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Strong Talent Emerges for Mercy College Cross Country and Track & Field
DOBBS FERRY, NY - This year the Mercy College cross country and track & field teams enjoyed success from a mixture of both newcomers and veterans.
"We have the nucleus of a strong team," said head coach Dr. Darryl Bullock. "We will continue to recruit quality men and women in select running and field events with the goal of becoming a top tier team within our conference."
Transfer student David Hunte (Labrea, Trinidad & Tobago) excelled in the triple jump and broke the school record in the process. During the outdoor season at the Yale Springtime Invitational, he took fourth place in the triple jump with a mark of 13.86 meters and set a new school record. He also took first place at the Coach "O" Invitational (13.39m) and at the King's Point Invitational he broke the school record with a jump of 14.02m. Hunte also set a new school record in the 55 meter run with a time of 6.99 seconds at the CTC Indoor Championships.
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David Hunte |
"He is learning how to relax and make adjustments on the run," Bullock said about Hunte. "His senior season will be something special to watch."
Freshman Joon Yeob Lee (New Haven, CT) established a new school record in the long jump with a leap of 6.42 meters. During the outdoor season at the New Balance NYC event, he finished ninth with his record-breaking effort. He also took a fourth place finish at the King's Point Invitational in the long jump (6.25m). Twin brother Joon Hoon Lee (New Haven, CT) had a personal best in the 800 meter run at King's Point with a time of 2:19.30.
Sophomore Janet Wong (Vancouver, Canada) set more school records this season and had some top finishes. She took first place in the javelin with a throw of 37.66 meters at the CTC Outdoor Championships. At the Coach "O" Invitational she finished as the top collegian in the javelin (32.20m). She took another first place finish in the javelin at the Osprey Open with a throw of 36.49 meters. Wong is also an accomplished high jumper having raised the bar to 1.52 meters this season. She was a part of a record-setting sprint medley team, which included Sasha Atkins (Bronx, NY), Katelyn Klobus (Averill Park, NY) and Natalya Wells.
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Janet Wong |
Klobus was consistently the Mavericks' top performer in the cross country season. She took sixth on the three mile course with a time of 21:39.45 at the St. Rose Joust. At the Albany Invitational she had a season-best in the 5000 meter race with a time of 20:46.9. She led the Mavericks on the 5k course at the ECC Championships in a time of 21:42 with a 15th place finish. Klobus broke the school record for the women's mile with a time of 5:54.01 and also lowered her own school record in the 800 meter run (2:30.59).
"With a strong group of female runners surrounding Katelyn next year, I believe that she will reach her goals," Bullock said. "This year during track she learned how to be a risk-taker and that will serve her well."
Other school records that fell include a performance by senior Eric Duffy (Montrose, NY) who broke his own record in the javelin with a throw of 43.07 meters at the New Balance NYC outdoor event. Atkins established a new school mark in the 200m, finishing in a time of 27.24, and recorded a leap of 4.70 meters in the long jump at the King's Point Invitational. Klobus set another school record in the 3000 meter run with a time of 11:51.1.
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Katelyn Klobus |
The Mavericks also received strong finishes by sophomores Tyrik Overton (Tarrytown, NY) and John Benvin (Thornwood, NY), seniors Peter Yarema (Northport, NY), Thomas Cannariato (Goshen, NY) and Daniel Reeves (Babylon, NY) and juniors Jose Gomez (Monroe, NY), Kevin Gibson (Buenos Aires, Argentina) and Jessica Fabian (Whitehall, PA).
"John Benvin's and Thomas Cannariato's passion and steady improvement was emblematic of the team's character," said Bullock.
Overton took fifth place at the Osprey Open in the high jump while he finished the 100 meter dash in 13.79 seconds. In the 1500 meter run, Mercy had a bevy of competitors with good times. Gomez led the way at 4:35.90, while Yarema and Cannariato followed close behind with times of 4:39.18 and 4:41.02, respectively.
Reeves opened the cross country season with a time of 35:07 at the Fordham Invitational and Gibson placed third at 35:49. Mercy received good times from the women as well. Fabian finished the course in 27:30 while junior Susan Paulsen (Goshen, NY) came in at 31:43.
Yarema was the men's most consistent cross-country runner, leading the Mavericks in five of seven races. Cannariato paced Mercy in the other two, including the ECC Championships.
The Mavericks will enter next season with many returning athletes and promise for more success.
