Cedarville University Yellow Jackets

May 15, 2013

NCCAA Nationals is the big meet of the year for our team with very few people going on to compete at the NCAA D2 level. For me this was the last meet that I will compete at as a Cedarville athlete. It was bittersweet for me knowing that it was my last meet, but at the same time my body was definitely telling me that I needed a break because injuries were beginning to pile up.

I was able to go to the meet on Thursday and see the opening day of the decathlon which normally starts a day early so they can finish all the events without interfering with the rest of the meet. It was a very cold day that ended in rain but it did not stop our athletes from performing well. I was able to see James Blackwell win the 400 meter dash with a gutsy performance after having completed four events already. James went on to win it for the second year in a row as well, so congrats to him.

After the events had finished, I was able to join the multi-event athletes for a wonderful dinner at Texas Roadhouse where I believe we ate 13 baskets of bread by the time the meal was over. After that we returned to the hotel for preparations for the next day of competition with the rest of the team arriving around 10 p.m. that evening.

The first day of the meet was rather cold with most of us wearing layer and layers of gear to try to get warmed up. I was unfortunately unable to watch most of the running events on the first day because the throws tend to take a lot of time, but I was able to see one of the coolest things I ever have at a meet. After chasing his father’s school record for years, probably as long as he has been doing it, I was able to see Greg Hannay break his father’s school record in the javelin with his dad in attendance. This was pretty special to me having watched Greg work hard for the four years I’ve known him with a singular goal in mind. After the meet the team got a quick dinner at Panera Bread, and went back to the hotel to prepare for the final day.

The final day of competition began with one of the most obligatory ceremonies I have ever had the misfortune to be a part of. Every year they make the teams line up and march around the track for the "fans"; this would be great if it was not 9:30 in the morning and all the fans weren’t still in bed. We all lived through it though and after that, the day warmed up a lot and we were able to compete in some level of comfort.

During the shot put competition I was able to see a thrower who is currently ranked in probably the top 10 or so in the United States, obviously he won the competition going well over 64 feet. I was again unable to see much of the running while competing in the throws. After the meet the team ate dinner at Al’s Steak House, and finally arrived back at school in the early hours of Sunday morning.


April 23, 2013

This past weekend was the final home meet of the season for the men’s track team, and for the seniors including myself this will be our last home meet ever. It was an interesting day for me, I have never been a huge fan of home meets but being our last it was a bit of a nostalgic day for me.

The day started at 9 a.m. when I got up and headed over to the track to make sure all the throwing implements were checked in. I was glad that we did not have to get up early to take a bus ride, which is one of the perks of having a home meet. Overall the team competed fairly well with Mark Farris, Greg Hannay, and Corey Caldwell all having first place finishes in their individual events. The team placed second in the meet only being outscored by Tiffin University. The weather was cold and windy which is usual for any track meet at Cedarville. I was talking to a coach who remembers coming to meets at Cedarville since 1968 and can only think of about five times where the weather wasn’t cold, windy and wet.

I unfortunately did not get to see much of the running events because the throws were the last events happening with the men’s discus concluding over an hour after any of the running events, but I was told that people competed well. There isn’t really much to say about home meets, we don’t have a bus ride or go out to eat after. The next meet of the season is the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) Championships. This will be the last meet for most of the team with maybe one or two people continuing on to the NCAA II national meet.

We do have an off week this coming weekend so hopefully we will have time to rest up and be ready for the championship the week after.


April 16, 2013

This past week the track team was down at Ohio University located in scenic Athens, Ohio. If you have never had the chance to head down to Ohio University it is definitely worth the trip, especially in the fall. They have one of the best looking campuses that I have had the pleasure of being at. This was an extremely competitive meet with many large teams including Kent State, Akron, Ohio State, Miami of Ohio, and Ashland just to name a few.

This was a two-day meet for a few members of the team including myself. Most of us left the school at 10 a.m. on Friday to head down on the two-hour drive south. Upon my arrival I first noticed how nice the campus looked and how it was much larger than I originally thought it was. Unfortunately the throwing area was located separately from the track so I did not get to see many of the running events first hand, but day one seemed to go fairly well for many and disappointing for others but we escaped with no injuries and were treated to a delicious meal at Applebee’s that night where the entertainment consisted of watching the Masters and also Anna Pomento attempt to eat an entire cup of cole slaw in one bite. She was unable to do so much to our disappointment. After that we left to go to the hotel where those of us who competed the next day were staying.

After a solid night’s sleep we were up and at it, yet again I was unable to watch most of the running first hand. The notable performances were Greg Hannay with a second place in the javelin, and Corey Caldwell and Neil Klinger taking third in the 400 meter hurdles and steeplechase, respectively. The meet concluded around 5:30 p.m. and after a quick bite to eat the team was headed home.

The meet this coming Saturday, April 20^th will be the last home meet of the season for the team so if you’re in the area and like to watch people run, jump or throw stop on by the track.


April 9, 2013

This past week the track team traveled down to Miami University of Ohio to compete at the Miami Invitational. On Friday the hammer throwers and the 5Kk runners on both the men’s and women’s teams competed and the rest of the team came down Saturday to participate in the rest of the events. The meet had some very strong competition including Miami, University of Cincinnati, Findlay, Malone and other schools to round out the 13 teams on the men’s side. The team finished fifth in the competitive field.

The first day began for me with the bus leaving for the meet at 11 a.m. which would normally give me time to sleep in but I had class at 8 a.m. that morning. We got to the meet around 1 p.m. and the women’s hammer started an hour later. The men competed well in both the hammer throw and the 5K. The team was able to enjoy a nice dinner at Chipotle before having to head back to school to get some rest for the next day of competition.

Saturday also started early for me having to leave the school at 7 a.m. with a small group to make it down in time for the women’s discus. The highlight to the morning was being able to stop at Subway for breakfast. The rest of the team arrived around 10 a.m. and the weather remained cool and windy until roughly 1 p.m. when the sun finally decided to shine. The day turned out to have some of the nicest weather we have seen this season. Everyone competed fairly well and we were able to escape without any new injuries.

This week the team is having another meet divided up on Friday and Saturday down at Ohio University. It looks like it may be a very competitive meet so if you see any trackletes (track athletes) wish them luck this week.


April 4, 2013

This week was an exciting one for the men’s and women’s track teams because it was our first outdoor home meet of the year, and the temperature was above 20 degrees. Coach Bolender tells us this is the first time in 10 years that there has been nice weather at the first home meet.

The meet went very well for the team with Cedarville winning with 204 points while second place went to Ohio Dominican with only 114 points. Some of the highlights were Mark Farris winning both the 200 and 400 meter dashes, Cedarville placing all top three finishers in the men’s 5K, and also Greg Hannay winning the men’s javelin throw with a toss of 195’4’’ beating both the track and meet record by six feet. The complete results are available on the school website and it would be good to check them out because there were so many good performances by the team this week.

The team also sent some of our members down to Cincinnati to complete in the decathlon and the men’s 10K. James Blackwell came in second with over 6400 points and Matt Brooker set a new school record in the 10K going 29:52:58. For those of us who are not runners that is running about 6.2 miles at a 4:48 mile pace. The next day, however, Matt was in a car crash and has broken his shoulder blade and sustained a concussion so keep him and his family in your prayers.

This week the team will be down at Miami University of Ohio, on both Friday and Saturday. We are looking forward to hopefully some better weather for training than the mid 30’s that we have been getting but we will just have to do well with what we are given.

I hope all of you had a happy Easter and spent some quality time with your families.


March 19, 2013

The outdoor season has officially started for the CU men’s track & field team. But, for anyone that did not know, the indoor season concluded with James Blackwell finishing 12^th in the men’s pentathlon at the NCAA Division II Indoor National Championship Meet. He was the only competitor from Cedarville to make it to "the big show."

Our outdoor season kicked off with a very cold and wet day at the Cincinnati Relays at the University of Cincinnati. A relay meet is one where the top two performances from each school in each event are added together to determine the winning results. The day started off very early around 5:30 a.m. for me and some of my teammates who compete in the field events, but it ended up being a very successful day for us. I threw 50.58 meters in the hammer throw while my teammate, Greg Hannay threw 44.14. Our combined throws of 94.72 meters won the competition for our team. Cedarville’s pairings also won the men’s javelin, the 3000 meter steeplechase, and finished second in the 5,000 meter run. The team finished third overall in a very competitive field.

The competition ended by 5 p.m. which is relatively early for a track meet. The team quickly ate a little pizza that Coach ordered for us and then it was back on the road to school. We arrived back at Cedarville by 7 p.m. which allowed us a chance to get some much needed rest before the start of another busy week.

While there is no meet this coming weekend, we do begin a four- week stretch of track meets beginning with our own Yellow Jacket Collegiate Open on March 30^th. We hope to see you at one of our meets.


February 19, 2013

This past weekend was the NCCAA Indoor Championship at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Indiana. This meet, while having been less competitive in past years, made a big comeback this year as a meet filled with talented teams. The highlight of the meet for the men’s team was James Blackwell winning the men’s heptathlon, setting a school record, and becoming the seventh-ranked athlete in the NCAA Division II heptathlon.

This was the first two-day meet of the year and the day began with the athletes getting on the bus at 3 p.m. on Friday to make the trip over to Indiana. Once we got off the bus after about a three hour drive the meet began at 7 p.m. The meet was very successful but I did not get to see much of the first day because I was back at the hotel by 10 p.m. to get ready for my second day of competition.

The second day started with the team waking up and having a continental breakfast at the hotel and making our way over to the track, arriving around 10 a.m. As I said, the meet was filled with competitive teams and many of the NCCAA records were broken, including a six-foot increase in the shot put - breaking the record held by CU alumni Ben Michaud. After a very long day the team was able to relax and be treated to a wonderful dinner at the Outback Steakhouse.

After dinner it was a very quiet bus ride back to Cedarville where we arrived around 10:30 p.m. For most of us the next meet will be the first outdoor event of the season at the University of Cincinnati Relays on March 16th. So we will take this month to continue to work hard and hopefully make a big improvement for the upcoming outdoor season.

See you around the track. 


February 12, 2013

This week the track team went to the Indiana Hoosier Hills meet in Bloomington, Indiana. This was a very high quality meet with many great athletes in attendance including the No. 4-ranked high jumper in the world.

The day started with people attending classes and being on the bus by noon when we left for the meet. The drive took a little over three hours and we arrived around 3:30 p.m. The meet started at 5 p.m. and continued late into the night.

The men’s team had some good performances but very few of us were actually able to place in the top nine. From the spectator side of the meet the most impressive performance was seeing the high jumper go 7’ 7.25’’. If you are around six feet tall put your hands up as high as you can, and that’s around 7’7’’. The meet concluded around 11 p.m. and after a very long bus ride home I made it to bed around 4 a.m. It was a very long and fairly uneventful day for the team.

On another note Matt Brooker went to a different meet and ran the second fastest 5,000 meters in school history.

This weekend the team is traveling to Indiana Wesleyan University for the NCCAA Track & Field Championships. This is the biggest meet for us as a team in the indoor season, and it will be the last meet of the season for most of the team. After that we have about a month break until the outdoor season begins. 


February 5, 2013

This past weekend was a home meet weekend for the track team. Home meets are always interesting and exciting for the team, most members had to complete a whole day of classes and I personally had to be at school at 8 a.m. for a morning class. Many times this is the only time that parents can come see their children compete. It was a very successful meet for the team with both the men and women’s teams winning the meet.

My day started very early with getting up at 7 a.m. for my 8 a.m. class, then trying to pass the time through the rest of the day until the meet started at 4:00 p.m. I had a few distractions throughout the day when I attended a recruitment meeting for prospective athletes where I was able to answer some of the questions they had about possibly coming to Cedarville. I then headed over to the track early to watch the start of the women’s pentathlon. Most of the team arrived at the meet around 4 p.m. to cheer on their fellow members who were involved in the early events. The throwing went well for Cedarville with three athletes and an alumni/coach taking the top four spots in the men’s weight throw. Other notable performances were Corey Caldwell again putting up a win in the 60 meter hurdles, and James Blackwell going 15’5’’ in the pole vault. On the women’s side Anna Pomento broke her own school record in the shot put with a throw of 40’2’’ - nearly a foot and a half farther than her previous record.

The meet was successful for most of the team with the night being capped off with a pasta dinner brought in from Colonial Pizza. Then after a very short night of sleep many of us dragged ourselves out of bed to help run a meet for high school athletes in the Doden Field House. This meet is done as a fund raiser for the track team. The high school meet went off very smoothly but left most of us exhausted after a full day of competition before hand. Next week many of us will be competing at the Indiana Hoosier Hills meet in Bloomington, Indiana.

See you around the track. 


January 29, 2013

This week’s “trackventure” (track adventure) was much more interesting than last week’s to say the least. The day started with me getting up around 9 a.m. with plans on making a leisurely trip to Subway before catching the bus for the meet at 10:30 a.m. Little did I know of the snow that had blanketed every road between my house and Cedarville. My usual 15 minute drive to school was turned into a 45 minute harrowing experience. I arrived at school safely with just enough time to grab the shot puts and weights for the weight throw. (No worries, I still managed to make it to Subway.)

The bus ride was a fun-filled adventure that started with us watching Monsters Inc. and Disney’s Hercules. The bus ride took about four hours and twenty minutes getting us to Youngstown State at around 3:10 p.m. From the time of our arrival, the men running the 5000 meters had only ten minutes to do a brief warm-up and be ready to run. Even with the short warm-up, the distance runners put up great performances with Clay Watson coming in second and Josiah Bragg placing fifth.

Other impressive performances from the meet were Corey Caldwell winning the men’s 60 meter hurdles and Beau Michaud with a personal best in the weight throw (also after a very limited warm-up.) Although this is the men’s track blog, I also want to include one of the women’s throwers, Anna Pomento, who broke the school record in the women’s shot put throwing 38-8.25.

After the meet finished we ate some pizza and did our best to get to the bus as quickly as possible. We left Youngstown around 10 p.m. and capped off the night with watching the Princess Bride on the trip home. After such a long day, the bus ride was fairly quiet with most people trying to get some sleep. We pulled into Cedarville around 3:30 a.m. and I was able to unload the equipment and make it home by 4:00 a.m.; thankful for a Saturday morning with nothing on my schedule.

Our next meet is this Friday, February 1st at Cedarville’s Doden Field House. We would love to see you at the meet cheering us on.

See you around that track!


January 22, 2013

I’ve been known to say that preparation for next year’s track season begins the day after your last meet. So after a very long “off season,” our indoor track season is finally underway; my “last” indoor season for the Yellow Jackets. We began our season with a long road trip to Tiffin University in northern Ohio. This particular trip began with everyone rolling out early and getting on the bus by 8:15 a.m. I’m sure some people would consider that sleeping in, but, for 80 college students to make it on time that early on a cold morning is quite an accomplishment. The bus ride to the meet took about two and a half hours. Unfortunately, I’m one of those people who just can’t fall asleep on the bus. So, I could regale you with the stories of the great Ohio country side...but I want you to continue to read my blog.

Once we arrived at the university’s newly remodeled field house, we had an opportunity to look around. If you are ever on Tiffin’s campus, check out their indoor track in the Heminger Center. I would highly recommend it; a great facility which also includes an indoor football field which was used for team camp. The meet went very well for me personally having a personal best in both the weight throw and the shot put. If you have never watched a weight throw event, go to YouTube and prepare to be impressed. The throwers finished our events early so we continued to root the rest of our teammates on until the meet concluded around 8 p.m. Our awesome coaches ordered us pizza for dinner after the meet and we were back on the road by 8:30.

This was a pretty standard “day in the life” for our team which does result in a fairly lackluster track blog, but I’m sure things will get more interesting as the season goes on. Every week the team captains get together and select an Athlete of the Week from the men’s track team to be recognized for his hard work, standout performance, or something he has done that goes above and beyond what is expected of him. This week that athlete was Greg Hannay for a HUGE personal best in the weight throw. It was about a four to five foot improvement over his previous mark.

This week, most of the team will be competing at Youngstown State University in Ohio on Friday.

See you around the track!


January 17, 2013

Hello, welcome to the Cedarville University track and field blog 2013. My name is Sam LeMaster and I am a senior thrower on this year’s team. If you ever need to find the throwers, we will be the ones eating pizza and milkshakes while the runners are eating salads and hard boiled eggs. Throwers are also the most fun group on the team, but that might just be my personal opinion. For this season’s blog, I’m hoping to entertain you with the inside stories of the track season.

We began our conditioning and training in early September 2012 so we are all anxious to get into the competitive season. The fall training has been going very well for most of us and we have been blessed with minimal injuries as a team. Our first indoor meet of the year will be at Tiffin University on January 19th. While this will be our first season competing under the NCAA Division II banner, it will have minimal effect on the level of competition until the national meets. Our first home meet will be on February 1st and we would love to see you come and cheer us on.

See you around the track!


Sam LeMaster is a senior thrower from Jamestown, Ohio. He is in his fourth season with the Yellow Jackets and is majoring in criminal justice.