Gator Track Teams Sweep NCAC Indoor Titles

Mar 5, 2005

Men's Results
Women's Results

GRANVILLE, Ohio – For the first time since 1993, the Allegheny College men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams both captured North Coast Athletic Conference Indoor championships, as the teams finished first after dominating performances Saturday.

The men’s title is their third consecutive and fifth overall, with all of them coming since 1992. This is the first championship for the women’s team since 2002 and is their seventh overall, which breaks a tie with Denison (Ohio) University for the most in the league’s 21-year history. Leading the outstanding performances was Gator head coach Bill Ross, who was named the men’s and women’s Coach of the Year following the meet, now giving him a total of 16 NCAC awards, including cross country and outdoor track.

On the men’s side, the Gators scored 161 points to finish far ahead of second place Ohio Wesleyan University and Wabash (Ind.) College, who both scored 96 points. Highlighting Allegheny’s dominating day were three individuals and one relay team winning their event. Senior Kevin Pool (New Windsor, Md./ Westminster), who claimed first place in the 5,000 on Friday night, won his second event of the weekend when he crossed first in the 1,500 in a time of 3:59.71.

Allegheny junior Chris Carrier (Lyndhurst, Ohio/ Charles F. Brush) completed the Gator sweep of the individual distance events when he won the 3,000, his second consecutive NCAC title in the event, with a time of 8:40.70, while the Distance Medley Relay team of senior Matt Popowicz (North East, Pa.), sophomore Gary Gorski (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Mt. Lebanon), senior David Washousky (Clarence, N.Y./ Clarence Central) and freshman Ryan Place (Meshoppen, Pa./ Elk Lake) won the race in a time of 10:42.46, the first time in the 10-year history of the event at the conference meet that the Gators have come in first place.

Rounding out the AC champions was freshman Conrad Rapp (Medway, Mass./ Worcester Academy), who cleared 15 feet even in the pole vault to win his first NCAC crown, while sophomore Mark Dobish (New Wilmington, Pa./ Wilmington Area) came in second place (14-4).

Although he did not win an event over the weekend, Gator senior Jeff Conroy (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Baldwin) was named the Outstanding Men’s Middle/Distance Runner of the Year following the meet. After finishing third in Friday’s 5K, Conroy (left) came back to take second place in the 1,500 (4:02.29) and 3,000 (8:55.51) as he scored the most points for the victorious Gator men’s team.

‘The men’s team put on a real show this weekend,” said Ross. “Going 1-2-3-7 in the 5,000 on Friday night really set the tone and then the team put it all together Saturday.”

Other big scorers on Saturday for AC was junior RaShawn Allen (Columbus, Ohio/ St. Charles Prep) and sophomore Josh Rhue (Brimley, Mich./ Clonlara), who placed second (6.65) and third (6.67) respectively in the 55-meter dash and took sixth (23.36) and seventh (23.37) respectively in the 200. Junior Dave Griffin (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Montour) finished third in the 55 hurdles (8.15), freshman Justin Schwab (Kill Buck, N.Y./ Salamanca) jumped to a third place showing in the high jump (6-2), junior Mark Delaney (Pittsburgh, Pa./ Mt. Lebanon) crossed fourth in the 800 (1:59.61) and the 4x200 relay team of sophomore Marcus Soloman (Rockwell, Texas/ Dallas Christian), junior Troy Moles (Royersford, Pa./ The Hill School), Gorski and Allen placed fourth with a time of 1:34.90.

Starting off the championship day for the women were solid performances in the field events. Junior Alexis Mioducki (Grand Island, N.Y.) tied for third place in the high jump by clearing 5-1, while junior Amanda Grilli (Washington, Pa./ Trinity) placed fourth in the long jump (15-9½).

Once the action returned to the track, Allegheny pulled away from the field. In the 1,500, senior Leah Shouey (Franklin, Pa.) not only took first place in the event, but set a new NCAC and new Denison facility record with a time of 4:41.15. Coming in right behind Shouey was sophomore Scarlett Graham (Farmington, Pa./ Uniontown), as her second place time of 4:42.56 provisionally qualified Graham (right) for next weekend’s NCAA Championships. Coming in fourth place was senior Lindsey Shouey (Franklin, Pa.) in a time of 4:53.33.

Also winning their event was the Distance Medley relay team of junior Megan McShea (Murrysville, Pa./ Franklin Regional), freshman Liz Straus (Kirtland, Ohio), freshman Lydia Clark (Bergenfield, N.J.) and freshman Eva Weyers (Delanson, N.Y./ Duanesburg), who finished in a time of 13:08.35 to hold off Wooster and Denison, as the top three teams all finished within a second and a half of each other.

Leah Shouey completed her outstanding weekend by placing second in the 800 final with a time of 2:20.97, while three Gator runners, including senior Leigh Ciofani (McKees Rocks, Pa./ Montour), Graham and Lindsey Shouey went 2-3-4 in the 3,000. Also garnering a top four finish was sophomore Rashelle Glass (New Castle, Pa./ Shenango), as she was fourth in the 400 (1:01.82).

“We knew the women could win if we had a couple people step up for us in different events and a lot of different people stepped up,” said Ross. “The big swing events for us were the 400 and 800. We didn’t have anyone run the 400 all year, so we took a chance with Rashelle and Heather Knupp (who placed eighth) and they delivered. In the 800, we knew Leah would score for us but Molly McGravey and Lindsey Svetlak picking up fifth and sixth gave us some huge points.”

The indoor track schedule will wrap up next weekend at the 2005 NCAA Indoor Championships, which will be held at Illinois Wesleyan March 11-12. Leah Shouey will run in the mile and Kevin Pool will compete in the 5,000, while Graham (1,500) and Rapp will find out early this week if they will have a chance to compete at nationals.

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