March 25 Susquehanna Invitational Selinsgrove, PA

April 1-2 Colonials Relays Williamsburg, VA

April 9 Mason Spring Invitational Fairfax, VA

April 16-17 Bison Outdoor Classic Lewisburg, PA

April 23 Bucknell Team Challenge Lewisburg, PA

April 28-30 Penn Relays Philadelphia, PA

April 30 Maroon & Gold Meet Bloomsburg, PA

May 6-7 Patriot League Outdoor Championships Lewisburg, PA

May 13-15 ECAC/ IC4A Outdoor Championships Princeton, NJ

May 26-28 NCAA East Regionals Jacksonville, FL

June 8-11 NCAA Championships Eugene, OR

Winter 2016

Volume 13, Number 2

Bucknell University

we will need to have that big finishing kick again. Please consider making your yearly donation soon, however there will be our annual “Day of Giv-ing” on April 28 where the Board of Trustees will once again reward pro-grams that do well on that particular day. Our program has traditionally been one of the best on the “Day of Giving” and we plan to be one of the best again.

I look forward to seeing many of you back on campus on May 6-7.

GO BISON,

A NOTE FROM HEAD COACH KEVIN DONNER

Outdoor Track & Field Schedule

Hello Everyone,

With Spring Break here already it is hard to believe how time flies with the upcoming outdoor track and field season right around the cor-

ner. The indoor season ended with the ECAC-IC4A Championships where we had three individuals and the 4x400 earn All East on the women’s side and four individuals and the 4x800 relay on the men’s side. At the Patriot League Championships two weeks earlier, our women finished second to Boston University by only seven points and our men finished fourth behind Navy, Boston U and Army. I was pleased with the 107 points that our men scored in what is being considered a rebuilding year. We have a young team and many of our veterans are developing nicely. Our women’s team set school records in the 60, 60 hurdles, 200, 300, 400, 1000, 3000, 5000, 4x800, and dis-

tance medley; while Nick Lombardo set the high jump school record for the men. For the fifth year in a row we had an IC4A champion as LJ West-wood won the 1000 meters.

As all of you may know, we will be hosting the Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Championships on Friday and Saturday, May 6-7 for the first time since 2010. We hope to have a large alumni turnout just like in 2010 which was the first time that our men beat both Army and Navy at the same meet.

We plan to have an alumni dinner on Saturday, May 7 after the meet at 7:00 PM at Larison Hall. More details will be sent later and all will be wel-come.

Lastly, I need to talk about this year’s fundraising goal of $145,000. Tradi-tionally, our program makes a great push during the spring months and

Bison Express

Senior captain Sophia Nnadi will lead the Bison Track & Field Team

Meet the 2016 Track and Field Captains

Page 2 Bison Express

Oluwapelumi Shoyoye

Major: Mathematics and Economics

Hometown: Newark NJ

Favorite Athlete: Dwyane Wade

Favorite Team: Miami Heat/Philadephia Eagles

Favorite Movie: Hitch

Favorite Music: R&B

Favorite Book: Tao Te Ching

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: pasta

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: Team Camaraderie/ Locker

room atmosphere

What I Love About Meet Day: The competition

My Post Graduate Plans Are: Debt research at Creditsights (Manhattan

NYC)

I Spent My Summer: Interning at Creditsights and training for the 2015

-2016 season

Fun Facts about You: Three siblings. 1st generation American. Nigerian

Mom moved here approx 30 years ago

Why did you choose Bucknell? Best bang for my buck. It was also one

of the few places I could walk on.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Exciting

Griffin Robertson

Major: Environmental Studies

Hometown: Mansfield, MA

Favorite Athlete: Tom Brady

Favorite Team: New England Patriots

Favorite Movie: Donnie Darko

Favorite Music: Anything except Country

Favorite Book: The Call of the Wild – Jack London

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: Scrambled eggs and peanut butter toast

What I Love About Meet Day: The excitement before your first race of

the day

My Post Graduate Plans Are: Taking a gap year and applying to law

school

I Spent My Summer: Working outside

Fun Facts about You: I play the drums and my parents own a restaurant

Why did you choose Bucknell? Great mix of academics and athletics

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Family

Danny Gevirtz

Major: Markets, Innovation, & Design

Hometown: Lansdale, PA

Favorite Athlete: Tom Brady: The GOAT

Favorite Team: The Philadelphia Eagles

Favorite Movie: Friends With Benefits

Favorite Music: Jason Mraz, Twenty One Pilots

Favorite Book: The Giver

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: A bagel with Cream Cheese

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: My Teammates and Being

the Underdog

What I Love About Meet Day: Competing and not worrying about any-

thing else in the world other than Track & Field

My Post Graduate Plans Are: Becoming a viral meme.

I Spent My Summer: Touring the country with Lil Dicky

Fun Facts about You: I’m a big fan of jokes. I enjoy petting dogs.

Why did you choose Bucknell? Great Education, Great athletics, and

the opportunities offered here.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Love

Devon McDonald

Major: Film/ Media

Hometown: Orinda, CA

Favorite Athlete: Steph Curry

Favorite Team: Bucknell Track and Field

Favorite Movie: Star Wars

Favorite Music: Max and Mfaymous

Favorite Book: Game of Thrones

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: gluten-free bread

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: we change an individual

sport to a team sport

What I Love About Meet Day: the moment when all your training

comes together for a PR

My Post Graduate Plans Are: Stalk Bucknell Track and Field Meet Re-

sults

I Spent My Summer: interning in NYC

Why did you choose Bucknell? Coach A’s successful recruiting

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Heart

Volume 13, Number 2 Page 3

Meet the 2016 Track and Field Captains

Jessica Bridle

Major: English; Minor: French

Hometown: Tewksbury, MA

Favorite Athlete: Allyson Felix

Favorite Team: New England Patriots

Favorite Movie: Remember the Titans

Favorite Music: Country

Favorite Book: The Pact

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: PBJ

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: Being able to practice with

my best friends every day.

What I Love About Meet Day: I love watching my teammates do well

and PR! It makes all the hard and painful practices worth it.

My Post Graduate Plans Are: I am teaching secondary French for Teach

for America in Mississippi.

I Spent My Summer: Reading and Working

Fun Facts about You: I love Ben and Jerry’s ice cream; the beach is my

favorite place in the world; and I love dogs.

Why did you choose Bucknell? Bucknell has a good academic reputation,

and I wanted to run Division I track. Also, the campus was so beautiful

and the facilities were so nice.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Family

Sophia Nnadi

Major: International Relations and French

Hometown: Columbus, OH

Favorite Athlete: Lebron James

Favorite Team: Ohio State Buckeyes

Favorite Movie: Titanic

Favorite Music: Anything Beyonce

Favorite Book: Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: Pasta

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: The teammates that I have

adopted as my family

What I Love About Meet Day: I love the rush of adrenaline I get when I

wake up on meet days. It means that my body is ready to compete.

My Post Graduate Plans Are: I plan to hopefully become accepted into a

program to teach english in France

I Spent My Summer: Working at Victoria’s Secret

Fun Facts about You: I spent four amazing months in France.

Why did you choose Bucknell? Bucknell definitely chose me. Coach Don-

ner and former coach Schanbacher offered me an amazing opportunity to

continue to compete in track at a DI school.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Family

Jen Silvestri

Major: International Relations & Russian

Hometown: Sparta, NJ

Favorite Athlete: Lolo Jones

Favorite Team: NY Giants

Favorite Movie: Kicking and Screaming

Favorite Music: DJ Meg

Favorite Book: Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: Peanut butter sandwich

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: We’re not a team, we’re a

family.

What I Love About Meet Day: I love seeing my teammates piece together

their training into a fantastic race.

My Post Graduate Plans Are: Be happy!

I Spent My Summer: Working in NYC

Fun Facts about You: My favorite animals are turtles and otters.

Why did you choose Bucknell?: I wanted to be a part of a program that I

knew shared the same values and passion for track and field that I did.

Bucknell was that perfect place.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Passion

Dayna Simone

Major: Psychology and Education

Hometown: Huntingdon Valley, PA

Favorite Athlete: Roger Federer

Favorite Team: Phillies

Favorite Movie: Ocean’s Eleven

Favorite Music: I like all music

Favorite Book: The Five People You Meet in Heaven

Favorite Pre-Meet Meal: Apple and peanut butter

Best Thing About Bucknell Track and Field: The best thing about Buck-

nell Track and Field is having the opportunity to work with the best

coaches and have a program that is strictly dedicated to our improve-

ment.

What I Love About Meet Day: I love the anticipation and nervousness.

My Post Graduate Plans Are: I will be attending Stony Brook University

for the Occupational Therapy Graduate Program

I Spent My Summer: working at a local summer camp

Fun Facts about You: I am an aunt-I have two nephews and a niece. I also

studied abroad in Denmark over the summer of 2014.

Why did you choose Bucknell? I chose Bucknell because it was extremely

important to me to be able to attend a high academic school and be able

to throw javelin which I love.

The Best Word That Describes Bucknell Track and Field: Passionate

Page 4 Bison Express

Alumni News and Team Notes

Former Assistant Coach Danielle Lynch and Ange McFarland ‘05 at the ECAC Division III indoor

championships held at Ocean Breeze, Park in Staten Island, NY. Lynch coached the Bison sprinters from

2005-2013 and is now the Head Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Coach at Penn State Harrisburg.

McFarland is a former thrower who now coaches the throwers at Stevenson University in Owings Mill,

MD.

Head Coach Kevin Donner with Bison Distance Runners at the 2016 In-

door ECAC Championships held in Boston, MA. From Left to right sopho-

more Chrissy Bendzinski, junior Sarah Chandler, junior Kate Scott and Coach

Donner. Bendzinski ran 9:39.92 in the 3000 m to finish 8th and break the school

record from 1985 that was set by Gabi Czaja at 9:46.27. Chandler finished 3rd and

ran 2:46.21 in the 1000 m to break the school record of 2:49.81 set in 2013 by Hana

Casalnova. Kate Scott broke a 31 year old bison record in the 5000 m running

16:47.79 to finish 7th and break the previous record set by Gabi Czaja in 1985 of

16:56.76.

Adam Syty ’07 and his wife Susan ’07 with their daughter, Sarah Grace Syty ,who was born last summer.

Adam is also the girls track and field coach at Cheltenham High School (pictured below) who won the PIAA AAA

Outdoor Track and Field Championship last spring as well as the PTFCA Indoor State Championship this Febru-

ary. One of his former athletes, Janiel Slowly is a current member of the Bucknell Women’s Track and Field

Page 5 Bison Express

Alumni Essay by Robert Braile Moments

By Robert Braile ’77

In conversations I’ve had over the years with Bucknell teammates of mine from the 1970’s, I’ve been

struck by how often we remember our time together not as a story from the start of cross country fresh-

man year, to the end of outdoor track senior year, but as a collage of moments across those years—

particular experiences, on particular days, facing particular challenges.

All eras of Bucknell women’s and men’s cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track have had such

moments under Art Gulden and Kevin Donner across nearly five decades now, from Tom McLean ’78 win-

ning the 1976 IC4A outdoor 800 in 1:45.34, to Sarah Chandler ’17 earning all-region honors in the 2015

NCAA mid-Atlantic cross country championships last November. Earlier eras had their moments, as well.

Bucknell fosters this way of remembering, a rural school offering the solitude to sense moments, which run

deeper and more subtly than stories.

I hold many moments in my thoughts. Some are of my better performances—races won, records

set—always with Gulden’s handshake before and after. Some are of others’ performances, which for some

reason I tend to recall more vividly. Together they form a memory of a time and place more wondrous than

we knew, when all was before us, open and clear like a canvas awaiting color, there to discover with each

step of a run, there to define who we’d one day become.

One moment recurs quite often, that of Glenn McLaughlin ’74 anchoring the mile relay at the confer-

ence outdoor track championships his senior year, coming down the homestretch in the meet’s last event,

on his way to a victory that would have given the team its first outdoor title since 1936. Had he lost, we’d

have lost. But he won, with a 47.0 leg, despite an injured hamstring. For a few precious minutes, the title was

ours. But the relay was disqualified, because in an act of pure joy we all felt, another relay member followed

McLaughlin to the finish with his arms raised in victory, interfering with no other runner but violating a rule.

We lost a relay and title we’d won.

I was a freshman, watching on a hillside overlooking the track, having put in a respectable three-mile

earlier in the meet and a strong year of distance running for the team, yet still unsure of whether this was the

team and school for me, Bucknell so different from my home on the north shore of eastern Long Island. I

was still looking for a reason to run for Bucknell.

I found it that day, when we learned as a team more in defeat than we would have in victory, learned

that competing for Bucknell was about winning, yes, but also about losing when we should have won and

fighting back the next time to win. It was one of Gulden’s many principles, a coach for whom lessons in sport were lessons in life. We never lost a conference outdoor track title again in my time at Bucknell, and we won

nearly all of our cross country and indoor track meets, as well, in large part because of a moment one day in

May some forty two years ago that resonated through my undergraduate years, and that resonates still.

Robert Braile ’77 ran cross country, indoor track, and outdoor track from 1973 to 1977. Robert was an individual

NCAA qualifier in cross country in 1976. He lives and writes in New England and can be reached at

rsbraile@gmail.com.

By Teresa Dixon Murray, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- This year, we are profiling people who work hard and play hard, but also

give back to the community in profound ways, both through their paid work and through volunteer

efforts.

Amanda Mockbee, 30, assistant vice president, Dollar Bank, Cleveland

Mockbee, who was born in Lakewood and grew up in Hudson with her parents and her three brothers, is a personal banker with Do llar Bank in

Cleveland. She was hired right out of college, graduated Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, and works in private banking. M ost of her clients

are high-net-worth individuals. "I'm like their personal banker. I help with all of a person's financial affairs so they don't have to call six different

800 numbers. They just call me." She says she serves as clients' "one -stop shop."

Mockbee said she never considered leaving Greater Cleveland because, first, her entire immediate and extended family is in No rtheast Ohio,

except for one brother who is in Columbus. Second, she can't imagine she'd be as happy living anywhere else.

"I love this place. I'm probably one of the weird people in the fact that I just love this city. I love everything about it," she said. "I get excited

about winter. I go see our sports teams even when they're losing because i just love this city so much."

Mockbee moved downtown three years ago and is amazed by the recent transformation. Outside of work, Mockbee is heavily involv ed in vol-

unteer work for: the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the West Side Catholic Center, which is a homeless shelter, and Engage Cl eveland, an

umbrella organization for young professionals in Cleveland.

With the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, she just finished a stint as chair of Light the Night Walk, which is the organization 's primary fund-

raising event. "In Cleveland alone," she said, "it looks like we're going to meet or surpass our goal of $500,000. That's phe nomenal." She's

also a board member. For her, this work is personal. Her cousin Maja was diagnosed with leukemia in 2013, at four months old. Maja has has

more than 60 surgeries so far.

Maja, now 2, relapsed in July and is awaiting a bone marrow transplant. "It makes you so angry," Mockbee said. "She's just a baby and she's

in this situation. That's why I'm so passionate and so involved. And that's why, whatever they need, I'll do for them. Maja i s on the lockscreen

of my phone. Every single day, I look at her and just try to do whatever I can to help her and help all of the families who a re affected."

With the West Side Catholic Center homeless shelter, Mockbee is on the associate board and it was the first charity she joine d. Among her

roles: she does activities with children in the shelter. They'll do fun crafts. Or they'll just hang out and talk.

Her favorite activity there is something called mobile pantry, which happens once a month. Many people on food stamps can't a fford to get

fresh produce because it's just too expensive. The Cleveland Food Bank provides sweet potatoes, lettuce and peppers and other healthy foods

at no charge for families who stop by.

With Engage Cleveland, the group works toward engaging young professionals to retain those who already live in the city and t o try to attract

new ones to the community.

Page 6

Alumni Spotlight: Amanda Mockbee ’08

Bison Express

Amanda Mockbee competed for the Bison from

2005-2008 and was the 2008 Patriot League Discus

Champion and currently is ranked #2 all-time.

Page 7 Bison Express

Here are excerpts from the rest of our interview:

Q: What is the best part of your job at Dollar Bank?

A: I would say it's helping people. You get to know these people and they bring you into their families. They share with you their concerns

and their victories and you get to sit down and come up with solutions for them in order to help them in life. There's no bet ter feeling than

when someone comes to you with a huge problem and, in their minds, it's insurmountable. But you're able to creatively think o f something

and just help them.

Q: How many clients do you have?

A: It's up there, but fewer than 100. Some people don't need that high touch. Other clients call me pretty much every day.

Q: Where or when do you do your best thinking?

A: Obviously when you're in the work environment, it's easy to think about solutions. We bounce ideas off of each other. Our private bank-

ing department is about seven lenders. We can all talk about some of the best ways to approach situations. That would be with in work.

Outside of work, you can't help but think about your clients sometimes. Or things will just come to you. That's usually when I'm walking to

and from work. I live close enough that I can walk. It takes about 20 minutes each way. I'm just by myself with my thoughts and that's a

good time, I usually find, that stuff just comes to me.

Q: Why walk to work? Twenty minutes is a couple of miles, twice a day.

A: I love the walk. At work, a lot of people kind of make fun of me because I'll walk even in the winter. I mean, there's a t rolley that I can

take too (when the weather is bad). It's fantastic. And it's free.

But a lot of times, I prefer the walk because you get to take in the sights of the city and be part of it while you're just t hinking about things,

whether it's work or what I can do for my charities.

Q: What is the most profound professional experience you've ever had that shaped your attitude?

A: I had a client call me. His father had bought a house. It was his dream home. It was this condo and his loan had been deni ed by his

bank. Procedural issue. It happens. In this case, the bank simply did not lend for condos that used to be apartments.

... It's just easier if you choose to be positive."

It was too late for him to do a traditional mortgage. So the client called me because his father was afraid he was going to l ose this home. A

traditional mortgage takes 45 to 60 days. We had two weeks to work with ...

We really had to think creatively on this one. We had to lend against a different form of collateral and give him a different type of loan in

order for him to use that money to purchase the home. But we did it. He was so grateful. He sent me flowers the next day. It was just that

gratitude that stayed with me. You know you're doing something right. You realize you're making a difference in people's live s.

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 University, 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 infor-mation 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 _______________

___________________________________________________________________________________

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___________________________________________________________________________________

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THANKS FOR SHARING!

ALUMNI NOTES

Page 8 Volume 13, Number 2