Owl tracksters set for start of outdoor season

KEENE, N.H. 3/26/10 – It’s time for members of the Keene State track team to head outside. 

The Owls begin their spring track season on Saturday. While the majority of team members will compete in the Westfield State Invitational, Coach Peter Thomas will head down south with senior Peter Najem (Derry, N.H.) and juniors Bryan Kolacz (Brentwood, N.H.) and Ally Chamberlain (Scarborough, Maine) to complete in the Raleigh Relays at North Carolina State.

“Coming off the indoor season, I thought it would be good for them to compete in warm weather and hopefully get a good time or mark,” said Thomas.  “It will be interesting to see how they open.”

Both Chamberlain and Kolacz are coming off All-American indoors seasons.  Chamberlain finished second in the 800-meter race at the NCAA championships while Kolacz placed sixth in the 35-lb. weight throw event.

“I can’t wait to run in North Carolina,” said Chamberlain, who is seeded in the fastest 1,500-meter heat.  “It’s bound to be a fantastic race.”

Chamberlain says her ultimate goal this season is to qualify for the NCAA championships and the USA outdoor nationals.

Kolacz begins the season as the defending national champion in the hammer.  “I think Bryan has had a huge chip on his shoulder the entire year,” said KSC throwing Coach John Napolitano. “He wants to go out and do it again and show that his championship last spring wasn’t a fluke.”

In addition to competing in the hammer, Kolacz is also looking to qualify for the NCAA championships in the discus event.

Najem returns for his final season at Keene State.  The senior, who had completed his indoor eligibility, competed at the US national indoor championships in late February.  “It was an amazing experience,’ said Najem, who had his picture taken with running greats Bernard Lagat and Nick Symmonds and got to rub elbows with U.S. Olympians.

Najem, who earned All-America honors in the 800 at the 2009 NCAA indoor championships, has been getting ready for the outdoor season by training with former Owl national champion Mark Miller.  “I told him that I was going to take down his school record in the 1,500,” said Najem.  “He told me to go for it.”

Senior Dan Colina (Rochester, N.H.) is also expected to be a top competitor for the Owls in the javelin.  Colina had an auspicious start to his KSC career last spring when he set a school record (213’-10”) and qualified for the NCAA championships in his first throw of the season at Trinity College.  However, the senior injured himself and was never able to regain his form. 

“We’re taking it real easy with Danny this early in the spring,” said Napolitano.  “We don’t want him blowing out his arm again and we expect him to get back to his true form.”

Thomas will also get some reinforcements this spring.  Cross country runners, sophomores Paige Mills (Keene, N.H.) and Andrea Walsh (Bolton, Conn.) will be strong entries in distance races while freshman Maggie Fitter (Branford, Conn.) should shine in the 800 and 1,500.