PA Alumni: The Big Q's

By: Garrett Zatlin

Although I do tend to focus on the overall NCAA, our PA alumni deserve some more in-depth coverage every now and then. As the spring season approaches, there are a lot of questions that we'll need to have answered.

*Excuse the typos and grammar errors. I was in a rush.

1.  Will any PA alumni make nationals? If so, who? Will Burkhardt and Gil return?

-Last spring season we saw Ryan Gil and Glen Burkhardt make it to nationals in the steeplechase and the 10k respectively. Unfortunately, Gil didn't advance to the finals Burkhardt was a DNF. So who are the contenders to make nationals this year?

In a long race like the 10k, there is always a possibility something weird happens with the pacing, and an unexpected individual gets in. That's what happened to Burkhardt last spring despite having "only" a PR of 29:31. Could he do it again? He could, but it's tough to say if how much he's really improved. The odds will be stacked against him assuming if we assume he pursues the 10k again.

Gil, on the other hand, has been improving at a pretty rapid rate ever since he transferred to Oregon. The steeplechaser brought his mile time down to 4:01.99 this past winter season, and doesn't seems to show signs of running anything else. Gil is currently set to run the 1500 this weekend in a fast field of PAC 12 guys as well as some men from PSU. Will Gil abandon the steeplechase for the 1500? It sure seems like that's the plan...

Then there are also other guys who have been right on the verge and just missed nationals. Last year, Willig missed the finals at the regional meet by one spot while Coyle finished 13th in the final of that same region (he was the first man out).

There are plenty of others we're missing. John Lewis and Colin Abert were total studs indoors, but their youth and inexperience is a concern. Christian Sanders (La Salle) meanwhile, is looking strong early with a time of 1:50.44 to start off his spring season. He'll need to improve, but it's a great start. Others that could mix it up are Elias Graca (Penn), Alek Sauer (Columbia), Alec Kunzweiler (Duke), Ean DiSilvio (PSU), and Wade Endress (PSU).

2. How low can John Lewis go?

-This past indoor season, John Lewis had the fastest 800 mark over all of the other active PA Alumni (he ran 1:49.39). He was one of the most consistent PA alumni by going under 1:50 four different times. Lewis was (and is) clearly in shape, but he wasn't as tactically savy as some of his competitors.

With a season of racing under his belt and a PR of 1:48 to beat, could we see the Clemson Tiger dip under 1:48? At the rate he's been improving, the possibility is certainly there. However, he'll need to become a better tactical runner rather than just relying on pure fitness especially if he wants to make NCAA's.

3. Over/under Colin Abert running 14:15 in the 5k?

-Abert is slated to run the the 1500 this weekend, but without the 3k to run (like he had during indoors), the 5k will be the next option for him to run later this season. In fact, I think that could be his best event. Going under 14:15 is no joke and Abert would have to do it in the right race. However, when you run 4:03 and and 8:08 indoors, then there are clearly signs that sub 14:15 is possible.

To put it in perspective, Sam Webb just ran 14:44 to make his outdoor debut. Ross Wilson was also able to bring down his 5k time to 14:23 by the end of his freshman year. Abert seems to be on another level than where most freshman are and have been.

4. Which of D2 and D3 alumni can realistically contend for a national title?

-It's tough to say if there is really anyone in particular that could contend for a title. My first thoughts direct me to Steven Yannacone (Williams) and Vincent Tonzo (St. Vincent's) who qualified for the DIII NCAA 800 last year. Unfortunately, neither made the finals, but both ran some pretty quick times (Yannacone- 1:51, Tonzo-1:54). If they can get back to the championships, the range of improvement is possible. The prelims winner was as fast as 1:50 while the finals winner was 1:52

Continuing with the D3 returners, Will McDermott ran a promising 14:50 last year to finish 11th overall. His PR is 14:28 and the winner last year was 14:10. McDermott would have to improve quite a bit and have his best days at nationals. From what I've seen so far, the competition isn't going to get any easier, and there are some quality runners near the top. However, McDermott competing for a title is still somewhat in the realm of possibility. At the very least, he could contend up front.

There are plenty of other guys to watch out for. At D2 nationals last year, Kierna Sutton (Shippensburg) qualified to run the 10k and finished around the middle of the pack. Other guys that I'm watching are Jeremy Parsons (Slippery Rock), Caleb Gatchell (Hillsdale), Dylan Mountain (Lock Haven), and Ernie Pitone (Widener). All of these guys have shown some great success in their respective events, but will need to crank it up a notch to be true contenders.

Honestly, I'm probably missing someone to mention to feel free to call me out on that.

5. Who will be the fastest half miler in the Ivy League?

-For some reason, PA has decided to crowd the 800 field with some of the best half-milers we've ever had. The top names I'm looking at this season are Sauer, Wiseman, Willig, Graca, Magaha.

Sauer and Graca are two runners that seem pretty similar to me. Maybe that was because they finished neck and neck at Heps Indoor Championships (Sauer-2nd, Graca-3rd).Graca has started out his season very strong so far with an outdoor debut of 1:50.29 and has been incredibly consistent. Meanwhile, Sauer has a split of 1:49 this past indoor season and holds an open PR just a second behind Graca (1:51.49). At the rate their improving this year, they could take the Ivy title.

Wiseman is a tough guy to figure out. The sophomore has had great success in many of the lower distances like the 400 and 500 (he even ran the 60 at one point). He has great speed, but didn't run an 800 this entire winter season. He just made his spring debut with a 1:51.65 this past weekend. He may not be the fastest runner based off of time, but if a race is going to be quick the last 200 meters, I'm betting Wiseman will be kicking hard.

When we look at Magaha, it's important to point out that Magaha hasn't hit his high school PR since he entered college. He's been back and forth with some great races, but also some not-so-great races. Still, when he's on, Magaha can contend with anyone. The Penn senior has a college PR of 1:49 and just ran a 1:51 to open up his season two weeks ago. If he can use this strong start as momentum for later on in the season, we could see the best track season Magaha's ever had.

The last person to mention is Ned Willig who has been one of the most successful PA alumni the past few years. Last outdoor season, Willig ran hard and continued to drop his 800 time down to a 1:48 (he was running unattached in that end of season race). He's taken down some big names and even had a 1200 split of around 2:53 (Penn Relays his sophomore year). He has major talent, but Willig will need to stay healthy if he going to have another 1:48/3:44 season again. Luckily, it seems like he has recovered from his winter injury after he opened up his spring season with a 1:51.

***UPDATE: Of the five names listed above, all of them except Willig will be racing in a Virginia Quad meet today according to a commenter in an earlier post.***

6. Who are the most underrated PA alumni to keep an eye on?

-Right off the bat, I think Patrick Reilly (Lehigh) has to be on everyone's radar. The sophomore is coming off of an outstanding XC season and just ran 30:06 10k at Raleigh. He ran 14:33 in the 5k last year and with the way he's been improving, we could see him go much faster than that time.

I'm also a big fan of Christian Sander from La Salle. He barely gets any attention in a crowded D1 group of PA alumni. However, he ran a 1:50.44 about three weeks ago to start off his season. If that's just the start of his season then I'm eager to see what else he can do.

Other guys that come to mind are Andrew Stone (Notre Dame), Aaron Gebhart (Charlotte), Alec Kunzweiler (Duke), and Alex Moran (Michigan)

Who do you think are the PA alumni we should be looking out for?

7. Any updates on where our PA high schoolers will attending next year? So far I know...

• Nick Wolk- University of Pittsburgh
• Jaxson Hoey- Penn State University
• Dom Perretta- Penn State University
• Alex Milligan- University of North Carolina 
• Jake Brophy- Naval Academy
• Dominic Hockenbury- Syracuse University
• Mike Kolor- Harvard University
• Matt Wisner- Duke University
• Tucker Desko- University of Oklahoma