Eastern Michigan Athletics
Saturday, January 24
Ann Arbor, Mich.
11:00 AM
Eastern Michigan University
at
Simmons/Harvey Quad.
Men's Track Heads to Simmons-Harvey Invitational
1/22/2009 4:12:23 PM | Men's Track & Field
Eagles return to action after two weeks off
Complete Release (PDF)
» 2009 SEASON KICKS OFF: The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team will kick off its 97th season of indoor track and field during 2009. The first year the Eagles competed in indoor track was 1921-22 with the arrival of Head Coach Lloyd Olds. Although the Eagles had competed in indoor track for decades, the Mid-American Conference did not officially begin sponsoring a championship until the 1996 season.
» WHERE TO NEXT?: The EMU men's track and field team will travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. for the Simmons Harvey Invitational Saturday, Jan. 24 The meet is expected to kickoff at 10 a.m. with the weight throw.
» RED SIMMONS: The Simmons Harvey Invitational honors an EMU alumnus, Kenneth 'Red' Simmons, who approaches his 99th birthday. Simmons was an outstanding athlete for EMU in the early 30s and was the first-ever women's track and field coach at the University of Michigan.
» DOUG RAYMOND TRIP CANCELLED: The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team's trip to the Doug Raymond Invitational, Jan. 17, was cut short, as transportation issues came up en route to the competition.
» EAGLES RETURN VETERAN CREW: The men's indoor track and field team returns 28 letterwinners from last years' squad, including 12 seniors. The senior class has three indoor championship titles and one outdoor titles under their belts.
» GREEN TEAM: Joining the 12 seniors and 13 juniors will be 32 underclassmen, including 23 who hope to see action for the first time in their young careers at EMU.
» GRAB YOUR BROOMS: The EMU throwers swept the shot put at the EMU Open (Jan. 10), with senior Gerald Gersham winning the event, throwing 57-09.75. Teammates Andrew Meyer and Jarid Pearson finished second and third, respectively, with Meyer throwing 52-02.75 and Pearson going 50-07.50.
» AND THE WINNER IS... The Eagles had three individual winners and one relay team win events at the EMU Open (Jan. 10). Senior David Brent won the 800-meter run, junior Xavier Clais leaped to victory in the high jump and senior Gerald Gersham won the shot put. Josh Karanja, Nate Blackwell, Josh Perrin and Neal Naughton combined to win the distance medley with a time of 10:09.74.
» INTO THE RECORD BOOKS WE GO: Senior Gerald Gersham continued to climb his way up the ranks in the EMU record books. With his throw of 57-09.75 at the EMU Open (Jan. 10), he moves up to fourth all-time in the indoor record book. Dave Adamek (2004-2007) holds the record of 61-11.00, which he set in 2006.
» SPRINTS GETS A BOOST: The Eagles did some heavy recruiting during the off-season and it paid off as Merritt College transfer Koleon Prescott joins the Eagles for the 2009 season. In two years at Merrit, Prescott set collegiate-bests of 10.58 for the 100 meters and 21.57 for the 200 meters. He finished fourth in the 100 (10.73) and sixth in the 200 (21.78) at the Big Eight Conference Championship (April 23, 2008). At the California State Championship, he finished eighth in the 100 (10.73) and seventh in the 200 (22.87).
» ADIÓS ALEJANDRO: Perhaps the greatest loss for the Eagles as they enter the 2009 season is the loss of Eric Alejandro. Alejandro, who recently completed his undergraduate degree from the University, won six Mid-American Conference titles in 2008 (60-meter hurdles, 4x400-meter relay (I), 100-meter hurdles, 400-meter hurdles, 4x100-meter relay (O) and 4x400-meter relay (O)). A four-year letter winner for the Eagles, Alejandro qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 100-meter hurdles twice and was a four-time All-MAC performer (two first-team, two second-team). During his final year wearing the Green and White he ran the second fastest time in school history in the 100 and 400-meter hurdles.
» TAKE ME HOME TO MICHIGAN: Of the 57 athletes on the men's track and field team, 42 of them call the state of Michigan home. Seven hail from Ohio, two come from Indiana and one has New York state as a home address. Five athletes come from outside the United States including Oliver Walther (Germany), Xavier Clais (France), Ackeem Forde (Barbados), Sergai Anderson (Russia) and Josh Karanja (Canada).
» EMU ON TRACK IN THE MAC: Since the Mid-American Conference began awarding a title for indoor track in 1996, the EMU men's track team has won 12 out of 13 possible titles. The lone loss came in 2005 when Central Michigan took the win and the Eagles finished third.
» EAGLES ADD TO STAFF: Both the men's and women's track teams have added an additional member to the coaching ranks as Shean Perry joins the team as a graduate assistant for both squads. Perry, a 2006 graduate of Oberlin College, will coach the pole vaulters and help out with those competing in the multi-events.
» EAGLE REWIND: The EMU men's track team took home its third consecutive indoor MAC title to conclude the 2008 season. The Eagles won by a convincing 83 points, the most in MAC history. Six EMU athletes/relays won MAC titles, while 12 were named to All-MAC teams.
» EMU ON THE WORLDWIDE WEB: The EMU athletic website, featuring information on all 21 varsity athletic teams, is: www.emueagles.com.
» 2009 SEASON KICKS OFF: The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team will kick off its 97th season of indoor track and field during 2009. The first year the Eagles competed in indoor track was 1921-22 with the arrival of Head Coach Lloyd Olds. Although the Eagles had competed in indoor track for decades, the Mid-American Conference did not officially begin sponsoring a championship until the 1996 season.
» WHERE TO NEXT?: The EMU men's track and field team will travel to Ann Arbor, Mich. for the Simmons Harvey Invitational Saturday, Jan. 24 The meet is expected to kickoff at 10 a.m. with the weight throw.
» RED SIMMONS: The Simmons Harvey Invitational honors an EMU alumnus, Kenneth 'Red' Simmons, who approaches his 99th birthday. Simmons was an outstanding athlete for EMU in the early 30s and was the first-ever women's track and field coach at the University of Michigan.
» DOUG RAYMOND TRIP CANCELLED: The Eastern Michigan University men's track and field team's trip to the Doug Raymond Invitational, Jan. 17, was cut short, as transportation issues came up en route to the competition.
» EAGLES RETURN VETERAN CREW: The men's indoor track and field team returns 28 letterwinners from last years' squad, including 12 seniors. The senior class has three indoor championship titles and one outdoor titles under their belts.
» GREEN TEAM: Joining the 12 seniors and 13 juniors will be 32 underclassmen, including 23 who hope to see action for the first time in their young careers at EMU.
» GRAB YOUR BROOMS: The EMU throwers swept the shot put at the EMU Open (Jan. 10), with senior Gerald Gersham winning the event, throwing 57-09.75. Teammates Andrew Meyer and Jarid Pearson finished second and third, respectively, with Meyer throwing 52-02.75 and Pearson going 50-07.50.
» AND THE WINNER IS... The Eagles had three individual winners and one relay team win events at the EMU Open (Jan. 10). Senior David Brent won the 800-meter run, junior Xavier Clais leaped to victory in the high jump and senior Gerald Gersham won the shot put. Josh Karanja, Nate Blackwell, Josh Perrin and Neal Naughton combined to win the distance medley with a time of 10:09.74.
» INTO THE RECORD BOOKS WE GO: Senior Gerald Gersham continued to climb his way up the ranks in the EMU record books. With his throw of 57-09.75 at the EMU Open (Jan. 10), he moves up to fourth all-time in the indoor record book. Dave Adamek (2004-2007) holds the record of 61-11.00, which he set in 2006.
» SPRINTS GETS A BOOST: The Eagles did some heavy recruiting during the off-season and it paid off as Merritt College transfer Koleon Prescott joins the Eagles for the 2009 season. In two years at Merrit, Prescott set collegiate-bests of 10.58 for the 100 meters and 21.57 for the 200 meters. He finished fourth in the 100 (10.73) and sixth in the 200 (21.78) at the Big Eight Conference Championship (April 23, 2008). At the California State Championship, he finished eighth in the 100 (10.73) and seventh in the 200 (22.87).
» ADIÓS ALEJANDRO: Perhaps the greatest loss for the Eagles as they enter the 2009 season is the loss of Eric Alejandro. Alejandro, who recently completed his undergraduate degree from the University, won six Mid-American Conference titles in 2008 (60-meter hurdles, 4x400-meter relay (I), 100-meter hurdles, 400-meter hurdles, 4x100-meter relay (O) and 4x400-meter relay (O)). A four-year letter winner for the Eagles, Alejandro qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 100-meter hurdles twice and was a four-time All-MAC performer (two first-team, two second-team). During his final year wearing the Green and White he ran the second fastest time in school history in the 100 and 400-meter hurdles.
» TAKE ME HOME TO MICHIGAN: Of the 57 athletes on the men's track and field team, 42 of them call the state of Michigan home. Seven hail from Ohio, two come from Indiana and one has New York state as a home address. Five athletes come from outside the United States including Oliver Walther (Germany), Xavier Clais (France), Ackeem Forde (Barbados), Sergai Anderson (Russia) and Josh Karanja (Canada).
» EMU ON TRACK IN THE MAC: Since the Mid-American Conference began awarding a title for indoor track in 1996, the EMU men's track team has won 12 out of 13 possible titles. The lone loss came in 2005 when Central Michigan took the win and the Eagles finished third.
» EAGLES ADD TO STAFF: Both the men's and women's track teams have added an additional member to the coaching ranks as Shean Perry joins the team as a graduate assistant for both squads. Perry, a 2006 graduate of Oberlin College, will coach the pole vaulters and help out with those competing in the multi-events.
» EAGLE REWIND: The EMU men's track team took home its third consecutive indoor MAC title to conclude the 2008 season. The Eagles won by a convincing 83 points, the most in MAC history. Six EMU athletes/relays won MAC titles, while 12 were named to All-MAC teams.
» EMU ON THE WORLDWIDE WEB: The EMU athletic website, featuring information on all 21 varsity athletic teams, is: www.emueagles.com.
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