Temple University Athletics
Men's And Women's Track Teams Open Indoor Season Friday
12.6.07 | Women's Track and Field
Dec. 6, 2007
PHILADELPHIA - When head coach Stefanie Scalessa arrived at Temple three years ago, the men's and women's track programs had several hurdles to clear to become a contender in the Atlantic 10 Conference. There was no cross country team, so distance runners shied away from TU.
Temple had many top-flight athletes, but lacked the depth it needed to score points in every event and to overcome the injury-bug that can strike at any time. Add in two-full time coaches and you have a team poised to join the top teams in the competitive Atlantic 10.
Now in her fourth season, Scalessa graduated only two student-athletes and will look to carry over from a strong showing at last year's conference championships. The men tied their best-ever A-10 finish with a fifth place showing and boasted two runners-up in Andrew Fries (javelin) and Josue Louis (high jump).
"We're much more balanced than we ever been," Scalessa said. "Because of the balance, we're going to start moving up in the conference rankings. Our individual performances are going to improve and if we can remain healthy, we should surprise some people this year. We're definitely headed in the right direction."
The addition of assistant coaches Mathis Harrison, in his second season with the sprinters and hurdlers, and Matt Jelley, in his first season as the distance coach, has been beneficial.
"The stability that they have brought to the program has proved to be helpful," Scalessa said. "Mathis is building on the foundation that he started last year and the improvement of our distance runners shows what kind of coach Matt is."
Men's Track The Owls have their largest roster in recent memory, providing Scalessa competition in every event. Louis, a sophomore indoors and junior outdoors, was the A-10 Rookie of the Year at the conference indoor meet and Fries, a senior, headline the returnees.
Louis was the A-10 indoor high jump champion (6-7) and earned All-East honors at the IC4A Championship. He will also compete in the short sprint and hurdles. Fries will have to wait until the outdoor season to toss the javelin, where he has finished no worse than third in A-10s each season in his career.
Senior Marcos Edghill and sophomore Garrett Summers will join Louis in the short sprints and hurdles. Edghill placed in the 55m indoors and 100m outdoors, while Summers looks to return to his scholastic form after battling injuries in his freshman season. The Cheverly, MD native won an indoor state championship in the 55m hurdles at Fairmont Heights High School.
Sophomore David Stonfer, a transfer from Penn State, and junior Jason Sullivan headline a strong 400m/800m group. Stonfer finished fourth at the A-10 outdoor meet in the 400m while Sullivan was an IC4A qualifier in the outdoor 800m. Senior Marquise Stancil is back for his final season after placing third last year in the indoor 500m.
Several underclassmen are pressing for time in the starting blocks, including sophomore Jordan Calwell and freshmen Nate Velazquez, Nick Argis and Josh Shumberger.
Summers and sophomore Brad McFadden will compete in the 400m hurdles outdoors, while sophomore Alex Schiavi is set to score points in the conference meet in the heptathlon and decathlon.
The middle distance and distance programs are improved after Temple competed in its third cross country season this fall after the sport was reinstated after a 20-year hiatus. Juniors Mitch Stroh and Adin Mickle, the school record holder in the indoor 3000m, lead the charge. A bevy of freshmen gained valuable experience on the hill and dale this fall--Mike May, Charles Goold, Clarke Hunt, and Eric Conklin--and will be counted on to score points in the mile and up.
Junior Bryce Buffaloe, who recently finished his second season as a walk-on with the Temple football team, headlines the throwers. An IC4A qualifier in the indoor shot put, Buffaloe is the school record holder in the indoor hammer throw. Sophomore Grant West and three freshmen--Chris Taylor, Chris Durane and Billy Keough--will add depth in the throws.
Fries and sophomore Eric Pellini provide the Owls with a formidable punch in the javelin in the spring. Fries finished second and Pellini was fourth last year in the event.
In the jumps, Louis will be joined by sophomore Tim Boeni and freshmen Miles Dryden and Kijuan Wilkinson.
Women's Track On the women's side, Scalessa welcomes back 24 letterwinners, including defending Atlantic 10 champion Melissa Gale (outdoor pole vault). Junior Devon DuPont (heptathlon) and sophomore Brittney McRae (100m hurdles), who each finished second in their events at the outdoor conference championship, also return.
Senior Cheryl Anscombe, junior Rose Drayton and McRae provide leadership the short sprints and hurdles, which will be bolstered by the arrival freshman Brittany Clybourn, who won the New Jersey long jump title and was third in the 100m hurdles.
Senior Shanice DePass, the four-year anchor of the 400m/800m group, will look to defend her 4x400 relay title that she helped win at the A-10 indoor championship. Along with Anscombe and junior Carlleen Allison, Depass will be asked to guide a talented group of freshmen in the long sprints.
Assata Cowart, national qualifier in the 400m hurdles, and Paris Williams, a two-time indoor state champion in the 500m, could make an immediate impact. Shadaya Bennet, who placed at states in the 400m and 400m hurdles in high school, Tashima Stephens and Danyielle Lambert also have impressed the coaching staff in the preseason.
Two veterans--senior Jaselle Cruz and sophomore Tashae Croxton--lead the hurdling contingent. Both placed at the outdoor A-10 championship, with Croxton leading the way in third, in the 400m hurdles.
Senior Noelle McKenzie, the school record holder in the indoor 1000m, paces the middle distance and distance runners. A young group of cross country harriers will make the transition to the oval and will add depth to the squad.
Clybourn, McRae and Dupont will compete in the long jump, with Dupont adding high jump duties to her already crowded plate, which includes the pentathlon/heptathlon. Senior Kimberlyn Hill and junior Reava Potter will hold down triple jump dutues. Hill finished fifth at A-10 outdoors and sixth indoors.
Junior Amanda Cole, the school record holder in the indoor weight throw and outdoor hammer throw, was an ECAC qualifier in both events last season. She will aim for her first A-10 individual title.
The Atlantic 10 Indoor Championship is February 16 at the University of Rhode Island. The University of Massachusetts will host the outdoor conference championship on May 3-4.
