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Outdoor Track & Field Looks To Make Continued Leaps, Strides Under Lohse's Watch This Spring

Outdoor Track & Field Looks To Make Continued Leaps, Strides Under Lohse's Watch This Spring

The Massachusetts Maritime outdoor track & field program has made great leaps and strides—quite literally—over the past three seasons, as numerous Buccaneers have earned conference and regional recognition for their performances.  Head Coach Cathy Lohse looks to continue that positive trend during the 2014 campaign, as she welcomes back 16 letterwinners into the fold this spring.

 

Leadership has played a key role in the development of the program, and Lohse will look to a quartet of her returning upperclassmen to set that standard once again this season, as seniors Robert Gratzer (Pembroke, Mass./Pembroke) and Liz Leonardi (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich), along with juniors Danielle Soar (Templeton, Mass./Narragansett Regional) and Sam Hill (Hopkinton, N.H./Hopkinton), will serve as Massachusetts Maritime’s captains.  Lohse describes this group as “extremely hard working, dedicated and committed to the long-term success of our program.  They have all set incredible examples in preparation, competition, the campus community and in their studies, and they will drive their teammates to achieve our goals.”

 

Here’s a look at how things are shaping up for the 2014 Buccaneer outdoor track & field program:

 

SPRINTS/DISTANCE/JUMPS.  Hill and Leonardi lead an experienced group of sprinters and distance runners returning for Massachusetts Maritime, as they have helped set numerous school records during the course of their careers.  Senior Ted Mello (Acushnet, Mass./Old Colony Memorial) uniors Mark Baker (Charlestown, R.I./Chariho Regional), Anthony Downs (West Roxbury, Mass./Catholic Memorial) and Godfred Mbengam (Randolph, Mass./Randolph) also lend experience for the Buccaneers, who also welcome back sophomores Peter Schultz (Wilbraham, Mass./Minnechaug Regional), Brendan Smith (Dartmouth, Mass./Dartmouth) and Judson Yerkes (West Barnstable, Mass./Blue Ridge School).  Freshmen Bruno DeMiranda (Hyannis, Mass./Dennis-Yarmouth), Alex Fraser (Walpole, Mass./Walpole), Adam Gauvin (Greenville, R.I./Mount Saint Charles), Andrew Gulino (Attleboro, Mass./Attleboro) and Luke Kurelja (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) will also look to make an impact as newcomers this season.

 

THROWS.  Gratzer looks to follow up an outstanding junior campaign that saw him earn Division III All-New England and ECAC Division III honors in the discus, and he teams with junior Zachary Poh (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) to form a solid 1-2 punch for Lohse, as Poh qualified for the Division III New Englands and ECAC Championships earlier in his career.  Soar also set records in throwing events last season for Massachusetts Maritime, which also welcomes back senior Steven Ellershaw (Chester, Mass./Gateway Regional), junior Cody Carneiro (Wrentham, Mass./King Philip) and sophomores Chris Bisio (Atlanta, Ga./St. Francis) and Bryce MacAndrew (Warwick, R.I./The Prout School).  Sophomore Brian Lambiase (Pembroke, Mass./Pembroke), along with freshmen Tyler Aldrich (Mashpee, Mass./Mashpee), Meaghan Brain (Hanson, Mass./Whitman-Hanson and Peter Hamill (Norton, Mass./Bishop Feehan) are vying to make contributions during their inaugural collegiate campaigns as well for the Buccaneers this spring.

 

SCHEDULE.  Massachusetts Maritime will compete in five regular season invitationals at Bridgewater State, Tufts, UMass Dartmouth, Eastern Connecticut and Connecticut College, which lead up to the MASCAC/New England Alliance Championships on Saturday, April 26th at UMass Dartmouth.

 

The Buccaneers begin their new season on Saturday, March 22nd by heading up to Bridgewater, Mass. to participate in the Bridgewater State Bears Invitational that begins at 9:00 a.m. EDT.