Elizabethtown College added the sports of men's and women's track & field during the 1998-99 academic year, but were only granted "club status" in 1999. They were granted inclusion in the Middle-Atlantic Conference and NCAA Division III for the first time in 2000. The program was started from scratch with humble beginnings in 1999. A total of 22 athletes practiced at the local high school facility as the present track & field facility was not built until 2001. Interestingly, the College did sponsor a varsity track & field program from 1975-81 and 1929-30. Mike Bomberger was an All-American in the javelin in 1980.
Today the men's and women's track & field teams carry a total roster of nearly 70 student-athletes (3-1/2% of the student body) led by six coaches who specialize in the full complement of events. The Blue Jays also have one of the top outdoor T&F facilities in the conference featuring an 8-lane European layout with 90m straight-a-ways and 110m turns. All field events are centrally located on the infield. The Blue Jays hosted the 3-day MAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 2007 and 2009. The men's and women's track & field teams have won a combined 11 conference championships in its short tenure and have participated at every single indoor and outdoor NCAA Championship since May, 2002.
Within the Region…Did You Know?
Elizabethtown College competes in the Mideast Region with 51 NCAA Division III men’s programs and 53 women’s programs from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and West Virginia. Over the past decade (1999-2008), ETown is the 3rd most successful men’s XC/T&F program (behind only Haverford and Lincoln) and 5th most successful combined XC/T&F program based on the number of times a team score was registered at the NCAA Championships.
ECXC stands with an elite enclave in the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S. Of the 113 NCAA Division I, II, and III schools in the Mid-Atlantic region only 11 schools have qualified BOTH a men’s and women’s team for the NCAA Cross Country Championships in the past decade. Those schools and their combined number of team appearances at NCAAs are: Edinboro and Georgetown (19), Haverford and Villanova (15), Dickinson (11), Allegheny (9), Elizabethtown, Princeton, and Shippensburg (7), Penn State (3), and Slippery Rock (2).
Across the Nation…Did You Know?
The ETown men’s cross country team is one of only 31 schools (out of the 381 colleges/universities that sponsor the sport) to qualify for the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships at least four times over the past decade. Moreover, ETown is one of only eight schools in D3 and one of only 17 schools in any division to qualify four or more times, but not qualify prior to 1999. The other “new kids on the block” in D3 are: Anderson (IN), Centre (KY), SUNY Geneseo, New York Univ., Trinity (CT), Williamette (OR), and Wisconsin-Platteville. In D2 the schools are: Alaska-Anchorage, Bentley (MA), Colorado School of Mines, Florida Southern, Harding (AR), Mars Hill (NC), Missouri Southern State, and Stonehill (MA). In D1, the most improved men’s cross country teams of the last decade are Arizona State and Cal Poly SLO with five and six NCAA appearances, respectively.
Elizabethtown College is one of only ten programs in any division to finish in the Top 20 at both the men’s and women’s cross country and outdoor track & field championships in 2004. Those ten programs are:
NCAA Division I: Arkansas, Stanford, and Arizona State
NCAA Division II: Adams State (Co.), Western State (Co.), and Central Missouri State
NCAA Division III: Williams (Ma.), Wartburg (Ia.), Wisconsin-LaCrosse, and Elizabethtown (Pa.)
“David vs. Goliath Relay Victories”
Track & Field Meet: 2006 Raleigh Relays @ NC State
Event: Men’s 4X800m
Result: University of Pennsylvania, UNC-Chapel Hill, Elizabethtown, Georgetown, Virginia, James Madison, Boston College, LaSalle, Louisville, Akron, and University of Pittsburgh
Track & Field Meet: 2007 Penn Relays Carnival @ UPenn
Event: Men’s Sprint Medley Relay (200m-200m-400m-800m)
Result: Elizabethtown, Duke, Liberty, Maryland Eastern Shore, UNC-Wilmington, Army, and Monmouth
“Six Penn Relay Plaques and A Penn Relays Meet Record”
Event: Women’s 4X400m (MAC/Centennial Section)
Penn Relays Champions in 2004, 2005, and 2006
Fastest Time @ Penn Relays: 3:57.64 (T. Bucci, K. John, N. Murphy, E. Lichti) in 2006. Meet record at the time. Still stands as school record.
Event: Men’s 4X400m (“Pop Haddleton” MAC/Centennial Section)
Penn Relays Champions in 2005, 2007, and 2009
Fastest Time @ Penn Relays: 3:17.91 (K. Clark, AJ Farris, D. Graybeal, D. Rulander) in 2008
Top 15 ETown Mid-distance and Distance Runners Since 2002:
(D. Berdan, P. Donovan, T. Evensen, D. Graybeal, J. Miranda, D. Rulander, S. Sanko, and D. Scott)
800m (Top 4 men @ 1:50.66-1:52.44)
Mile (Top 3 men @ 4:08-4:10)
5000m (Top 4 men @ 14:31-14:51)
10,000m (Top 2 men @ 30:14 and 30:17)
(J. Brobst, A. Daws, E. Fisher, K. Garner, K. Howser, T. Kulp, and M. St. Clair)
800m (Top 3 women @ 2:15.15, 2:15.90, and 2:18.78)
Mile (Top 2 women @ 4:56)
5000m (Top 3 women @ 17:14-17:20)
10,000m (Top 3 women @ 35:46, 36:00, and 36:57)
Top 20 ETown Sprinters/Hurdlers Since 2002:
(B. Allport, M. Bauer, K. Clark, D. DeAngelis, W. Eaton, AJ Farris, S. Finley, D. Graybeal, R. Hickox, Big T. Raver, and D. Washington)
100m (Top 4 men @ 10.81-10.97)
200m (Top 4 men @ 21.85-22.07)
400m (Top 4 men @ 47.89-49.98)
110HH (Top 3 men @ 14.91-15.32)
400IH (Top 3 men @ 52.52-55.86)
(J. Brobst, T. Bucci, B. Burroughs, A. Gold, L. Havrilak, K. John, C. Kerna, K. Lander, and E. Lichti)
100m (Top 3 women @ 12.42-12.90)
200m (Top 7 women @ 24.90-26.81)
400m (Top 3 women @ 57.87-59.49)
100HH (Top 2 women @ 14.27 and 15.63)
400IH (Top 2 women @ 1:02.29 and 1:06.84)
Top 28 ETown Jumpers Since 2001:
(C. Aregood, M. Bauer, E. Bennett, J. Boushell, P. Callejas, K. Clark, W. Eaton, Z. Fogel, DJ Lehr, J. Moses, D. Pappentick, J. Patterson, D. Washington, and J. Yurchak)
Long Jump (Top 5 men @ 23’9-1/2”-21’7-1/4”)
Triple Jump (Top 2 men @ 48’9” and 48’8-1/4”)
High Jump (Top 4 men @ 6’6”-6’1”)
Pole Vault (Top 5 men @ 17’1-1/2”-14’3”)
(S. Adams, S. Chick, K. Hershberger, S. Hughes, C. Kerna, J. Niedermayer, L. Oliver, J. Popp, L. Riley, C. Miles, C. Moser, J. Nace, J. Riley, and J. Sahd)
Long Jump (Top 6 women @ 17’7”-16’2-1/4”)
Triple Jump (Top 4 women @ 36’4-3/4”-34’7-3/4”)
High Jump (Top 4 women @ 5’4”-5’0”)
Pole Vault (Top 4 women @ 10’6”-10’0”)
Top 17 ETown Throwers Since 2001:
(P. Alder, K. Clark, S. Healey, Z. Johnson, T. Katzaman, M. Kistler, B. Marison, B. Murphy, and M. Torre)
Shot Put (Top 2 men @ 47’3” and 41’9-1/4”)
Discus (Top 3 men @ 143’2”-120’9”)
Javelin (Top 5 men @ 186’3”-153’9”)
(S. Chick, C. Connelly, S. DeGeorge, A. Kent, D. Mellen, A. Morrisette, J. Russell, and C. Tracy)
Shot Put (Top 4 women @ 37’8-3/4”-32’9-1/2”)
Discus (Top 4 women @ 118’7”-106’7”)
Javelin (Top 2 women @ 116’8” and 105’0”)
(S. Chick, C. Connelly, S. DeGeorge, A. Kent, D. Mellen, A. Morrisette, J. Russell, and C. Tracy)
Shot Put (Top 4 women @ 37’8-3/4”-32’9-1/2”)
Discus (Top 4 women @ 118’7”-106’7”)
Javelin (Top 2 women @ 116’8” and 105’0”)
