consists of Reschke, Hall, senior Brad Gross and junior Jacob Stott.

The Scots will be looking forward to working hard during practice. “Coach Haynes prepares us daily with workouts posted up on the board, which prepares us for our meets,” Vaccarello said. “Everything we do in practice from warm up to cool down has a reason and that is all preparation for the meet. All the coaches remind us of this each day as well if we get lazy on anything we do. Everything has an importance in our workouts and that makes us more ready for Saturdays.”

Aaron Daverin, a junior for the Scots, said, “The past week has been nice, it hasn’t been too hard because it’s recovery week. This weekend will be a good meet, we just need to focus on our technique and mechanics and work mentally with each other. We are going to correct our mistakes and put all we can into action this weekend.”

Return to Home -- Return to Sports