Quest to the Top of the Ohio Athletic Conference
BEREA, OHIO -- The Baldwin-Wallace College men's track and field team has continued to get better, and the 2004 outdoor season will be another case-in-point as Head Coach Bill Taraschke's goal is to make the Yellow Jackets an OAC-title contender.
"We have a talent group of competitors but not as much depth as I would like to have," said Taraschke, in his 20th year at B-W. "We will be led by Alex Johnson and also have a few others like Scott Roberts and Eric Schmuhl who have the ability to qualify for this year's Division III national meet if they fully meet their potential.
"In terms of the OAC Championships in May, we will work toward peeking at that meet," said Taraschke. "We need everyone to stay healthy and to have an outdoor season of improvement. We are looking forward to the challenge."
Alex Johnson (Berea/ Olmsted Falls) is one of the top shot putters in Division III. He will compete at next week's (March 12-13) NCAA Division III National Indoor Championship Meet. Johnson has improved every season at B-W. This winter, he set a personal-best with an NCAA qualifying throw of 52-feet and 11 inches. Last spring, Johnson was bothered by a hand injury but still qualified for the Div. III national outdoor meet in the discus and finished 14th. That has him fired up for this year's outdoor season. In addition to throwing the shot and discus, Johnson is also one of the OAC's best in the javelin.
"Alex has the talent and ability to score major points in all three events at this year's OAC Championship Meet," said Taraschke. "He is a real key for us, so we will have to keep him healthy. We would really like to see Alex qualify for nationals in all three events this spring."
In addition to Johnson, expect senior Jon Shoffstall (Lakeview/ Indian Lake) to add strength in the weight events and throws. Shoffstall's best event is the weight throw. Also, senior football All-American offensive lineman Ian Formaz (Wadsworth), sophomore Josh Svenson (Wadsworth) and freshman Justin Vida (Monaca, Pa./ Monaca) will add depth and strength in the shot, discus and javelin.
Senior hurdler Scott Roberts (Sandusky/ Perkins) and junior Eric Schmuhl (Medina Senior) will both contend for the top spot in the OAC in the hurdles. Roberts' best event is the 400 meter hurdles and Schmuhl's best event is the 110 meter high hurdles. A year ago, Roberts ran a provisionally qualifying time of 53.74 seconds in the finals of the OAC Championships. Schmuhl is having a strong indoor season and sshould be ready to have his best outdoor season yet.
The sprint squad returns junior Ian Gibson (Painesville Harvey), Roberts, Schmuhl and sophomore Mike Morningstar (Canton Central Catholic) from a year ago. It will get some much needed depth with the addition of sophomore Adam Gaydos (Mentor/ Gilmour Academy) . Gaydos will be competing in track for the first time after spending two years on the swim squad. He is expected to compete in the 200, 400 and/ or 800 meters. At 400 meters, freshman Nile Smith (Killbuck/ Millersburg West Holmes) will be the top runner.
At 800 meters, freshmen Sean Johnson (Alliance/ Louisville St. Thomas Aquinas), Pat Crann (Berea) and Brian Smolinski (Parma Padua) will be the top runners. At 1500 meters, senior Brian Adkins (Berea) has had a breakout indoor season and is set to be the leader again outdoors.
B-W will be bolstered by the return of both junior Brian Dotson (Painesville Harvey) and senior Bob Magyar (Lyndhurst/ Brush) in the distance races. The duo is expected to be joined by freshman cross country standout Chris Buhoveckey (Brunswick/ Parma Padua). Add senior steeplechaser Jason Ream (Burton Berkshire) to the group.
In the jumping events, look for sophomore Mark Miracola (Olmsted Falls) and Gibson to be the top two. Miracola competes in the high, long and triple jump, and when not sprinting, Gibson will long and triple jump. In the pole vault, freshman Steve Johnson (Canton Central Catholic) is the top vaulter and is joined by steady senior Sean Cilona (Waynesburg/ Sandy Valley).
Overall, Taraschke has a number of solid young performers who are improving every day. Improvement again is the key to the 2004 men's outdoor track season.
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