Amidst the snow and unusual April weather, the Gilmour
Academy Lancers have already begun the 2009 boys’ track season.
The Lancers, already off to a 2-0 start, are coming off of a spectacular
year in which they captured numerous meet titles. Along with these
impressive showings in both dual meets and invitationals, the boys’
track team made it all the way down to Columbus for the Class of `09’s
fourth year in a row. The Lancers not only made it down to Columbus
but were able to piece together impressive performances by the
whole team which allowed them to place second overall in the state for
Boys Division III Track. This was the boys’ best showing ever at the
State meet in their 39 year history.
As the season begins to progress further and the snow begins
to melt, the Lancers will rely heavily upon their four key seniors who were
all major contributors on last year’s State Runner Up team. The Lancers
are working to replace last year’s key losses, Yann Schoenhagen (`08)
and Pat Crowe (`08), who were both standouts in their respective events.
Filling their shoes will be no easy task for the Lancers this season
but the four senior captains Preston Hoge (`09), Tom Hallal (`09), Tim
Vala (`09) and Lou Cangelosi (`09) are ready for the challenge. These
four individuals, all captains on this year’s track team, along with field
specialist Eddie Kelley (`09), round up the senior class. These five seniors
bring leadership and a plethora of experience to a team rather small in numbers.
Along with this year’s senior class, the boy’s track team will need a
great deal of help from the team’s underclassmen. One runner in particular,
Bart Merkel (`10), is off to a great start to the 2009 season. Merkel (`10) will be
relied upon heavily in distance events, along with fellow classmate Alex Keene
(`10) and James Miller (`11). New additions to the track team, Thomas Crabtree
(`11) and Justyn “Lebron” Greene (`12), add depth to the Lancer track squad.
Greene (`12) will run primarily sprints while Crabtree (`11) will be looked upon
for primarily middle distance events.
The Lancer boys’ track team is looking to build off of last year’s second
place finish at state and capture a much deserved state championship. Preston
Hoge (`09) is a Colgate University track recruit. He says,
Last year we had a solid team and this year I think we could be just as strong. Although we are thin
on guys, hard work and determination will put us in position to make another run at the state title.
With the Lancer track season already in progress, the
boys have started off strong and are looking quite good in both track and field
events. It is clear that the Lancers are ready to go for the season and with the
senior class leading the charge, a State championship is certainly within sight.
