Dan Frake has been named the Mid-Atlantic Region Women’s Track and

Field Assistant Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross

Country Coaches Association. “In only his second year here as a coach,

Dan has definitely adjusted great to the collegiate system and our throwers

have really responded well to him and his style," praised Bucknell head

track & field coach Kevin Donner. "This is a very deserving award."

Frake had athletes score 59 points to help the Bison win the team title at

the Patriot League Outdoor Championships. Sophia Nnadi broke Bucknell

and conference marks in the shot put with a toss of 49-10 ½ and qualified

for the NCAA East Prelims. Nnadi also earned All-Patriot League honors

with a second-place finish in the hammer throw and took third in the dis-

cus. The Bison throwers also helped lead the team to the title at the Patriot League Indoor Championships. Abby Brundage

won the shot put with a heave of 46-3 ½, while Nnadi was third in both the shot put and weight throw.

Spring 2015

Volume 12, Number 3

Bucknell University

Finally, it would not be a newsletter

if I didn’t update you on our Spiked

Shoe fundraising. With only a few

days remaining until our June 30

fiscal year deadline, we are still

slightly short of our $125,000 fund-

raising goal, so if you have not al-

ready donated, please consider

making a donation before June 30.

Every penny of our fundraising dol-

lars is spent on keeping our rosters

large and offering the best competi-

tive opportunities for every level of

athlete. Travel costs continue to

increase, while our budget does

not. Your continued support is

greatly appreciated by our tremen-

dous coaching staff and athletes

alike.

Go Bison!

A NOTE FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN DONNER

Coach Frake Named Mid-Atlantic Women’s Assistant Coach of the Year

It was another very

successful year,

both athletically

and academically,

for our Cross

Country/Track &

Field program.

The season ended

with our women’s

team winning the Patriot League

Outdoor Track & Field Champion-

ship and our men finishing third.

The women’s win was especially

sweet after Patriot League new-

comer Boston University won all

three titles rather easily last year.

We were only a tie-breaker away

from winning the Triple Crown.

Although our men’s third place

finish was not where we had

hoped to place, walking away with

two men’s runner-up trophies in

cross country and indoor track

and field was quite an accomplish-

ment.

We had many All-East performanc-

es at the ECAC/IC4A meets and

four student-athletes qualified for

the NCAA East Regional in Jack-

sonville, FL. The season is techni-

cally not over as freshman Chrissy

Bedzinski will be competing at the

USATF Junior National Champion-

ships in Eugene, Oregon later this

month.

Once again, our Bison were very

strong academically with our team

GPAs at 3.20 for men’s cross

country, 3.15 for men’s track and

field, 3.66 for women's cross coun-

try, and 3.49 for women’s track

and field.

We graduated a total of 38 seniors

who are now a part of our strong

alumni network. This class was a

part of eight Patriot League Cham-

pionship teams and ten runner-up

teams during their careers. We

wish them all the best.

Bison Express

Five Bison Recognized at Senior Awards Dinner

Page 2 Bison Express

The Bucknell cross country and track and field teams received five

awards at the University’s annual Senior Athletics Awards Banquet on

April 28. Christian Lupica and Kim Nagotko received the Christy

Mathewson Awards, Andrew Garcia-Garrison was the recipient of

the Bradley N. Tufts Award, and Kevin Tapper took home the Bryan-

Humphreys Award. Katie Jessee took home the Edward W.

Pangburn Award.

The Christy Mathewson Award is the highest honor for Bucknell ath-

letics. It is presented to the most outstanding senior female and male

athletes. A seven-time Patriot League champion, Lupica holds school

records in seven events, including four indoor marks and three during the outdoor season. He is currently the only

Bison to own a record at the facility named for his most recent award, Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, set-

ting the mark at this year’s Bucknell Team Challenge. Lupica qualified for this year’s NCAA Regional Champion-

ships, where he just missed qualifying for the NCAA Championships. He has four career top-three finishes at the

IC4A Championships, and has also succeeded in the classroom, earning a spot on the Academic All-Patriot League

Team thanks to a 3.38 GPA in accounting and financial management. Nagotko owns more records than any cur-

rent or former Bucknell track and field athlete, including five outdoor marks and three during the indoor season.

She has earned three Patriot League titles while competing in relays and notched one individual championship with

a first-place finish in the 400-meter dash. Nagotko added Academic All-Patriot League honors to her resume fol-

lowing this past indoor season. A Dean’s List student, she has been selected to the Patriot League Academic Honor

Roll in all four years with the Bison, and carries a 3.43 GPA in environmental geology.

The Bradley N. Tufts Award is presented for exceptional athletic achievement and contributions

to Bucknell athletics. Garcia-Garrison had a season to remember for the Bison, highlighted by

records in both the indoor and outdoor mile run. He just missed breaking the four-minute mark

during the indoor season, crossing the line in 4:00.51. Garcia-Garrison put an exclamation on the

indoor season by winning four events at the conference championships, where he was named the

Patriot League Track Athlete of the Year. He also qualified for this year’s NCAA Regional meet

in the 1500 meter run.

The Bryan-Humphreys Award is presented to an individual for outstanding versatility. No one

exemplified versatility more than Tapper during his career with the Bison. He holds program top-

10 marks in 10 events, has one IC4A title and two All-Patriot League awards. At the 2015 Patriot

League Indoor Championships, Tapper led the men to a runner-up finish by competing in five

events and scoring points in all five. At the Outdoor Championships. Tapper again scored in five

events. In individual competition, he took fourth in the triple jump and long jump, and fifth in the

400-meter dash. His time of 48.09 in the 400m ranks fifth on Bucknell’s all-time list. Tapper was

part of a third-place finish in the 4x100 relay and a fifth-place finish in the 4x400 relay.

The Edward W. Pangburn Award is presented for sportsmanship, fellowship and contribution to

the University. Jessee has been an outstanding representative for Bucknell athletics, highlighted by

being named the 2014 Patriot League Women’s Cross Country Scholar-Athlete of the Year. That

honor was fueled by a third-place finish at the Patriot League Championships and a 3.6 GPA in

markets, innovation and design. In all, Jessee has earned one individual Patriot League title and

four All-Patriot League honors. Those awards are evenly spread out, with two coming in cross

country and two coming in track and field. At this year’s Patriot League Outdoor Champion-

ships, she scored points in both the 1500 and 5000 meter runs.

Nagotko and Lupica

Volume 12, Number 3 Page 3

Bucknell Track & Field Goes to Second Grade

On Friday, May 8, Coach Donner and several track and

field student-athletes went to Kelly Elementary School to

teach Miss Snyder’s second grade class about the sport of

track and field. Sophia Nnadi, Jen Silvestri, Devon

McDonald, Efe Agege, Christian Lupica, and Nick Lom-

bardo demonstrated the finer points of running, throw-

ing, and jumping. After the coaches gave a brief demon-

stration of baton passes, the clinic ended with a relay

race.

Current Bucknell cross country and track and field head coach Kevin Donner

will be inducted into the Saint Francis University Athletics Hall of Fame during a

weekend ceremony on August 8 in Loretto, PA. Donner joins eight other indi-

viduals and one team in the 2015 class.

Donner led the Red Flash cross country and track and field programs for six

years from 1995-2001, guiding the teams to five Northeast Conference Cham-

pionships. He was named NEC Coach of the Year seven times and the Mid-

Atlantic Region Coach of the Year once during his time with SFU. In all, his Red

Flash athletes combined for 40 NEC titles, 27 All-NEC honors, nine U.S. Junior

National qualifiers, two Canadian National Qualifiers and six Academic All-

America selections. Donner will enter the SFU Hall of Fame with his most accomplished athlete. The

2015 class includes Brian Sell, who went on to compete in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Since joining the Bucknell staff in 2001, Donner has earned 24 Patriot League Coach of the Year awards.

This past season, he guided the Bison women to indoor and outdoor conference titles, receiving Coach

of the Year honors following both events.

Sudeep challenged Christian in a 20 yard dash Jillie Donner hands off to Ava in the relay race

Donner to Be Inducted into Saint Francis University Hall of Fame

Page 4 Bison Express

More than 4,000 donors stepped up on April 23 to meet the $300K in a Day Trus-

tee Challenge. The grand total of gifts, including challenge money from the trustees

and President Bravman, was $1,883,590.

The Spiked Shoe Fund had the seventh largest number of donors with 178 alumni,

parents, and friends giving to the Cross Country/Track and Field team on April 23.

This represented 3.44% of the overall donors and in Athletics was surpassed only by

Men’s Crew and Football.

The total amount donated was $28.663. The matching money from the Trustees

was $13,030.43 which made our grand total for the day $41,693.43!

We are so grateful for your loyalty and support!

Spiked Shoe Club Has Big Day of Giving

Alumni Spotlight: Jack Wickens ’78

Jack Wickens (Class of ’78; 4:16 miler) can attest to the value of Bucknell

alumni friendships. Jack recently founded a unique platform that showcases

and markets the talents of our nation’s top track & field athletes. To help

make AthleteBiz (www.athletebiz.us) a winner Jack has enjoyed the help and

involvement of a few Bucknellians.

Steve Fillebrown (Class of ’78; 9:10 steepler) serves on the board of Ath-

leteBiz and writes a regular column for the site called Track Shorts that suc-

cinctly summarizes what’s happening in our sport each week.

Brian Fullem (Class of ’86; 14:25 5K) will be lending his clinical expertise as a regular guest columnist

about injury prevention and care.

Bill Reifsynder (Class of ’84, Hall Of Famer) published a great article about AthleteBiz on RunHaven, a

highly successful digital community of running enthusiasts. Bill is the President of RunHaven:

http://runhaven.com/2015/05/22/ordinary-people-doing-extraordinary-things/

Here’s a recent “must read” blog posted on AthleteBiz about Steve Prefontaine that you won’t want

to miss: https://www.athletebiz.us/blog/my-letter-from-pre/

To stay informed about AthleteBiz sign up for free at: https://www.athletebiz.us/sign-up.

Page 5 Bison Express

Alumni Profile: Danielle Todman ’06

Note: Danielle is still prominently featured in the Bucknell record books. She is 9th all-time in the

indoor 55m dash, 5th in the 55m hurdles, 9th in the 60m hurdles, and 7th in the indoor pentathlon.

We asked her to tell us about what she’s been doing since graduation and her response is below.

2006 was a huge year for me, as I was graduating Bucknell and enlisting into the US Air Force, I did not know what

challenges awaited me. However, I can tell you that it was far more than I can imagine. As I entered boot camp, not

knowing what was in store, not knowing what advantages I had, my flight and I began the mentally and physically de-

manding steps of being built into Airmen and Leaders. I didn't realize how already prepared I was physically (Thanks to

Bucknell track and field!). Every week I bettered my Physical training test score, which led me to be the top PT Female

and Top airman of my graduating class.

It didn't stop there. My success allowed me to help other people to achieve high level physical training scores, enabled

me to help honor guardsmen by understanding the meaning of looking uniformed and sharp, and it allowed me to rep-

resent my country in a sport I love so much—track and field.

I was chosen to represent and compete for Team USA last month in the Netherlands, where Team USA won and I

came in 3rd in the 400 hurdles and qualified to go to the Conseil International du Sport Miliataire (CISM) World

Games in October where I will compete against military athletes from other countries, some of whom have been in

World Championships and the Olympics.

Much of my success is credited to my mom and to my family. My Bucknell Track & Field teammates and coaches - I

owe you a huge thank you for both allowing me to be part of greatness and to understand the meaning of excellence.

To my teammates: there are no words to express how grateful I am that I had the honor to run, throw, jump, and

cheer by your side. Your incredible faith in my abilities drove me to continue to strive for excellence. Your unwavering

loyalty and support are the foundation where I am today. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and OK BU!

Alumni Profile: Andrew Huebner ’10

Page 6 Volume 12, Number 3

I am a proud New Hampshire native and moved back to the granite state soon after

graduating in 2010. Though living away from most of my Bucknell friends has been

tough, I manage to see most of them at least a couple times a year, most recently at the

2010 five year reunion (RIP Stucco). I currently live in Portsmouth, NH with my girl-

friend Ali and our cat Addie. Running has given me a lot over the years, including my

relationship with Ali; we met through her family’s running store, Runner’s Alley, where

I’ve been working since 2011.

Runner’s Alley has been a great fit for me for a lot of reasons. Truthfully, I never ex-

pected to work there for more than a year at first. I have been able to learn tons about

the running industry and meet lots of cool people. I currently am footwear manager for

all three of our locations, a job I didn’t even know existed and never would’ve thought

I’d be doing. That being said, I never knew what I really wanted to do outside Bucknell besides continue to run. So, I guess it

makes sense I ended up at a running store after all. In many ways, the best thing about working at a running store is how it’s

allowed me to train and race in a super supportive (some might say enabling) environment. Since 2011 my running career

has had many ups and downs, most notably qualifying for the Olympic Trials in the marathon last June (peak), and sustaining

a sports hernia almost immediately after (valley). I’m honestly unsure of exactly when I got the injury, but since crossing the

finish line at Grandma’s Marathon I’ve been “on the shelf,” as they say, going to countless doctors and physical therapists

trying to diagnose and treat the injury.

After finally getting the diagnosis and surgery to repair the tears (I had two on my left side) in

January 2015, it’s been both a waiting game and a work in progress. I’ve built up my mileage multiple

times since April, and for different reasons had setback after setback where the injured spot would

flare up on me again. Ultimately, I think those setbacks were due to a lack in core strength. After a cou-

ple dreary months of this I’m realizing that I’ve been running before my body is actually able to support

itself in a functional way. Sure, I would feel ready to run, but then once I got out there I’d be tight-

er/weaker than I realized—and any small little deficiency would throw my whole system off. So, most

recently I started working once again with my coach, Shawn Crotto, here in NH to try and build up my

core stability before any more running is attempted. As I write this, I am feeling stronger than ever.

I was an English (Creative Writing) major at Bucknell. Why is this important to my life today? Well, let’s start with

the struggles. I’ve always had difficulty with the connection between my running and my writing. I’ve always felt like the two

activities are mutually exclusive—it’s like I need to choose one or the other and that they can’t coexist because they’re too

similar. Think about it: Running is a thankless venture, carried out by yourself (unless you’re at Bucknell—be grateful for

those times), incrementally building towards some far off distant goal that you may or may not achieve. Writing can be soli-

tary, tedious, thankless, and difficult too. Going through all the pains, ups and downs of recovering from my surgery, I’ve

found real solace in the act of writing down my thoughts and experiences as they unfold on a personal blog. It’s acted as a

kind of personal therapy. Never, ever in my life did I think I’d actually enjoy doing something like this. But quite unexpectedly

I had found the perfect, natural merger of two huge passions in my life and the verifiable revival of my writing career in the

darkest moments of my running career. You just never know.

Looking forward to the summer and fall, I find myself trying to consciously dial down my anxiety about the looming

Olympic Trials in February—at times even giving up on the idea entirely to save myself the possibility of disappointment. I

truly don’t know if I will be able to toe the line on 2/13. Yes, I’ve experienced some recent progress, but there’s no telling

what the next few weeks will hold. I’m going to stick with the current plan and really try and make my own luck on this one.

I feel like I owe it to old teammates and myself to do everything I can to get better. There’s no question the support and

friendship I found at Bucknell will continue to be a huge part of any comeback I might have, whenever that finally happens.

*If you have interest in following my blog, it’s andrewheebsrunner.blogspot.com

Huebner ranks 3rd in the Bucknell record

books in the steeplechase

Outdoor Patriot League Championships: Women Take 1st, Men Place 3rd

Page 7 Volume 12, Number 3

The Bucknell women’s track and field team set three meet records on its way to winning the Patriot League Outdoor Champi-

onships. The Bison captured both the indoor and outdoor conference championships this year. Bucknell won the team title

with 165 points, while Boston University was second in the nine-team field with 149 points. The Bison have won five the past

seven outdoor conference championships.

Junior Sophia Nnadi was selected as the Field Athlete of the Meet after earning All-Patriot League honors in two events and

posting top-three marks in three. She won the shot put with a meet and school record toss of 49-10 ½. That eclipsed Buck-

nell’s previous record by over three feet. She added a third-place finish in the discus on the day. Abbey Brundage was two

spots behind Nnadi in the shot put, taking third. Freshman Efe Agege was voted the Rookie of the Meet. She won the triple

jump with a meet-record leap of 40-9. She was also fifth in the long jump. The Bison won the Rookie of the Meet at both the

indoor and outdoor championships this year. Kate Scott was Bucknell’s other athlete to break a meet record on the week-

end. She set the top mark in the 10,000-meter run with a time of 35:18.94 on Friday. Freshman Christine Bendzinski was the

Patriot League Rookie of the Meet during the indoor championships and probably would have brought home the award again if

it wasn’t for the outstanding performance by her teammate. She was All-Patriot League in two events, taking second in both

the 800- and 1,500-meter runs. Her time of 4:31.16 in the 1,500m ranks seventh all-time at Bucknell.

Four more Bison runners took home conference titles as part of the 4x100 relay. Jess Bridle, Kafilat Oladiran, Kimberley

Lapszynski and Kim Nagotko each ran a leg on the relay that won with a time of 47.12, which ranks second all-time at Buck-

nell. Stephanie Easse earned All-Patriot League honors in the discus. She was the runner-up with a distance of 145-5, good

enough for 10th on Bucknell’s all-time list. In all, the Bison brought home 11 all-conference awards. Nagotko, Jessee and Jen

Silvestri all scored in a pair of individual events on Saturday. Nagotko took fourth in the 100- and 200-meter dashes, while

Jessee added a fifth-place showing in the 5,000-meter run to her performance in the 1,500m. Silvestri was fourth in the 400-

meter hurdles and fifth in the 100-meter hurdles. Her time of 14.54 seconds in the 100 hurdles ranks fifth on Bucknell’s all-

time list.

On the men’s side, Christian Lupica won two events to lead Bucknell to a third-place finish. The Bison racked up nine all-

conference honors during the two-day event. Navy tallied 251.5 points to run away with the team title. Army West Point was

second with 152, while Bucknell came in third with 137. Lupica took home the gold in the 110- and 400-meter hurdles, cross-

ing the line in 13.81 seconds in the short of the two and in 53.49 in the longer race. It was a repeat performance for Lupica,

who won both races last season. He has also won title in in the 60-meter hurdles at each of the past two indoor champion-

ships. Grant Reynolds and Matt Deysher joined Lupica to give Bucknell a great team performance in the hurdles events. Reyn-

olds was second in the 400-meter hurdles with the seventh-fastest time (53.54) in Bucknell history and took third in the 110-

meter hurdles. Deysher added points with a seventh-place showing in the 110-meter event.

Joseph Breen just missed All-Patriot League honors with a third-place finish in the shot put. He broke his own school record in

the event with a toss of 56-3. That is more than two feet better than the next best throw. For the second straight champion-

ship meet, Kevin Tapper scored in an amazing five events. In individual competition, he took fourth in the triple jump and long

jump, and fifth in the 400-meter dash. His time of 48.09 in the 400m ranks fifth on Bucknell’s all-time list. Tapper joined Dan

Gevirtz, Reynolds and Lupica for a third-place finish in the 4x100 relay and teamed with Jacob Ashkettle, Anthony Menza and

Lupica for a fifth-place finish in the 4x400 relay.

The Bucknell cross country and track & field program continues to compete at the highest possible level. To allow our

student-athletes to continue the winning tradition of the Bison cross country/track & field program, we need your continued

financial support now more than ever.

Bison Club gifts to the Spiked Shoe Club support the work of the coaching staff beyond the annual budget approved by the Uni-

versity, thus enabling our coaches to recruit aggressively under NCAA regulations and within the framework established by the

University’s offices of admissions and financial aid, and supplement the travel and equipment budgets. I thank all of you for your

past support, and hope that you will help us keep the program at the top of the Patriot League.

YES, I WANT TO SUPPORT THE SPIKED SHOE CLUB. Enclosed is my check for $ ____________. Please make checks

payable to Bucknell University, and write SPIKED SHOE in the memo line. If paying by credit card, please complete all of the

information requested below.

NAME _________________________________________________ CLASS YEAR ______________

ADDRESS ______________________________________________________________________________________________

CITY, STATE, ZIP ________________________________________________________________________________________

HOME PHONE _________________________________________ E-MAIL _________________________________________

CREDIT CARD NAME, NUMBER, EXP DATE ____________________________________________________________________

PLEASE RETURN TO: KEVIN DONNER, HEAD CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK & FIELD COACH

BUCKNELL UNIVERSITY

LEWISBURG, PA 17837

Something new happening in your life? New job? New home? New baby? New story to tell? Old story to tell?

Let us know! Starting in the next newsletter, we are going to include an Alumni Notes section with updates and

alumni news. If you have something you’d like to share, please pass it along. If you have a picture to share,

please pass that along as well. You can either complete the form below or send an e-mail to

kdonner@bucknell.edu.

Name ____________________________________ BU Class of _______________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________________

THANKS FOR SHARING!

ALUMNI NOTES

Page 8 Volume 12, Number 3