Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Men's Cross Country Leads Off with Bison Open, Harry Lang Invite
8/30/2012 8:00:00 AM | Men's Cross Country
Aug. 30, 2012
LEWISBURG, Pa. -Bucknell men's cross country, which was recently voted fifth in the Patriot League Preseason Poll, will waste little time getting into the thick of competition when it starts off the 2012 campaign with a pair of meets this weekend. After hosting the Bison Open on Friday, the team's top runners will continue on to Hamilton, N.Y., for Colgate's Harry Lang Invitational at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. The season's lone home meet, which will feature Saint Francis (Pa.), Bloomsburg, Susquehanna and Juniata, begins at 5:30 p.m. at West Fields.
Saturday's action at Colgate will be a preview of the Patriot League Championships, slated for Oct. 27. The Bison, which were selected voted fifth in the league's preseason poll with 53 points, placed fifth at last season's conference meet. Bucknell was also 10th in the year's first U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Mid-Atlantic Regional Poll.
Leading the way in the 2012 Patriot League Preseason Poll was defending champion Navy with 97 points and 13 first-place votes. American was second with 84 points and two-first place votes, while Lehigh was third with 71 points and one first-place vote. They were followed by Army (64 points), Bucknell, Colgate (39), Lafayette (23) and Holy Cross (17).
Below is a more in-depth look at Bucknell men's cross country's upcoming 2012 season.
Two words - youth and depth - best describe Bucknell men's cross country heading into the 2012 campaign, and both are expected to be what push the Bison back into the mix in the Patriot League race come October. Bucknell has not placed higher than third in the conference standings since 2001. With continuous improvement and a deceptively experienced group of underclassmen, however, head coach Kevin Donner is looking for that to change.
"Our men's distance runners made tremendous progress last year, which we are expecting to carry over into this year. I am projecting our strongest year in recent memory," said Donner, who is heading into his 12th season at the team's helm. "Although the critical mass is still relatively young, we do have some big-meet experience and we do have a few seniors who are ready for a big breakthrough."
Six of Bucknell's top seven finishers at last year's Patriot League Championships are back this fall, and four of those returners are still only sophomores. The key loss there is former captain Dave Brown, who graduated last spring after earning the Bison's top finishing spot in each of the last two seasons. Back from that group, however, are sophomores John Dugan, the Patriot League Rookie of the Meet, Michael McGowan, Andrew Garcia-Garrison and Andrew Kirna. D.J. Krystek and Dustin Horning were also among the top seven and will provide some of the senior leadership for the unit.
Krystek joins Brian Charland as the official leaders of the Bison squad as both were named captains prior to the season. Krystek was fifth on the team and 32nd overall at the league championships last fall. He continued his success as the year wore on and eventually scored with a sixth-place finish at the Patriot League Outdoor Track & Field Championships in the 10,000 meters. His season concluded with his first career trip to the IC4A Championships where he took 13th in the 10K.
Horning saw similar results. The native of Elizabethtown, Pa., placed among the team's top five in three of his five cross country meets. One of those was at the Patriot League Championships, where he was third among Bison and 27th overall. Like Krystek, Horning went on to score in multiple events at the track league meets and qualified for the IC4A Championships during both indoor and outdoor seasons. Highlighting his resume was a third-place finish in the outdoor 4x800 relay, which set a school record at the Patriot League meet.
Looking to make an impact again this year will be senior Robert Yamnicky who struggled with health problems last fall. As a sophomore, Yamnicky took 28th overall and was second on the team behind Brown at the Patriot League Championships.
"He can really be the link that pulls our team together," said Donner.
Few freshmen made themselves heard more last year than Dugan. A two-time conference Rookie of the Week during cross country season, he ultimately earned Second Team All-Patriot League honors to go along with his Rookie of the Meet citation. Showing off his consistency for the Bison, Dugan placed among the team's top five in all six of his races during his debut campaign and was second on the squad and 13th overall at the Patriot League Championships.
Another Rookie of the Week honoree during cross country season, McGowan rounded out Bucknell's top seven at the Patriot League Championships. He also took fourth on the team and 81st overall at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships to compete his fall campaign.
Track season treated both Dugan and McGowan well. Dugan kicked off his outdoor campaign with a win in the steeplechase at the Susquehanna Jim Taylor Invitational, while McGowan also won his collegiate debut in the mile. Both qualified for the IC4A Championships as well with Dugan in the steeplechase, the same event in which he ultimately competed at the USATF Junior National Championships in June, and McGowan in the 10,000 meters.
Adding to the depth for the Bison will be sophomore Kirna, who will be joined on the roster by younger brother John this season, as well as juniors Tyler Erhard and Eric Balaban. Andrew Kirna was sixth on the team and 41st overall at last fall's league meet. Erhard struggled with injuries during the 2011 cross country season but bounced back on the track. In his final three indoor meets, he won the mile and the 1,000 meters, then scored with a season-best in the 1,000 at the Patriot League Championships as the Bison won their first indoor league title since 1993.
Balaban has been steadily increasing his role on the cross country squad during his career. After racing just three times as a freshman, he made the lineup at seven meets last fall, including the conference meet where he was eighth among Bison and 56th overall.
Bucknell will also look to freshmen Andrew Kuchta and Harrison Brakewood in 2012. Donner considers the duo among some of his best-ever recruits as both ran 9:10 in the 3,200 meters during their high school careers.
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