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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Nitehawks Soar to Successful Summer on National Track SceneAugust 31, 2006 The Nitehawks Track Team ran, jumped and threw their way to their most successful season ever in their six-year history, claiming four All-Americans, eleven National Honor Role inductees, and fourteen national event qualifiers. “It was great,” grinned Nitehawks Head Coach, Alex Ivanov. “We had fun, we worked hard, we learned and we were rewarded.” The summer began in mid-June with the New England Junior Olympic meets for the AAU and USATF (USA Track and Field). The AAU meet saw the Nitehawks crown seventeen New England Champions, winning 17 gold medals, 13 silver medals and 10 bronze medals. The USATF saw another eight New England Champions with eight gold, nine silver and ten bronze medals. Next, in late June, athletes that qualified for the AAU Junior Olympic Region 1 meet competed at Tufts University against athletes from New England, New York and New Jersey. The Nitehawks gathered seven gold, six silver, and two bronze medals on their way to qualifying twelve athletes for Nationals. Following this event the Nitehawks headed south to Greensboro, NC to compete in the National Youth Athletic Games. The team had qualified five athletes based on performance in sanctioned meets over the previous year. Four of these athletes managed to survive traveling through the torrential rains that covered the east coast to get to Greensboro and represent the USATF New England Association. They battled through the elements to put three athletes on the medal stand to earn All-American honors. They were led by Alex Ivanov (young men) who placed 4th in the Decathlon and 5th in the hammer throw before capping off his week with a silver medal (2nd place) finish in the javelin. He was joined by teammates Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) with a 5th place finish in the triathlon (shot put, high jump and 400m) and Chris Halsted (youth boys) with an 8th place finish in the pentathlon. Other notable finishes were Alex Ivanov 9th in the discus; Chris Halsted 10th in the triple jump; Tyler Gregory (youth boys) 14th in the triple jump; and the Young Men’s Team led by senior captain, Alex Ivanov, to a 16th place team finish just 13.5 points out of 6th in a very tight bracket. Then it was back up the coast to Kingston, NY for the USATF Junior Olympic Region 1 meet. Over the three days of competition the Nitehawks netted another 14 medals: six gold, four silver, and four bronze and qualified eight athletes for the nationals. In the end, the Nitehawks had qualified a club record of 13 athletes for the Junior Olympics national championship meets, excluding the relay. “We were very pleasantly surprised and proud of our athletes,” said Coach Fischetti. “We’re going to be down south again for another two weeks at the nationals and we’re going to have a blast.” So, after three weeks of preparation, the team headed for Baltimore, MD and Morgan State University (USATF Junior Olympic Nationals) and Norfolk, VA and Norfolk State University (AAU Junior Olympic Nationals). The USATF Nationals were held from July 25th through the 30th and featured the best athletes from every region in the United States and the AAU Nationals ran from July 29th to August 6th. The weather was the hottest of the summer for the entire 13 days, but it did not burn-out the Nitehawks’ competitive spirit. At the USATF JO Nationals the bantam boys clashed with the nation’s best to hit marks with Matthew Fischetti of 16th in the triathlon; 19th in the high jump and 24th in the shjot put and with Eli Bucher of 34th in the 1500m. Midget boy, Matthew Barnes clocked in with a 15th place finish in the pentathlon and a 28th place mark in the 1500m. The strong youth boys squad came through with Tyler Gregory (pentathlon 14th), Nick Fischetti (pentathlon 19th), Chris Halsted (triple jump 19th and 200m hurdles 31st), and Alec Barnes (3000m 25th). Andrea Keklak (youth girls) finished the USATF run with a 22nd place finish in the javelin. While coach Joe Fischetti of Groton took over the reigns in Baltimore, Coach Ivanov headed for Norfolk and the AAU Nationals to meet the team’s older athletes. Some of the younger athletes would trek down later to join the team. In Virginia, the team continued to face AAU qualifiers from all over the country in a meet that saw dozens of national records fall. The multi-event athletes led the way with Cassandra Ryding (intermediate girls) in the heptathlon and Chris Bojanic (intermediate boys) in the decathlon. Cassie placed 21st and Chris finished in 19th to start things off. Stephen Pawlak (sub-youth boys) ran to a 46th rank in the 100m and jumped to a 19th place mark in the high jump. Another sub-youth boy, Tim Walsh threw the javelin to land him in 24th overall and Chris Halsted ran into 27th in the 200m hurdles (youth boys). The big story for the Nitehawks at this meet was Alex Ivanov, competing in his last youth meet. “It started off tough for him,” stated his coach and father. “He felt a twang in his hamstring in the decathlon so we made the decision to drop from that event and concentrate on the throws.” Ivanov placed 22nd in the discus and 20th in the shot put before setting his sights on his strongest event, the javelin. So, with the wind in his face and temperatures of well over 100 degrees, Ivanov ran down the runway for the very last time as a youth competitor and threw his way onto the medal stand, earning 5th place and All-American honors. “It was a great way to finish his youth career,” smiled Coach Ivanov. “He had done everything else but win a medal at the Junior Olympic Nationals. It was a fairytale finish and we had to choke back the tears when he climbed the medal stand – both the coach and the father.” Alex will be training and competing with the University of Hartford Hawks starting this fall. Next, the Nitehawks will begin preparing for their cross-country season. If you want to be a part of that story you can contact Coach Alex Ivanov at 978-505-8318 for further information. Following is a detailed list of medal winners from the Nitehawks club at the Junior Olympic district and regional meets and their All-American/National Honor Role inductees.
Nitehawk medal winners in the New England Junior Olympic district meets: CARLISLE: Alex Ivanov (young men) AAU shot put gold, AAU discus gold, AAU javelin gold, USATF javelin silver, and USATF hammer throw bronze; Chris Bojanic (intermediate boys) AAU 400m hurdles gold, AAU triple jump silver, 200m bronze; ACTON: John McCoy (young men) USATF shot put gold and USATF discus bronze; Griffen Siegel (sub-youth boys) AAU 1500m bronze; Jake Siegel (bantam boys) shot put gold; Sabrina Siegel (primary girls) AAU 100m bronze; and grandson of Alex and Joy Ivanov of Acton, Alex Ivanov, (young men) AAU shot put gold, AAU discus gold, AAU javelin gold, USATF javelin silver, and USATF hammer throw bronze; WESTFORD: Cassandra Ryding (intermediate girls) USATF 400m hurdles gold and USATF 100m silver; LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) AAU triple jump gold, USATF triple jump gold, AAU 200m hurdles gold, USATF 200m hurdles gold, and USATF long jump gold; Leah Sax (youth girls) USATF high jump bronze; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay AAU (Nick Fischetti (Groton), John Ellersick (Sudbury), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; SHIRLEY: Tyler Gregory (youth boys) AAU high jump gold, USATF high jump gold, AAU triple jump silver, AAU long jump silver, and AAU 200m hurdles silver; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti (Groton), Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; SUDBURY: Alec Barnes (youth boys) USATF 3000m silver, AAU 1500m silver and USATF 1500m bronze; John Ellersick (youth boys) 800m silver; Andrea Keklak (youth girls) USATF javelin bronze; Matthew Barnes (midget boys) AAU high jump gold, USATF high jump silver, AAU 1500m silver, and USATF 1500m silver; Alexander Keklak (midget boys) javelin bronze; Arthur Whitehead (midget boys) USATF 800m silver, (sub-midget boys) AAU 800m gold, and AAU high jump gold; Anthony Aguirre (sub-midget boys) 1500m bronze; Ariel Keklak (bantam girls) USATF high jump bronze; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay AAU (Nick Fischetti (Groton), John Ellersick (Sudbury), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; GROTON: Nick Fischetti (sub-youth boys) AAU triple jump gold, AAU shot put gold and AAU discus gold; Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) USATF high jump gold, AAU high jump gold, USATF shot put silver, AAU shot put silver, and USATF javelin bronze; Christina Fernandes (youth girls) AAU 100m bronze and AAU 200m bronze; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay AAU (Nick Fischetti (Groton), John Ellersick (Sudbury), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti, Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak, and Chris Halsted) gold; CONCORD: Stephen Pawlak (sub-youth boys) AAU high jump gold, 100m bronze and 200m bronze; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay AAU (Nick Fischetti (Groton), John Ellersick (Sudbury), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; STOW: Tim Walsh (sub-youth boys) AAU shot put silver and AAU discus silver; WAYLAND: Elijah Bucher (bantam boys) AAU 1500m silver, AAU high jump silver, USATF 800m silver, AAU 800m bronze and USATF 1500m bronze; Hannah Brigham (Midget Girls) AAU Shot Put gold, AAU High Jump gold, AAU long jump gold; LUNENBERG: Max LaChance (bantam boys) USATF 1500m silver and USATF 800m bronze; and.
Nitehawk medal winners at the AAU Junior Olympic Region 1 meet: CARLISLE: Alex Ivanov (young men) javelin gold, shot put gold, discus silver LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) triple jump gold, 200m hurdles gold; SHIRLEY: Tyler Gregory (youth boys) high jump gold, triple jump silver, 200m hurdles silver; SUDBURY: Alec Barnes (youth boys) 3000m bronze; WAYLAND: Elijah Bucher (bantam boys) high jump silver, 1500m bronze; GROTON: Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) high jump gold, shot put gold; Nick Fischetti (sub-youth boys) triple jump silver; STOW: Tim Walsh (sub-youth boys) javelin silver; ACTON: Grandson of Alex and Joy Ivanov of Acton, Alex Ivanov, (young men) javelin gold, shot put gold, discus silver
Nitehawks medal winners at the USATF Junior Olympics Region 1 meet: GROTON: Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) high jump gold, shot put gold; triathlon gold; Nick Fischetti (youth boys) pentathlon silver; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti (Groton), Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) 200m hurdles gold; triple jump bronze; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti (Groton), Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; SHIRLEY: Tyler Gregory (youth boys) pentathlon gold; high jump silver; Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti (Groton), Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold; SUDBURY: Alec Barnes (youth boys) 3000m bronze; Andrea Keklak (youth girls) javelin bronze; Matthew Barnes (midget boys) pentathlon silver; 1500m silver; WAYLAND: Elijah Bucher (bantam boys) 1500m silver; CONCORD: Nitehawks 4x100m Youth Boys Relay USATF (Nick Fischetti (Groton), Tyler Gregory (Shirley), Stephen Pawlak (Concord), and Chris Halsted (Lincoln)) gold;
Nitehawks All-Americans for 2006: SUDBURY: Ariel Keklak (sub-bantam girls) achieves All-American status in the high jump with a national ranking of number one (a Nitehawks’ first). CARLISLE: Alex Ivanov (young men) Javelin (2nd – National Youth Athletic Games, 5th AAU JO Nationals); Decathlon (4th National Youth Athletic Games); Hammer Throw (5th National Youth Athletic Games); (Alex won All-American honors in the intermediate boys decathlon in 2003 and for both the young men’s decathlon and javelin in 2004.) GROTON: Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) Triathlon (5th – National Youth Athletic Games) LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) Pentathlon (8th – National Youth Athletic Games) ACTON: Grandson of Alex and Joy Ivanov of Acton, Alex Ivanov (young men) Javelin (2nd – National Youth Athletic Games, 5th AAU JO Nationals); Decathlon (4th National Youth Athletic Games); Hammer Throw (5th National Youth Athletic Games); (Alex won All-American honors in the intermediate boys decathlon in 2003 and for both the young men’s decathlon and javelin in 2004.)
Nitehawks National Honor Role inductees for 2006: CARLISLE: Chris Bojanic (intermediate boys) Decathlon – rank 96th; ACTON: John McCoy (young men) Shot Put – rank 86th; WESTFORD: Cassandra Ryding (intermediate girls) Heptathlon – rank 60th; 400m hurdles – rank 100th; LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) Pentathlon – rank 50th; Triple Jump – rank 68th; Leah Sax (youth girls) High Jump – rank 70th; SHIRLEY: Tyler Gregory (youth boys) Pentathlon – rank 64th; SUDBURY: Andrea Keklak (youth girls) Javelin – rank 81st (Andrea won All-American honors in the midget girls javelin in 2005.); Alexander Keklak (midget boys) Javelin – rank 79th; GROTON: Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) Triathlon – rank 42nd; High Jump – rank 86th; WAYLAND: Elijah Bucher (bantam boys) 1500m – rank 83rd; LUNENBERG: Max LaChance (bantam boys) 1500m – rank 54th (Max won All-American honors in bantam boys cross-country in 2005.)
Nitehawks National Top 200 Rankings (ranks 101 through 200) for 2006: LINCOLN: Chris Halsted (youth boys) 200m Intermediate Hurdles – rank 127th; SHIRLEY: Tyler Gregory (youth boys) Triple Jump – rank 168th SUDBURY: Alec Barnes (youth boys) 3000m – rank 116th; Matthew Barnes (midget boys) Pentathlon – rank 140th; Andrea Keklak (youth girls) Pentathlon – rank 139th; Triple Jump – rank 168th; ACTON: Jake Siegel (bantam boys) Shot Put – rank 133rd GROTON: Nick Fischetti (sub-youth boys) Pentathlon – rank 165th; Matthew Fischetti (bantam boys) Shot Put – rank 182nd; Javelin – rank 192nd; For More Information Contact: |
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