Bucknell University Athletics
Giegengack Invitational Awaits Bucknell Track & Field on Saturday
2/4/2011 7:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
Feb. 4, 2011
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell track and field will take a select number of athletes to the seventh annual Giegengack Invitational in New Haven, Conn., on Saturday as it makes its final tune-ups before the end of the season. Twenty-two runners will make the trip to Yale's Coxe Cage for some final adjustments as the championship season draws closer.
“We are taking a limited number of athletes to Yale,” said head coach Kevin Donner ahead of the meet. “The three sprinters are all coming back from injury and need a race. Many of our middle distance runners are looking to hit some times to set themselves up for (Patriot) Leagues and IC4A-ECAC Championships, and our 3K runners' training cycles are set up for some nice PRs this week. The rest of the team is taking a much-needed weekend off, which will set them up nicely for the league championship.”
MEN'S NOTEBOOK
- Ten Bison on the men's side will be making the trip to Connecticut. Among them is Evan Novakowski (Duxbury, Mass./Duxbury), who is coming off a win at last weekend's Penn State National Invitational. The senior took the title in the 1000 meters with a time of 2:28.34, qualifying him for next month's IC4A Championships. On Saturday, he'll compete in the mile. Novakowski's last race at that distance came at the Bucknell Heptagonal where he placed seventh (4:20.16).
- John Picardo (Rochester, N.Y./Hilton Central), Jordan Donaldson (Saxton, Pa./Tussey Mountain) and Jacob Eaton-Hall (Elmira, N.Y./Elmira Free Academy) competed together in the 4x400 relay at last weekend's Millrose Games. Along with Robert Arent (New Providence, N.J./New Providence), the team placed fourth (3:25.34). This weekend, Picardo, Donaldson and Eaton-Hall will go up against each other in the 500 meters. Picardo (1:03.84) and Donaldson (1:04.31) rank fourth and sixth, respectively, all-time at Bucknell in the event.
- It has been some time since Kamal Riley (Hyde Park, Mass./Charlestown) last competed. The freshman's last race came in the 60-meter prelims of the Gulden Relays at the beginning of January. He will return to the event at Yale this weekend looking to improve on his career-best time of 7.17 seconds, which he ran at the Bison Opener two months ago. Riley's time in that race is tied for 10th in program history.
- Bucknell will send a quartet to the start line for the 3000 meters on Saturday, but D.J. Krystek (Pitcairn, Pa./Gateway Senior), Jake Schroeder (York, Pa./York Suburban), Tyler Erhard (Millerstown, Pa./East Juniata) and Robert Yamnicky (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) shouldn't be confused for a relay. Erhard will be looking to maintain his spot as Bucknell's leader in the event after finishing as the Bison's top finisher at the Bison Open & Multi (8:47.81). The last time Krystek competed at 3000 meters, the sophomore ran a career-best 9:01.75 at The Armory, placing 22nd overall.
- The last time Dustin Horning (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown Area) ran, he placed seventh in the mile at the Penn State National Invitational. His time of 4:16.64 was a full 10 seconds faster than his previous season best when he was 12th at The Armory. This weekend, the sophomore will compete at 1000 meters.
- Chris Sacks (Pound Ridge, N.Y./Fox Lane) is not competing this weekend, but the freshman has some good memories to carry him through the off week. Sacks was named the Patriot League Male Rookie of the Week last Monday after finishing fifth in the 1000 at the Penn State National Invitational. His time of 2:27.14 ranked 10th all-time at Bucknell and qualified him for the IC4A Championships.
WOMEN'S NOTEBOOK
- Emily Liggett (Grosse Point, Mich./Lawrenceville School (N.J.)) put together one of the best races of her career at the Penn State National Invitational last weekend when she finished the mile in 5:01.14. The junior, who placed seventh in the race, broke onto her first Bucknell record list with the performance. She is now tied for ninth all-time. This weekend, Liggett will move to the 1000 meters.
- Four Bison are scheduled to head to the start line in the 800 meters at Yale, including Caroline Tolli (Lockport, N.Y./Lockport), Erin Holbrook (East Aurora, N.Y./East Aurora), Chelsea Lodato (Matawan, N.J./Old Bridge) and Amanda Steinke (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township). Tolli is coming off a strong outing at Penn State where she was third in the 1000 meters with a career-best 2:57.06. That time ranked ninth in program history and qualified the sophomore for the ECAC Championships. Lodato joined Tolli in that 1000-meter race finishing eighth in 3:00.22.
- Holbrook had a full weekend at the Bison Open & Multi Jan. 28-29. The freshman helped the distance medley relay to a first-place finish (12:34.62) and earned third place in the 800. Holbrook's 800 time of 2:21.01 was her best of the year.
- Stephanie Fulmer (Pottstown, Pa./St. Pius X), Alaina Chodoff (Cherry Hill, N.J./Cherry Hill East) and Kelly Grosskurth (Huntington Station, N.Y./Half Hallow Hills East) will each compete in the 3000 meters at the Giegengack Invite. Chodoff and Grosskurth are the only two in that trio who have clocked a time at that distance this year, however. Chodoff's 10:20.30 and Grosskurth's 10:24.77 earned them both top-10 finishes at The Armory on Jan. 15.
- The last time Fulmer competed at 3000 meters was at the Akron Quad on Jan. 15, 2010. The then-sophomore was fifth with a time of 10:14.40.
- Kristin Bretscher (Farmingville, N.Y./Centereach) and Jaime Rasmussen (East Berlin, Conn./East Berlin) went toe-to-toe in the 60 meters at last weekend's Bison Open & Multi. Rasmussen had the edge with a season-best time of 8.16, while Brestcher's time of 8.19 was also her fastest of the year. Both will look to continue that progress on Saturday when they compete in the 60 meters again.
- The first and last time Kady Weisner (Saint Mary's, Pa./Elk County Catholic) competed in the mile was at the Bucknell Heptagonal. The freshman, who was fifth in 5:08.40 in that race, will return to the event this weekend. In her latest meet, Weisner was ninth in the 3000 meters (10:38.29) at the Bison Open & Multi.
- Sasha Hornock (Dover, Pa./Dover) and Hana Casalnova (Grove City, Pa./Grove City) have a much-deserved week off after posting some solid results in their last meet. Hornock was named the Susquehanna Valley Limousine Bison Athlete of the Week on Monday after winning the long jump and the 60-meter dash. Her finals time in the 60 meters – 7.77 seconds – ranks second all-time at Bucknell and is just .02 behind the school record. Casalnova also copped an award, being voted the Patriot League Female Rookie of the Week. Her 12th-place finish in the 800 with a time of 2:15.08 qualified her for the ECAC Championships. She also helped the distance medley relay to a sixth-place finish at the Penn State National Invitational. Their time (11:56.72) also sends them to the ECAC meet and is among the best in Bucknell program history.
BISON AT THE GIEGENGACK INVITATIONAL (subject to change)
Saturday, Feb. 5
| 12:15 p.m. | Women's 60m | Kristin Bretscher, Jaime Rasmussen | |||
| 1:05 p.m. | Men's 60m | Kamal Riley | |||
| 1:20 p.m. | Women's Mile | Kady Weisner | |||
| 1:40 p.m. | Men's Mile | Evan Novakowski | |||
| 3:20 p.m. | Women's 1000m | Emily Liggett | |||
| 3:35 p.m. | Men's 1000m | Dustin Horning | |||
| 3:50 p.m. | Women's 500m | Emily Waksmunski | |||
| 4:05 p.m. | Men's 500m | Jacob Eaton-Hall, Jordan Donaldson, John Picardo | |||
| 4:25 p.m. | Women's 800m | Caroline Tolli, Erin Holbrook, Chelsea Lodato, Amanda Steinke | |||
| 5:05 p.m. | Women's 3000m | Stephanie Fulmer, Alaina Chodoff, Kelly Grosskurth | |||
| 5:35 p.m. | Men's 3000m | D.J. Krystek, Jake Schroeder, Tyler Erhard, Robert Yamnicky |
LOOKING AHEAD
Bucknell's final meet before the Patriot League Championships is set for Saturday, Feb. 12. The Bison will host the Bucknell Winter Classic at Gerhard Fieldhouse with all the action starting at 9:30 a.m.
