The Wolfpacker

JANUARY 2016 ■ 79 "Ryan Hill just won the U.S. championship at 5,000 meters, so for Graham to be knock- ing on the door of one of Ryan's records, that says something," Geiger said. "Graham's mark at the Portland Twilight wasn't just a good time; it was a great time. That mark would get him into the U.S. Olympic Trials." Crawford has battled through some minor but persistent health issues the last year plus. He ran in outdoor track last spring, but then had to sit out this fall and miss his final year of eligibility in cross country. "Graham wasn't able to line up in cross country this fall, and that was very disap- pointing for him," Geiger said of the three- time All-ACC and all-region performer. "I think he's going to be highly motivated in track, both indoors and outdoors. He's per- formed at a very high level in the past, but this fall was very hard on him emotionally because he couldn't be part of this cross coun- try program." Addison and Crawford may be the Wolf- pack's most experienced and accomplished athletes heading into the season, but several others should be poised to take a step up and make an impact on the national stage. That will be the expectation. Geiger cites three reasons for the Pack's likely improvement this season. One is con- tinued development from the athletes in the program, which is attributable to hard work on their part and to the dedication of Gei- ger's staff. The second is recruiting, which speaks for itself. NC State has recruited well in recent years and had a very good class a year ago, yielding several current freshmen capable of contributing early in their careers. The final reason the Wolfpack should be improved in 2016 is a pair of transfers — Luis Vargas from Elon and Meron Simon from Washington, graduate students with four years of college under their belts to go with excellent athletic pedigrees. They both have a year of eligibility in track remaining and should be impact performers in 2016. Vargas was a 2014 cross country All- American at Elon, that school's first, and he has track experience in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters. Vargas did not have cross country eligibility when he transferred to NC State, but Simon did and earned All-ACC honors with the Wolfpack this fall. He is a veteran steeplechase runner and participated in the 2015 NCAA Championships, earning honor- able mention All-America accolades. "When you bring in someone who's al- ready been in college for four years, they're not a freshman," Geiger said. "Those two aren't freshmen. They've been there. They know what to expect. "We expect those guys to make an impact, and that's huge for us." Addison is the Pack's lead dog in the sprints, but the Pack has some up-and-coming talents in redshirt junior Brian Davis (200 and 400 meters), sophomore Shannon Patter- son (200 and 400), junior Brandon McLean (100), and junior Will Krehnbrink (200 and 400). Patterson also has competed in the in- termediate hurdles and could spend more time there, joining Addison and redshirt soph- omore Erin Jenkins. In the throws, redshirt sophomore Joshua Davis has shown promise in the hammer, discus and shot put, finishing 10th at the ACC Outdoor Championships in the hammer a year ago. Fifth-year senior Vibush Sivakumaran and sophomore Abdur Rahmaan Kelly re- turn along with Crawford in the intermediate distance events. Sivakumaran runs the 800, while Kelly runs the 800, one mile and 1,500 meters. Vargas and Simon join a crowded group in the distance events. Sophomore Bakri Abushouk finished eighth at the ACC Cham- pionships in the steeplechase a year ago, and sophomore Sebastian Hanson was an NCAA regional qualifier in the 5,000 meters after fin- ishing 11th at the ACC outdoor meet. Junior Sam Parsons is a two-time All-ACC runner in cross country who will look to make a breakthrough in track this season, running the 3,000 and 5,000 meters. Three NC State freshmen figure to be im- pact performers in their collegiate careers, possibly as early as 2016. Christopher Garrick was a North Carolina 3-A state champion and high school All-American in the high jump, clearing six feet, 11 inches. He should help round out the lineup in the jumps along with Addison. Philip Hall was a 10-time North Carolina 4-A state champion, running ev- erything from 1,000 to 5,000 meters. Tanis Baldwin was a nine-time North Carolina 3-A state champion in cross country and track, and should slot into the mix in the 5,000 meters. The track season, indoors and outdoors, amounts to a succession of opportunities for athletes to qualify for NCAA regionals and the NCAA Championships. It's hard to get to nationals, and as Geiger likes to point out, and it's harder to score at nationals because the NCAA only scores the top eight in each event in track and field. Be that as it may, the ultimate goal is for the team to finish as high as possible nation- ally, and that's done by individual athletes scoring points at the national meet. "I think we'll be a lot better than we were a year ago," Geiger said. "We have some depth this year. I think we'll do better at the confer- ence championships, but we need to move athletes to regionals and have them score and get to nationals. And when they get there, the goal is to score, and it's hard. "We call it getting on the podium and only eight get there for each event. Our job as coaches is to put those guys in position to get on the podium." ■ Athletes To Watch Jonathan Addison, senior, jumps/sprints Addison is something of a one-man scoring ma- chine for the Wolfpack, an All-American in the high jump and a nine-time All-ACC performer in the high jump, long jump, and 60- and 100-meter dashes. He is the defending ACC champion in the high jump, a multiple-time NCAA regional qualifier and an NCAA Championships qualifier in the high jump a year ago, when he finished fourth in the nation. At the confer - ence level, he is capable of scoring big points in the sprints and the jumps. Graham Crawford, senior, distance Crawford is coming off a rough patch of nagging ail - ments that kept him out of cross country altogether this fall. He should be extra motivated for his final track season, and he is capable of scoring big points in the 1,500 meters, based on past performances. After his 10th-place finish at the NCAA Championships last June, he finished sixth at the Portland Twilight two weeks later with a time of 3:38.49, which is a mere 0.13 seconds shy of the school record held by Ryan Hill, one of the greatest runners in school history. Luis Vargas, senior, distance Vargas is a transfer from Elon, a graduate student who had one year of track eligibility remaining. Vargas was a standout in cross country, a 2014 All-American who holds the course record at NC State's WakeMed course in Cary. Vargas ran the 5,000 meters for Elon in the Raleigh Relays last April and finished third with a time of 13:57.09. ■ By The Numbers 2 Four-time ACC champions in the same event for the Wolfpack in Mike Patton (1985-89) in the triple jump and Bob Medlin (1974-77) in the shot put. They are two of just eight four-time winners in a single event in conference history. 4 Three-time ACC champions in the same event for the Wolfpack in Tyrell Tait (1991-93) in the triple jump, Neil Chance (1993-95) in the long jump, and Chris Dugan (2000-02) and Andy Smith in the steeplechase (2003-05). 6 Events in which jumper-sprinter extraordinaire Jona- than Addison achieved All-ACC — long jump, high jump and the 60-meter dash indoors, and the long jump, high jump and 100-meter dash outdoors. Addison is a nine-time all-conference performer and is the defending ACC champion and a returning All-American in the indoor high jump. Noting The Pack • Jonathan Addison's ACC championship in the high jump last season was the first conference title for an NC State athlete since Ryan Hill won seven in five different events from 2010-13. Addison and Jacob Thomson were the Wolfpack's lone All-ACC performers a year ago, but Addison made up for the lack of numbers by earning all- conference in six events — long jump, high jump and the 60-meter dash indoors, and the long jump, high jump and 100 meters outdoors.

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