Fitchburg State Locked and Loaded For 2012 Outdoor Season
The Fitchburg State men’s outdoor track and field team enters the 2012 season looking to continue its dominance and add another MASCAC championship to its collection. Picked third overall in the MASCAC Pre-Season Coaches Poll, the Falcons possess a strong number of veterans as well as talented newcomers to lead their attack on the track and on the field.
“We’re expecting big things from our distance team,” said head coach Jim Jellison. “Overall, we’re even stronger than we were during the indoor season, and it’s going to be a tough battle for any of the top spots in the conference.”
The men’s team will be relying heavily upon the mid distance and distance team to propel the team to a MASCAC championship. Senior Chris Kibler (Bathe, Maine/ Morse) will lead the distance team running anything from the 800m to the 10,000m. Kibler is the reigning 10,000m outdoor MASCAC champion and has collected an abundance of post season honors. The junior duo of Michael Grasela (New Bedford, Mass./ New Bedford) and William Lary (Winchendon, Mass./ Murdock) will use their versatility and experience to help lead the Falcons. Both Grasela and Lary will take on the steeplechase for the Falcons, as well as anything from the 800m up.
Freshman Brandon Davis (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) will make an impact for the Falcons on the track, coming off a strong cross country and indoor season. Classmate Jim Quinlan (North Andover, Mass./ North Andover) will also look to contribute in the 800m and 1500m.
Newcomer Andre Neita (Hyde Park, Mass./Tech Boston Academy) will excel in the triple jump and long jump, and is expected to also perform well in the 100m and 200m. Neita will tackle the high jump with Kimson Jean (Roslindale, Mass./ Swampscott), with both being expected to clear 6’4’’ or better.
Junior Zach Desrochers (Dracut, Mass./ Greater Lowell Tech) will lead the throwers as a potential NCAA qualifier in both the hammer and the discus. The loss of senior All American Matt Muolo (Stoneham, Mass./ Stoneham) has left a big deficit on the throwing squad, but the Falcons look to have a lot of rookies step up to try to fill his shoes. Michael Lima (Danvers, Mass./ Danvers) will be a force on the field, participating in all four throwing events while junior Jimmy Dinuccio (Wilmington, Mass./ Wilmington) will be the Falcons top javelin thrower.
Pat Conaty (Southington, Conn./ Southington) will lead the Falcons in the pole vault. Conaty finished second in the MASCAC in indoor for pole vault, as is a potential Division III qualifier. Peter Rowe (Taunton, Mass./ Coyle Cassidy) will lead Fitchburg State in the hurdles, with sophomore Joseph Hollenbeck (Ashby, Mass./ North Middlesex) and freshman Mark Wesgan (Lunenburg, Mass./ Lunenburg) also seeing significant action in the hurdle.
Fitchburg State will kick off the 2012 outdoor season Saturday, March, 24th as it travels to Northeastern University to compete in the Husky Sprint open.