CBA Solvay Harrier

Defending the Crown!

Jordan, New York – Cross country season is upon us and the 2010   J-E Eagles think they have 

what it takes to defend their Liberty Division crown.  Graduation hit the Eagles hard with the 

departure of Cody Stanton and Mike Marrero, J-E harriers that ran in two state meets a piece.  

“It is impossible to replace Cody and Mike” said J-E Coach Roman, “they were two incredible 

runners”.  Marrero is running for nearby LeMoyne College and Stanton traveled south to run at 

Lynchburg University in Virginia.  “They taught the younger runners a thing or two” added 

Roman, “remember, they each ran in two state meets and were our top two scorers for the 

last two seasons”.  In addition to Stanton and Marrero, the Eagles lost the steadying force 

of Kyle Alpha to graduation as well.  Alpha was a four year varsity runner.

     It is obvious that Jordan-Elbridge’s cupboard is not bare as it returns everyone from the ’09 championship season 

from the number three runner back.  The Eagles return seven of their top 10 harriers from the 2009 league championship 

season, a glorious year that saw J-E ranked second in New York State at the end of the season.  Only state champion 

and Section III foe Holland Patent had a more lofty ranking. 

     Senior Greg Bader is set to lead the Eagles to glory as he enters into his fourth season of varsity cross country.  

“Greg is the straw that stirs our drink” said Roman, “we go as Bader goes”.  Bader has done his homework by logging 

in the most summer miles, a figure that only Bader knows for sure and a number that he’d gladly share if you ask him.  

“Greg is a great natural leader and he cracks the whip like a coach when he sees the least amount of slacking”.  

Bader was 11th in sectionals last year and projects to be third this year.  In addition to cross country laurels, Bader 

set some school records in the 09 -10 track seasons as well, including the indoor mile (4.36) and the outdoor 800 (2.02).  

These are legit times which will put Bader on the state level. 

     Following Bader is junior Steve Slonosky.  Slonosky is entering into his third year of varsity cross country and has 

earned respect throughout Section III.   Slonosky was the Eagles fourth highest scorer in ’09 and was a first team all 

division all star.  Steve’s 18th place finish in the 2009 sectionals places him as the 4th fastest returner in 2010.  Slonosky 

ran 10.33 for the 3000 meter steeplechase in 2010 track, the fourth fastest time ever for Jordan-Elbridge.  Steve has also 

broken the five minute mile barrier as well (4.57)

     Freshman Jack Gugel looks like he’s a ‘shoe-in’ as one of the Eagles top runners, but his progress has been slowed by 

a leg injury sustained in spring track.  Gugel had a double stress fracture of his shin and knee as an 8th grader on varsity 

track, so his training had to go at a slower pace than anyone wanted.  “We’re kind of babying Jack a little bit and I know 

it bugs the crap out of him” said Coach Roman, “but he knows that he needs to be at top form in November, not 

September”.  Gugel holds the J-E freshman record for the 3200 (2 mile) that he set in April as an eighth grader (10.24).  

Gugel is so fast, that senior Greg Bader predicts that he’ll eventually beat him and be the team’s number one runner.  

     Another fourth year senior is co-captain Tom Poppe.  Poppe has been a scorer on varsity since his ninth grade year 

and has raced in 38 varsity races.  “Tommy has been through so many battles in his career that he should have a fabulous 

senior year” added his coach.  “He’s paid his dues and will challenge both Slonosky and Gugel”.  ‘Pops’ is projected to 

be eleventh this season in sectionals after last year’s seniors are removed from the scoring.  “I like how hard he’s 

pushing himself in practice” said senior teammate Greg Bader, “he’s really pushing himself to be great”.

     The fifth spot on the team looks to be a real dog fight as at least five harriers are in fierce competition for the last 

scoring spot on varsity.  Seniors Derrick Cheney and Carlin Coomey tied as the team’s seventh highest scorer in ’09 

and bring great athleticism to the squad.  Cheney was one of the varsity lacrosse team’s captains this past spring and 

has been consistently finishing fifth in team runs.  “Derrick is hugely improved from last season” said Coach Roman, 

“he is a real asset to the team”.  Cheney missed last year’s sectionals with the flu and vows to be healthy this year.  

“This spot, the number five position, usually determines the winner and the loser in many cross country races” added 

Roman, “just look at our one-point victory over Marcellus in 2009 or the 2008 Section III championship tie when we lost 

on the tie-breaker rule”.  Coomey, known for his blazing speed on the track oval, has been slowed so far in the pre-season 

due to surgery he underwent in August.  “Carlin’s just getting up to speed” said Roman, “he’s almost able to do the full 

workouts”.  Coomey finished 44th in the 2009 sectionals, which moves him up to 21st in 2010.  Coomey has broken 25 

seconds in the 200 meter dash on the track (24.74) and also ran 53.08 in the 400 – fifth all time for J-E. 

     The next three competitors for varsity ‘seven’ honors are somewhat surprises to Coach Roman.  Two of these individuals 

were not even running cross country last year.  Senior Scott Sullivan played and started on the Varsity Football team in 

2009.  “Scotty ran as a sophomore and did a great job in his only other year of cross country” said Roman, “but he 

decided to give football a try”.  “You can’t blame him as Sullivan carries 180 pounds over his six foot two inch frame”.   

Sullivan is also a standout basketball player and expects to start on J-E’s varsity squad for the 2010 - 2011 season.  

Sullivan finished fifth in last week’s time trial.  Also in competition for the top seven are juniors Rob Patterson and Ben 

Cheney.  Patterson is a third year 

J-E runner, so his presence in the competition for varsity position isn’t that surprising.  Rob was our tenth scorer in 2009 

and he also ran in sectionals finishing 69th (20.47).  Patterson was seventh in last week’s time trial and will race on the 

varsity team at the Chittenango Invite Saturday.  Cheney was a soccer player the last two seasons but decided to cross 

over to cross country for his junior year.  “For Ben to be so close to the top 7 so early in his racing career is simply 

amazing” added Roman, “he’s built for endurance and we could see terrific results from this junior if he keeps developing”.

     Jordan-Elbridge has a twenty-one member roster, so the junior varsity squad is competitive and gaining valuable lessons 

from the older, more experienced runners.  At this time, sophomore Jared Bard is ninth and returns for his second season.

  Junior Alex Suslik is tenth and is entering into his first year of cross country.  Freshman Mike McDonald and Dylan 

Whittico rank eleventh and twelfth respectively and show great promise in their first seasons of varsity cross country.  

Both McDonald and Whittico ran modified cross country in 2009.  Junior Nick Muehlberger is 13th and senior Nick 

Byrnes is 14th and both are cross country ‘newbies’.  Byrnes is an outstanding track sprinter ranked in the top ten of 

many J-E track records, including the 100 meter dash (ranked 7th in 11.94) and the 200 (ranked 9th in 24.14).  Four more 

freshmen are competing in their first varsity season – Nick Parkolap, Dean Comstock, J.P. Patterson, and Jay Paquette.  

All four have track experience and all but Comstock have modified cross country experience under their belts.  

Sophomore Eian Prinsen has likewise joined the squad and is enjoying a good honeymoon period of his first year.  

     Junior Mitch Alpha, the team’s fifth man in 2009 and one of the heroes in J-E’s 27-28 victory over state-ranked 

Marcellus for the league championship was lost for the season due to knee surgery in August.  Alpha, the 9th fastest 

returning runner in 2010, looks to recover in time to wrestle part of his junior season and vows to return in 2011 to l

ead the Eagles to the state championship in cross country.  The loss of a runner the caliber of Alpha would devastate 

most teams, but the depth of J-E and the history of excellence has force someone else to step up to try to fill his huge shoes.

     It is obvious that a league championship must go through the hills of Marcellus and a sectional crown will go through the 

foothills of the Adirondacks in the village of Holland Patent.  “We have our work cut out for us this year for sure” 

said Roman,“but we’re in the hunt”.  “Last year, we were the hunted once we beat Holland Patent in the first meet 

of the season”.  

J-E was ranked first in N.Y. State for most of the year.  This year, Holland Patent, the defending state champs, will be 

the favorite.  “I like doing the chasing rather than being chased” added Roman.  “We lost a ton from last year but may 

be even better as we’ll have to run more of a pack to win”.  Whatever happens, it is clear that J-E will be one of the 

state’s best class C teams, something that is becoming second nature to the boys cross country runners from 

Jordan-Elbridge.