HAVERFORD, Pa. – The Haverford College men's indoor track and field season kicks off the 2016-17 campaign on the home track inside the Alumni Field House on Thursday afternoon, as the Fords host Widener in the Haverford Holiday Dual Meet. The action is slated to begin promptly at 4:30 p.m.
The Fords return Henry Woods and Liam Lynch from a distance medley relay team that placed 11th overall at the NCAA indoor track and field championships. Along with Alex Frost, the duo returns as part of a formidable returning core for Haverford. Graham Peet will return for his sophomore season after All-Region honors in the steeplechase during the outdoor season.
The Fords were predicted to place second in the conference in 2016-17 (57 points, one first-place vote) after recording a second-place finish at last year's Centennial Conference Championship for the fourth straight season. The team won seven events at the conference meet, scoring 27 more points than the previous year and inching ever closer to the title yet again.
Frost and Lynch lead the returning group of sprinters after taking home First Team All-Centennial conference honors in the 4x200 meter relay and 4x400 meter relay. Lynch was also a Second Team All-Centennial selection in the 200m. Scott Pollara and newcomer Cameron Albrecht also figure to post fast times in sprints for Haverford.
The middle distance and distant contingent will include a large group from the reigning Centennial Conference champion cross country team that includes Woods, Peet, seniors Jimmy Gorman and Charlie Hale as well as national championship participant sophomores Ryan Herlihy, Dylan Geraringer, Greg Morgan and junior James Stadler. The field athletes include jumpers Greg Van Aken and Albrecht as well as throwers George Avecillas and Josiash Legaspi, who return for their junior seasons.
The Holiday Meet will be the only competition in the 2016 portion of the schedule before a winter holiday break. The first two meets of the 2017 portion of the schedule are the Franklin & Marshall Invitational (Jan. 14) and the Collegeville Invitational hosted by Ursinus (Jan. 21). The Fords then head to Staten Island, N.Y. for the Villanova Open (Jan. 27) and Invitational (Feb. 4) and a contingent will also return to Collegeville for the Colden Invitational (Feb. 4).
The Fords host meets on back-to-back weekends as the McElligott (Feb. 11) and Keogh (Feb. 18) invitationals are slated for the Alumni Field House ahead of the Centennial Championships at Ursinus (Feb. 25-26). The NCAA Championships are slated for Naperville, Ill. On March 10-11. The host of the events will be North Central College.