Newcomers Jonny Schmidt and Kyra Kress lead Daemen into the conference championship meet tomorrow evening

Men's Track & Field 2/25/2016 12:50:00 PM

Wildcats Compete At Conference Championship Meet On Friday

THE LEAD: The Daemen College men's and women's indoor track & field teams head to Staten Island for the 2016 East Coast Coast Conference Indoor Track & Field Championships.

Friday, February 25 (at Ocean Breeze Athletic Complex - Staten Island, N.Y.)
2016 ECC Indoor Track & Field Championships - 5 p.m.
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PARTICIPATING COLLEGIATE TEAMS: Daemen, District of Columbia, Georgian Court, LIU Post, Molloy, Queens, Roberts Wesleyan, St. Thomas Aquinas

DIVISION II DEBUT: Daemen successfully completed a three-year membership process and was approved for active membership status at the NCAA Division II level by the NCAA Membership Committee his past summer…the 2015-16 academic year will mark the first year Daemen will be eligible to compete in the NCAA Division II Indoor Track & Field National Championships.

HEAD COACH PAUL LAGNO: Paul Lagno is in his first season leading the Daemen indoor and outdoor track and field programs...a standout collegiate athlete, first at the State University of New York at Albany and later at Florida State University, Lagno took the reins of the Wildcats' programs last summer returning to his home state of New York following coaching stints at Northwood University and FSU...in addition to leading the track and field programs, Lagno also coaches the Daemen men's and women's cross country teams in the fall.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR (WOMEN): Long distance runner Mackenzie Donahue headlines the field for the Wildcat women, competing in the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter runs...Donahue's seed times in both events (3000m: 10:10.20; 5000m: 17:15.05) make her the favorite in each event...she has already surpassed the NCAA provisional qualifying time in the 5,000-meter run this season...she'll be pushed in both events by Amy Trabert who looks to close out her sophomore campaign with all-conference honors...freshman Sam Carro is one of seven athletes with sub-10-second seed times in the 60-meter hurdles, giving her a prime opporunity to advance to the event finals...the team's top sprinter, freshman Tiffany Cycon figures to be in the mix for berths in the finals of the 60-meter and 200-meter dashes...freshman Kyra Kress is one of four entrants in the pole vault competition to have cleared 3 meters this season...veteran Ashley Krol will compete in the long jump after setting a new team record (4.77 meters) in the event last week.

WHAT TO WATCH FOR (MEN): Senior Robert Ralyea goes for his fourth-straight league title in the pole vault competition...also in field events, thrower Zach Laird figures to be in the mix for all-conference honors in the shot put...on the track, lead sprinter Niko Jemmison is entered in the 60-meter and 200-meter dashes, with a chance to qualify for the finals in both events...top long distance runners Jeremy Rushok and Kevin Roginson are entered in both the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter runs...Rushok's seed times are fifth and second best in those respective events, while Roginson ranks sixth and third.

ECC PRESEASON POLLS: The East Coast Conference preseason polls for both men and women were announced last week from ECC headquarters in Central Islip, N.Y....both Daemen teams were picked seventh following a vote of the league's head coaches.

DONAHUE SNAGS ECC WEEKLY HONORS: After setting a new team record in the 5,000-meter run (17:15.05) and surpassing the NCAA Division II National Championships provisional qualifying time (17:28.78) for that distance at the SPIRE Indoor Track and Field Challenge, track star Mackenzie Donahue was named the ECC Women's Track Athlete of the Week for competitions held Feb. 1-7...Donahue, who already became the first-ever Daemen athlete to qualify and compete in an NCAA championship event at the Division II level last fall for cross country, is currently ranked 12th in the country at the 5,000-meter distance.

LAST TIME OUT - MARC DENEAULT INVITATIONAL (FEB. 20, 2016): Just two weeks removed from setting a new benchmark in the 5,000-meter run, Mackenzie Donahue set a new team record in the 3,000-meter run, shaving some 30 seconds off her previous time to complete the race in (10:15.43)...Sam Carro (60-meter hurdles), Kyra Kress (300-meter dash) and Ashley Krol (long jump) also established new team records at the meet for the Wildcat women...the men were paced by Niko Jemmison who set new team records in the 60-meter and 300-meter dashes.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS: Follow the Daemen College men's and women's indoor track and field teams on Twitter (@DaemenAthletics /@DaemenTRACK) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/daemencollegeathletics) for complete coverage and breaking news throughout the year.

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Players Mentioned

Kevin Roginson: 5' 10"; Sophomore

Jeremy Rushok: 6' 0"; Junior

Zach Laird: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Robert Ralyea: 6' 0"; Senior

Sam Carro: 5' 5"; Freshman

Tiffany Cycon: 5' 5"; Freshman

Mackenzie Donahue: 5' 2"; Sophomore

Kyra Kress: 5' 6"; Freshman

Ashley Krol: 5' 2"; Junior

Amy Trabert: 5' 3"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Kevin Roginson
: 5' 10"; Sophomore

Jeremy Rushok
: 6' 0"; Junior

Zach Laird
: 5' 11"; Sophomore

Robert Ralyea
: 6' 0"; Senior

Sam Carro
: 5' 5"; Freshman

Tiffany Cycon
: 5' 5"; Freshman

Mackenzie Donahue
: 5' 2"; Sophomore

Kyra Kress
: 5' 6"; Freshman

Ashley Krol
: 5' 2"; Junior

Amy Trabert
: 5' 3"; Sophomore