The Inside Track
Sunday June 7, 2009

State Qualifiers Shaker Boys 4X400M Relay Video (Thanks to Reuben Feinman for supplying the race video):

Sunday June 7, 2009: It was hard to believe that season could get any better after the last couple weeks, but the athletes on the Boys team were determined to continue competing a little longer. The first day of the State Qualifier in Johnstown got off to a good start when Matt Conti ran his 400M race in a time of 49.4 and finished second (the same time recorded for the winner) to qualify him for the New York State Meet. In the 400M Hurdles, Ebube Abara and JQ Chandler went 1-2 to both qualify for the State meet where they will be joined by Prince Abban who qualified in the triple jump. Among the strong performances on Thursday were the 800M runs of Chris Herman (4th in1:56.3), Ryan Egan (6th in 1:58.8) and Christian Delago (2:02.4)…all with a new PR that day and all expecting to have another chance when they return next year. In the 3200M, more strong performances were recorded by young runners such as Jon Vallecorsa (10:00.4), Kyle Foster (10:04.2), Dave Marthy (10:05.2), and Eric Young (10:12.3) who all displayed the potential that will be needed to keep the distance program at a high level over the next few years. Eighth grade hurdler Ian Weykamp lowered his own grade record in the 400M Hurdles to a time of 60.0.
The second day began well and kept getting better. Craig Weiss won the 3000M Steeplechase and broke his own school record by about 3.5 seconds to guarantee a return trip to the State Meet. Ebube Abara qualified for a second individual event by winning the 110M Hurdles, setting a new school record of 14.7. The 4x100M relay team of Alvin Porter, Bryan Letourneau, Reuben Feinman and Prince Abban) just missed qualifying for the State Meet as they ran the second fastest time of the day behind Albany High’s winning effort. In the 1600M, the young Shaker runners gained valuable experience that will help them prepare for the next few years. Kyle Foster went 4:39.6, Mike Libruk 4:39.3, Christian Delago 4:40.6 and Caleb Mellon set a new 8th grade record in 4:41.6. Over the two days and over the last couple years, these young runners have also been able to run with and learn from graduating seniors like Matt Blizinski and Will Schanz who have shared their distance running knowledge and helped support these rising stars. After winning the Pentathlon at Sectionals last week, sophomore Brian Gallagher improved his score in the difficult 5-event competition and finished 4th at the State Qualifier missing 3rd by only two points. The 4x800M relay has always been a strength for the Shaker Boys and this year was no exception. Craig Weiss led off for the team and ran a really solid leg, especially after winning the Steeple a couple hours earlier. The next three Shaker runners (Ryan Egan, Chris VanZetta and Chris Herman) all ran PR splits to earn second place and a trip to the State Meet with a time of 7:52.8 moving them into the top 25 all-time in Section 2 history. The last relay of the day may have been the most competitive as the 4x400M teams from Saratoga, Shen and Colonie were all on a similar level to Shaker. Three of the four Shaker team members had already qualified as individuals for the State Meet, yet there was a pride that would motivate the Shaker athletes to prove they could beat this strong field. JQ Chandler led off and handed to Ebube Abara who quickly moved to the lead before passing the baton to Brendan Dolan. Dolan kept the lead and it was all up to Matt Conti as he received the baton with a slight lead and was running the anchor leg against three outstanding opponents who were all capable of running in under 49 seconds. Even though he was challenged during the race, Conti would never give up the lead and completed his leg in a blazing 48.6 to seal the victory. The Shaker relay team not only earned a trip to the State Meet, they also broke the school record by nearly three seconds and moved into the top 10 all-time in Section 2 (see video above). First year Coach Garrett Couture will remember this season for a long time! Boys Top Six Results

The highlight for the Girls team at the State Qualifying Meet was the 4x100M relay of Emily Vandenburgh, Carly Brundige, Kate Roberts and Meg Matan who broke their own school record by more than a second in a time of 49.7 seconds. They finished second in the race behind a strong Saratoga team and moved into the top 20 all-time in Section 2 history for that event. Several individual performances also were notable for the Girls team. Emma Risler finished third in the 800M and 7th grader Laura Libruk lowered her grade record in the same event with a time of 2:27.4. On Friday, the young field event athletes for Shaker had a chance to shine. 8th grader Madison Rowland finished 6th in the High Jump while 9th grade pole vaulter Suzanne Zoufaly was 6th in her specialty event as she moved closer to the school record in the pole vault. The long jump results showed three Shaker Girls in the top six finishers: Emma Torncello (4th), Katie Crodelle (5th) and Jackie St. John (6th). Emma Torncello added a 5th place finish in the triple jump. The 4x400M relay team finished 4th as they ran a season best of 4:03.6 taking nearly five seconds off the team’s previous best time this season. Molly Nephew turned in another strong performance with her third place finish in the five-event Pentathlon. Girls Top Six Results

The outstanding performance by the Boys and the Girls Outdoor Track teams has again been matched by an outstanding performance in the classroom. For the seventh time in the last eight seasons, a Shaker Boys running team has the top academic average among all the Boys running teams (Cross Country or Track & Field) in Section 2. The team had a 97.115 third quarter average for the top 12 student athletes according to the New York State Public High School Athletic Association, finishing 7th of all the Boys Track & Field teams in the New York State Scholar Athlete Awards. The Shaker Girls team had an average of 97.222 to finish third in Section 2 and 18th in New York State among all girls track teams.

The New York State Track & Field Championships will be held this Friday & Saturday (6/12 & 6/13) in Cicero-North Syracuse. The following Shaker athletes have qualified to participate:
Ebube Abara: 110M Hurdles & 400M Hurdles
Prince Abban: Triple Jump
Jaquelle “JQ” Chandler: 400M Hurdles
Matt Conti: 400M
Craig Weiss: 3000M Steeplechase
3200 Relay team (Craig Weiss, Ryan Egan, Chris VanZetta and Chris Herman)
1600 Relay team (JQ Chandler, Ebube Abara, Brendan Dolan and Matt Conti)

The Girls team held their annual Awards night last Wednesday. Congratulations to the following Awards winners:
Most Valuable: Molly Nephew
Most Improved: Kate Crodelle
Varsity Sportsmanship: Viola Pawlak
JV Sportsmanship: Lauren Mahoney
Frosh Sportsmanship: Suzanne Zoufaly
Varsity Most Valuable Sprinter: Kate Roberts
Varsity Most Valuable Distance: Morgan Wojtusik
Varsity Most Valuable Field: Emily Vandenburgh

Rising Stars:
7th Grade: Laura Libruk
8th Grade: Meg Deguire
9th Grade: Lauren Woods
10th Grade: Christine Coughlin
11th Grade: Madeline Bette

NYSPHSAA Scholar Athlete Awards (Top 12):
Rachel Benoit
Eileen Jin
Suzanne Zoufaly
Jennifer Jin
Kristen Morras
Canon Crummey
Nicole Cillis
Christine Choi
Caroline Stockert
Emma Torncello
Danielle McLean
Laura Libruk

It was a good week for Molly Nephew. She won the Pentathlon at the Class A Sectional Championships, finished third in the same event at the NY State Qualifier Meet, was selected as “Athlete of the Week” at Shaker High School and was named the Most Valuable Athlete on the Shaker Girls Track & Field team. Congratulations to Molly!

The Boys Outdoor Track Banquet will be held at the Colonie Elks Club on Wednesday, June 10th from 6-8 PM. The cost is $8 per person and all checks should be returned to Coach Couture and made payable to the “Shaker All Sports Booster Club”. Mrs. Blizinski is coordinating volunteers and the desserts and beverages that may be brought by families on Wednesday.

Thanks to Mr. Weiss for providing pictures from the State Qualifiers meet. Click here to check out the State Qualifiers photos along with other photos from throughout the season.