PA Alumni At Nationals

By: Garrett Zatlin

Division 1

• Ned Willig (Michigan)
• Michigan's Ned Willig was the only D1 athlete to qualify for an individual distance event after running a 3:58 mile PR at Boston. Unfortunately, Willig drew a tough preliminary heat which included three Oregon Ducks, a 3:56 miler, and plenty of other talent. Willig was in a great spot early on in the race, but just like many other top-tier names, he wasn't prepared for the quickening pace established by Oregon. Willig eventually finished last in his heat with a time of 4:05. He may not have made the final, but this is arguably the best track season of his collegiate career so far.

• Dan Jaskowak (Virginia Tech)
• As one commenter pointed out, Jaskowak was never really a mid-distance guy in high school. He often thrived in races like the 3200 or 5k. However, this Virginia Tech program has really helped Jaskowak develop his leg-speed. The senior was able to split a 2:53 at ACC's in the DMR lead-off leg and was later able to get VT to the front at NCAA's where he split ~2:55. On top of that, Jaskowak was able to run a 2:22 1k earlier in the season! This guy has some really solid range.

Division 2

• Caleb Gatchell (Hillsdale)
• The Hillsdale senior was already an All-American in the 1500 after placing 7th at outdoor NCAA's last spring. In 2017, Gatchell returned to the big stage with the only difference being that he would run 100 meters further on an indoor track. After matching his 4:06 mile PR in the prelims, Gatchell took advantage of his raw speed to split a 2:59 last 1200 and place 6th at nationals to become an All-American for the second time in his career. That 4:06 was also paired with an 8:21 3k PR from earlier in the season.

• Ethan Gatchell (Cedarville)
• The younger Gatchell brother didn't flinch on the big stage when he got the baton for Cedarville's DMR. As just a sophomore, Gatchell dropped a huge 1:52 high to get his team in a great position. Their relay would eventually finish 8th to clinch the final All-American spot.

• Ryan Thompson (Slippery Rock)
• I'll be 100% honest, I haven't heard much about Ryan Thompson and I'm not sure why. The man is absolutely killing it! The Slippery Rock High School graduate stayed close to home and attended SRU which may have given him an edge when trying to adjust to his new collegiate-level of training. As a senior, Thompson was able to drop some incredible times. He ran a 4:05 mile PR in early February which was fast enough to qualify him for nationals. He also ran an 8:27 3k PR as well. Unfortunately, Thompson didn't advance to the mile final at NCAA's. Still, this has been one heck of a season for Thompson and he is one person that will definitely be on my radar for this upcoming spring season.
• S/O to the commenter for pointing out my miss.

Division 3

• Ernie Pitone (Widener)
• It was a tough race for Pitone ended up as the first man out of the finals despite running 4:15 in the prelims. That would be a heartbreaking finish for most seniors, but Pitone made up for that with an excellent 3k performance where he ran 8:21 and placed 6th overall. After this weekend, Pitone can now boast that he is a five-time All-American throughout his collegiate career (if we include all three seasons).

• Jon Perlman (Middlebury)
• It was an excellent season for Jon Perlman. As just a sophomore, Perlman was able to get a 4:12 mile PR and qualify for nationals at the Tufts Final Qualifier meet. Unfortunately, Perlman's youth caught up to him and he failed to make the final after running a 4:17 in the prelims. Despite not advancing, this was huge experience for the young guy who will likely return back to the championships later on in his career.

• Jaryd Flank (Muhlenberg)
• What a story Jaryd Flank has been! A little known PA high schooler has now become one of the best distance runners in division three. Flank first attacked the DMR with a strong anchor leg that got his Muhlenberg teammates All-American honors with a 7th place finish. Unfortunately, I don't know the relay split, but it seems like it only gave Flank more confidence. The Muhlenberg senior dueled with Pitone and settled for 8th in the 3000 (8:23) to gain his second All-American performance of the weekend.

• Anthony Calatoni (Muhlenberg)
• As the 800 leg of the Muhlenberg DMR, Calatoni stepped up to the plate and laid down a solid 1:53 split to keep Muhlenberg in the All-American conversation. He's only a junior and should be able to make plenty of noise this outdoor season as well as next year.

• Noah Falasco (RPI)
• How did I miss a national champion?! Granted, it was in the DMR so it was easy to overlook. Still, this is a big deal regardless of what event we're talking about. One of the commenters was nice enough to point out that Falasco was on RPI's winning relay and was able to get a solid split 1:56 to keep RPI at the front. The best part? Falasco is just a true freshman.

• Mason Hepner (Dickinson)
• The Dickinson senior had a huge breakout season with three substantial PR's that included a 1:55, 4:12, and 8:39. That 4:12 mile PR was good enough for Hepner to qualify for D3 nationals. Hepner was the last man to make it out of the preliminaries and into a very underrated mile final. Although Hepner finished last in that final, he still got a PR (by .1 seconds).

If there was anyone I missed be sure to let me know!