At the top of the city, overlooking the Charles, the men of BC Cross Country casually caught up to reminisce about the 2012 season. From September to November, the  season saw some of the best team performances in years. On Wednesday evening we enjoyed good food and great company, and honored those athletes who performed at the highest level throughout the season.

Team Captains

Jordan Hamm

 

Jordan Hamm - By his senior year, Jordan Hamm had learned a thing or two about running well. Finishing either first or second on the team throughout the year, Hamm was no stranger to leading by example in 2012. He has consistently worked hard and more importantly has encouraged others to do the same. His efforts over the years have helped to elevate the performance of the team overall, and will help develop future leadership in seasons to come.

Danny Kane

 

Danny Kane - After spending a year and a half sitting on the sidelines, and with no solution to a nagging injury in the spring of 2012, most athletes would simply throw in the towel. Not Danny Kane. Rather, he did just the opposite when he laced up his shoes and decided to run anyway. Building slowly and learning more each day he ran, Kane was able to overcome a hamstring and lower back injury through the spring and summer and helped inspire a team to greater success in the fall of 2012. His hard work, determination, and willingness to push those around him were huge assets for the team this cross country season.

Rookie Of The Year

David Taranto - On a team with talent across the senior, junior and sophomore classes, David Taranto made an impact immediately and helped push everyone to run at a higher level, which isn’t always easy for a freshman athlete. Running several personal best performances and consistently a top performer on the team, Taranto was our freshman athlete of the year.

Most Improved

James Newhouse

James Newhouse - This category is always difficult to pick, as we generally have a vast array of athletes improving year-to-year and within the season. However, James Newhouse stood out as the athlete with the most complete overall improvement in the 2012 season. Demonstrating remarkable consistency throughout season, Newhouse finished as the 6th man for BC at the IC4A Championships, where he improved an incredible 1 minute and 16 seconds from the previous season. Newhouse cracked the 26:00 barrier for the first time when he ran 25:55 at the New England Championships, improving over a minute and a half from his freshman year. That kind of year-to-year improvement, and positioning himself as a top contender at the end of the 2012 season, locked up this award for Newhouse as a sophomore who looks to be a major player in future years.

MVP

Louis Serafini

Louis Serafini - Fellow seniors Jordan Hamm and Louis Serafini alternated throughout the season as the first and second man in every competition in 2012. However, Serafini’s year end run at the top, both at the ACC Championships (34th) and IC4A Championships (14th) sealed the deal for his 3rd MVP title in four seasons. Serafini’s efforts helped lead the Eagles to their best finish at the New England Championships since 2006, where he placed 4th overall. In addition, Serafini helped guide the team to major improvements at the ACC, NCAA Regional, and IC4A Championships in a very successful 2012 season. Breaking the 25:00 barrier on three occasions and posting a personal best 24:30, the MVP award for 2012 was well deserved by Serafini.

Last night we celebrated the 2012 XC season in style, with dinner atop the Boston College club. With the full T&F team set to kick things off tonight at BU, the distance crew appreciated pre-race pasta with a view! Before we announce our award winners, here is a recap of the 2012 XC season.

A Season To Remember…

BCXC entered the 2012 season with high expectations, emphasizing overall team success and consistent performance. The Eagles wasted no time by aggressively getting off the start line at the Iona Meet of Champions on Sept 15th, ready to run from the front. The team placed 2nd in a strong field, far exceeding past performances at this meet and setting the tone for the rest of the season. Seniors Jordan Hamm and Louis Serafini led the charge with top-5 performances, both running personal best performances on the challenging Van Cortlandt Park course (Hamm 25:27, Serafini 25:34). Hamm’s 2nd place performance would be his best to date, as he challenged for the win on the homestretch, but fell short by just a few seconds.

Following their strong opener, the Eagles travelled to Lehigh for the prestigious Paul Short Run. On a challenging course and with a stacked field, the Eagles ran to a solid 16th place finish in the men’s gold division, just a few points back of in-town rival BU. Having sat out our number 3 man from Iona, Tyler King, the rest of the team stepped up to fill in for a complete performance. Jordan Hamm and Louis Serafini led the charge again with Hamm running to a personal best 24:42 and a 32nd place finish, while Serafini ran to a 53rd place finish overall.

The New England Championships came about mid-season with the Eagles looking to take victory for the first time in decades. The team got underway in the sub-varsity competition with a dominating victory (34 points), highlighted by a deep and competitive sophomore class. Senior James Glover led the way with a career best performance, placing 2nd in 25:36. Glover helped lead our sophomore class to lifetime best performances, with Richard Lucas (8th), Brian Wolff (10th), James Newhouse (11th) and Tim Ferris (12th) all finishing within five seconds of each other, and breaking the 26:00 barrier for the first time. With fellow sophomores Collin Fedor (18th) and Greg Malloy (30th) following just 8 seconds and 25 seconds behind, the future looks bright for BCXC at these championships.

With the momentum of race one inspiring the varsity squad, the Eagles got off the line quickly in the varsity section of the New England Championships. Dartmouth fielded a very strong team as well, and immediately took up the challenge with all seven of their own athletes vying for the lead. By mid-race, the championship took on the appearance of a BC-Dartmouth dual meet, and would remain close throughout the second half. Louis Serafini would cross the line first for the Eagles with a New England career best 4th place finish and personal best 24:30. Less than two tenths of second behind, Jordan Hamm finished in 5th place overall, a lifetime best at these championships and personal best 24:30 as well. Graduate student, Tyler King place 18th overall in 24:49 to keep the Eagles at a virtual tie with Dartmouth with three runners across the line. The team competition would then come down to the 4th and 5th runners, with Dartmouth having the ability on the day to dig a little deeper to pull out the victory. The final tally had Dartmouth at 83 points to BC’s 123 points. Anthony Bellitti and Danny Kane had very strong performances of 25:16 (40th) and 25:25 (56th) to round out the scoring. The 2nd place team finish marked the first time the Eagles had been on the podium since 2006 and is up a whopping 14 places better than their performance last year.

The Eagles looked to build upon their New England success with an improvement at the ACC Championships and did just so. The Eagles moved up 3 spots from the 2011 season to place 8th in 2012, led once again by senior Louis Serafini. With a relentless pace up front, in one of the strongest fields in recent memory, Serafini put himself in the mix from the get go. Serafini’s 34th placing overall in 24:49 was a significant improvement from a year ago. Tyler King and Jordan Hamm ran solid performances to place 46th and 53rd respectively, while junior Anthony Bellitti ran his best performance to date at an ACC Championship with a 61st place finish. Senior James Glover rounded out the scoring in 82nd overall.

The improvements continued at the NCAA Northeast Regional at Hammonassett State Park in Connecticut, with the Eagles improving from 14th place in 2011 to 12th place in 2012. In a highly competitive region, those improvements are not easy to come by and it took a team effort to get there. Led by Jordan Hamm in 52nd place, Louis Serafini followed close behind in 64th, while Anthony Bellitti placed a lifetime best 76th overall. Jack Linehan stepped up to play a prominent role on the team with his best ever performance at this level of competition. His 101st place finish overall helped to ensure a strong team finish and shows a remarkable improvement for an athlete who began his career at BC as a true mid-distance athlete. Rounding out the scoring in 123rd was Tyler King, helping to nail down the 12th place team finish.

The final championship of the season saw the team return to Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx for the IC4A Championships. Looking to crack the top-10 for the first time in years, the Eagles came back with something to prove. Coming off strong team performances throughout the season, and with the help of their seasoned veterans, the Eagles ran a smart and gritty performance to propel themselves into the top-5. With IC4A All-East honors (top-25) going to Louis Serafini (14th), Jordan Hamm (21st) and Anthony Bellitti (22nd) the Eagles placed 4th in a very competitive division. Tyler King and Jack Linehan just missed All-East honors with 27th and 34th place finishes, but rounded out the scoring with just a 30 second spread between our first and fifth runner, the smallest gap between our scoring five all year.

With ACC Performer of the Week honors being picked up twice in October (Louis Serafini and James Newhouse), the season was an all-around success. We saw many personal best performances in terms of both time and place. It will surely be a season to remember!

We will highlight our award winners in our next post. Stay tuned…

 

The BC men traveled to Blacksburg, VA for the ACC Cross Championships last weekend, competing in the 8km distance on a challenging course and an even more challenging conference. Led by seniors Louis Serafini, Tyler King and Jordan Hamm, the Eagles improved to 8th place, bettering their 2011 finish by three spots. In a conference that ranks as once of the nation’s best, a total of 46 athletes, including both Serafini and King, broke the previous course record of 25:08. Serafini finished in 34th place overall with a 24:49, while King finished in 46th place with a 25:07. Hamm finished in 53rd overall, Anthony Bellitti was 61st and James Glover rounded out the top-5 for the Eagles, running to an 82nd place finish.

The Eagles will look to build on their 2012 improvements when they travel to Connecticut next week for the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships. In the 2011 season the BC men placed 14th overall, but have a 2012 squad that will be aiming to crack the top-10 in the NCAA region for the first time in many years.

For full ACC Cross Country Championship coverage, including results and recap, please visit:

http://www.theacc.com/sports/c-xc/recaps/102712aaa.html

Men’s ACC Cross Country Video Recap:

BC placed 2nd at the 2012 New England Championships, their best showing since 2006.

With the first cool day of the 2012 cross country season, Boston College ran a gritty performance to place 2nd at the New England Championships this past weekend. Led by a pair of top-5 performances from seniors Louis Serafini and Jordan Hamm, this year’s performance marks the team’s best showing since 2006. In true team spirit, Serafini and Hamm helped each other navigate the course before dueling to the line, both finishing with a time of 24:30. Serafini led the squad for the first time this season, and his 0.22 margin over Hamm brought Serafini ACC Performer of the Week honors for the first time this season as well. The 4th and 5th place finishes mark career high performances for Serafini and Hamm at these championships and kept the Eagles in the thick of the team battle. Graduate student, Tyler King ran a solid 24:49 for 18th place, while Anthony Bellitti and Danny Kane rounded out the scoring in 40th and 56th place respectively.

The team truly rose to the occasion and were runner up to a deep squad from Dartmouth. The 2nd place team finish was a massive improvement from their 16th place in 2011 and sets the team up to challenge at the ACC Championships. Those championships will be held in 2 1/2 weeks at Virginia Tech and offers a nice training block to build upon the team’s current momentum.

Another indication of great strength and depth was the 1st place team showing in the non-championship section at New England’s. With senior James Glover leading the charge in 2nd place overall, the Eagles packed 6 runners in the top-12 spots overall to put up 34 points in a dominating performance. With Glover’s 25:36 finishing time and sophomore’s Richard Lucas, Brian Wolff and James Newhouse and Tim Ferris all breaking 26:00 on the day, the competitiveness on this year’s squad and the ability to compete in future year’s remains high.

The Eagles will compete next at the Brown Rothenberg Run on October 19th. Stay tuned for more updates…

Boston College Men’s Track & Field will be hosting it’s annual golf outing fundraiser on September 22nd, 2012. Come join us for a fun day of golf, dinner, as well as great auction items and prizes. Now in it’s third year, we hope to see attendance rise to help support our men’s program as it enters to the 2012-13 year.

Here is all of the information you will need to know: 2012 Golf Outing Instructions & Information

Please complete and mail in the registration: 2012 Golf Outing Registration Form

We look forward to making this a year to remember! Come join in the fun!

Please enjoy the BC Men’s Cross Country/Track & Field 2011-12 highlight video! Get ready for an even better 2012-13 year!

Collin Fedor

Freshman Collin Fedor represented Boston College at the USA Outdoor Junior Track & Field Championships, hosted at Indiana University this past weekend. During Friday’s preliminary round of the 1500m, Fedor ran just off his personal best with a 3:55.78 to place a very respectable 20th overall. Running in his first competition since the New England Championships a month ago, Fedor looked strong throughout, completing the final 800m in 2:03 (4:07 mile pace) to negative split. Fedor found himself in a position to strike with 300m to go, but was unable to find the necessary finishing gear as the field entered the final turn. Fedor would finish in 10th place in the first preliminary heat, but just 2 seconds from qualifying for the finals.

Overall, Fedor gained valuable experience at the national level, and if he follows in the footsteps of past Eagle freshman who have competed at the USA Juniors, we will see great things from Fedor this coming fall. Be sure to check back soon for our season highlights video…

Boston College Men’s Cross Country and Track & Field celebrated terrific seasons this past year by formally recognizing the most outstanding individuals at two separate awards banquets.

The Cross Country banquet took place in January at the Boston College club with awards given to the following standout individuals:

Rookie Of The Year 

Richard Lucas

Richard Lucas took top freshman honors in the 2011 cross country season by performing consistently in the top 7 and helping the team score in many key events. Most notably Lucas moved up to score as BC’s 4th man at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championship, helping the Eagles to a 14th place team finish, up from 19th the previous year. Lucas continued his clutch performances at the season ending IC4A Championship where he scored as BC’s 3rd man, running a season best 26:09  to place 64th individually.

 

Most Improved 

Anthony Bellitti

Sophomore Anthony Bellitti took home the most improved honors in the 2011 cross country campaign after seeing steady improvements throughout the season, as well as a huge leap forward from the 2011 season. Bellitti scored in every competition in 2011, alternating between 3rd and 4th man throughout most of the fall. Bellitti was a major player at the ACC and NCAA Regional, and his 65th place IC4A individual performance at season end was a personal best at 26:09.

 

 

MVP

Jordan Hamm

Junior Jordan Hamm took home the top overall cross country honors for 2011 with strong, team-leading performances throughout the entire season. Hamm led the Eagles in 4 of the 6 competitions in which he competed, including a lifetime best 15th place finish at the New England Championship, 31st place finish at the ACC Championship and an outstanding 29th place performance at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championship.

 

 

 

The Track & Field banquet took place in May on the campus of Boston College with awards given to the following standout individuals:

Rookie Of The Year

Collin Fedor

Collin Fedor took home the rookie of the year title with some terrific performances both indoor and out. After sitting out the cross country season, Fedor got to work quickly indoors by qualifying for the IC4A’s in his first try while competing in the mile at the Dartmouth Relays. His PR of 4:16.11 would eventually be lowered to an outstanding 4:11.68 while competing at the IC4A Championships in March. Fedor also posted an IC4A qualifying time in the 1000m at 2:29.92 and a personal best 8:44.49 in the 3000m during the indoor season. Outdoors led to additional PR’s for Fedor in the 1500m and 800m, at 3:54.40 and 1:55.19 respectively. Fedor would go on to place 5th at the New England Championship in May, and helped the 4x800m to a silver medal later the same day. Through his strong performances in 2012, Fedor has qualified for the USA Junior Track & Field Championships to be held June 14th through the 17th in Bloomington, Indiana.

Most Improved

Brian Smith

Brian Smith took home the most improved honors with outstanding progress made within the 2011-12 track season, as well as significant improvements made from previous seasons. After improving steadily throughout the indoor season, Smith ran a blistering 48.5 second split while running the 400m leg of the DMR at the IC4A Championship. That performance earned Smith the lead off position on the 4x400m squad, a position that he would hold throughout the remainder of the 2012 season. After helping the team to a 9th place finish at the outdoor ACC Championship, Smith would play a key role in the bronze medal performance at the New England Championship, with the Eagles running one of the fastest times in school history at 3:14.71.

MVP

Jack Hennessy

Jack Hennessy helped the sprint crew take home the lion’s share of the outdoor awards with gritty performances throughout the entire 2011-12 season. After returning from an injury that sidelined him during the 2011 outdoor season, Hennessy spent the first half of the 2011-12 indoor season building fitness. The hard work Hennessy put in culminated in a 48.2 second split to help the Eagles score for the first time at the ACC Championships in the 4x400m, smashing a 20+ year school record. With that momentum behind him, Hennessy took off outdoors with personal best performances in the 200m (22.75) and 400m (48.58). The season ended on a high note with Hennessy placing 5th in the open 400m at the New England Championships and returning just a couple of hours later to run a 47.5 second split on the Eagle’s bronze medal 4x400m team.

Jordan Hamm travelled to Jacksonville, Florida for the East Region of the NCAA First Round last weekend and left with encouraging results. Hamm’s time of 9:25.28 (45th overall) was hardly indicative of his effort, as for nearly 6 laps of his quarter finals in the 3000m steeplechase, Hamm ran with the lead pack at school record pace. Clicking off 70 second laps (8:45 pace) with ease, Hamm seemed poised to move up from 7th place as runners ahead began to tire. However, as the pace entered the backstretch, and with just 9 of the 35 hurdles remaining, Hamm felt and heard a pop as he jammed his ankle coming off a hurdle. That misstep and resulting ankle sprain all but ended his race, as he limped through the final 700m to complete the race. It was a bittersweet ending to a great season for Hamm but an experience that will serve the junior well as he moves forward. After scoring for the first time at the ACC Championships, winning his first ever New England title and setting personal best times, Hamm walked away disappointed about his regional effort but he is convinced that he possesses the talent to compete for a spot in the NCAA finals. We at BC Track & Field are convinced as well, so get back in touch with us in 2012-13 for another great year!

***The NCAA First Round consists of two regions. This past weekend every Division 1 school east of the Mississippi competed in Jacksonville, Florida while every Division 1 school west of the Mississippi competed in Austin, Texas. In each event contested, the top 48 athletes in each region vie for a top-12 position to advance to the NCAA Championship Finals***

For all of the regional results, go to http://www.flashresults.com/2012_Meets/outdoor/05-24-NCAAEast/Day1.htm

ACC Championship 3000SC: 9:03.51

In a late addition to the NCAA First Round field, Jordan Hamm is now qualified to compete at the NCAA East Region this weekend in Jacksonville, Florida! This marks Hamm’s first appearance in the post-season and first for the Eagles since Tim Ritchie’s back-to-back 5000m appearances in 2009 and 2010. After nursing an injury for the entire indoor season, Hamm quickly made up for lost time by placing 5th at the ACC Championships in April. Hamm’s performance of 9:03.51 not only marked the first time he had scored at an ACC Championship, but also represented his eventual qualifying mark for the NCAA’s. Capping a successful regular season with his first ever New England title in the steeple, Hamm is looking to go toe-to-toe with the best at the NCAA East Region. Check back here for results!