The team is off to a quick start. Can you comment on the early season success?

As a coaching staff, we get together from time to time and try to figure out what we are doing right. Then we discuss some things we can do better. I think the athletes right now have high morale and everything helps, including the weather. Obviously with it being indoor season, we are just trying to stress that they work as a team, help each other out and we have really gelled that way. The athletes are really responding to the training, which from a coaching perspective is huge. I think the athletes pushing each other, is directly related to our early season success.

Can you comment on the strengths and weaknesses of the team?

Strength wise, we are just on fire right now. There is so much momentum…everyone is just doing such a good job of keeping the team’s morale up right now. From a weakness stand point, we can always be better, but I feel so good about these guys. There are some areas that we need to be stronger in, but there is nothing we can do about that right now. We are just going to put the emphasis on coaching the athletes we have now.

Can you comment of the leadership of the team captains?

When we as a coaching staff sat down and decided to have team captains there were some pluses and minuses. From a coaching standpoint, we as a coaching staff had a mock captain selection. The athletes the individuals chose to be captains were actually the same that the coaches would have selected. We have so many kids from top to bottom that would fit a captain’s role. We are really proud of these people. You could go right on down the list of captains and there are great things to say about every single one of them. I think it is good for them to realize their peers voted them into the captain’s role. It puts a little responsibility on them to be leaders.

Can you talk about some of the team goals?

We want to keep getting better every day going into MIAA track meets. We tell our athletes that we have to do more with less than some of our competitors and that is just the way it is. We continue to stay optimistic, think we can go in and get better. We are going to go into MIAA and go after a title, no matter what the odds are against us.

Marcus Hix

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Born and raised in Wichita, Lucas San Martin, one of the track and field team captains for the 2012 season, has always had a knack for sports.

Growing up, he played both football and ran track at Goddard High. Majoring in political science with a minor in philosophy, there is much more than meets the eye.

“I was very involved in orchestra and chamber orchestra,” San Martin said. “Chamber music is something that is very near and dear to my heart. I have played the cello since I was a young boy and I fell in love with the instrument.”

San Martin said he has had many influential people in his life, but one in particular comes to mind – his father, Lazaro San Martin. The journey his father made to America is full of courage and passion for a better life.

Lazaro immigrated from Cuba, coming to America in 1962 through Catholic charities while being aided by the Central Intelligence Agency through an operation known as “Pedro Pan,” “Peter Pan” in English. Lazaro sought a better life for himself.

“They were called Peter Pan because they were the boys that flew,” San Martin said. “This is something that has inspired me throughout my life. The fact that he came from a society with no opportunity, no future and was given a chance at a life to make something of himself. I strive every day to be half the man he is.”

Track and field has given Lucas one of many opportunities to be a positive influence on others, just like his father was to him. His leadership and determination have not gone unnoticed by his teammates.

“Lucas leads by example,” said 400 meter sprinter Frank Cortez. “He shows determination and hard work every day. The work ethic is there and others see it as well.”

San Martin does not overlook being named a team captain. He said he takes great pride and is humbled by the honor his teammates have bestowed upon him.

“It’s an honor on this team to be elected as a captain,” San Martin said. “This squad of men is full of hard workers. I’m honored to go to school with these guys. I take this honor very seriously.”

The men’s track and field team finished fourth overall last year, according to Emporia State’s website, and the team has high expectations going into this season.

“When you have a team of this caliber, you focus together as one heartbeat,” San Martin said. “You have to go out and perform. I think we are going to be very tough to stop this year. I expect everyone, every practice, to go out and give it absolutely 100 percent, as if they were competing day by day.”

Marcus Hix

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Cortez

How does it feel to be named a team captain for track and field?

I’ve been here for four years, so it is very rewarding to be recognized by all of my fellow teammates. It reminds you of all of the hard work and all of the time you have put into the track team. It is definitely a big honor being voted in by the other athletes. Knowing that they view me as one of the leaders on the team is a great feeling to have.

How do you feel about the upcoming season?

I am very excited due to the potential of our young team. We have already had a couple people qualify – Katie Mona, who is number one in the nation, a couple of provisional qualifiers and a couple others who will get that mark later in the season. We are just a young team with a lot of experience to gain. It is really exciting that the doors are wide open and there is no limit to what this team can do.

What are you most looking forward to this season?

I’m looking forward to us bringing the team together. Our whole theme this season has been family. All of the other captains are very good at keeping the morale of the team up, whether it’s through laughter, motivation or just setting the example. I think the reason we were chosen as captains is because we all do a good job of leading by example and that’s the best part of what we do as captains.

What are some of your expectations for the team?

We have a pretty high standard, which was set last season. We took fourth in the nation outdoors and fifth in the nation indoors. On the men’s side we lost some key individuals that are very difficult to replace, but we have some people stepping up to the plate and are willing to accept the challenge. I foresee us being right back where we were as a team. I put pressure on myself as a senior leader and team captain to do something big and help this team out and I’ve worked hard to put myself in a position to do that.

Can you discuss the new coach Steven Blocker and the way he is leading the team?

Although this is his first season, we have worked with him for the last couple of years. He does a very good job of making everyone feel like they have a role within the team. On a personal level, when I was struggling with academics a couple of years ago, he pulled me aside and told me that the team needs me. That was the first time a coach had told me that. By him telling me that, it made me want to work very hard for him and has helped even further motivate me.

Marcus Hix

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Harris

Another member of Emporia State’s athletic department moved on during the off-season this summer. Former track and field head coach David Harris left for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Harris spent 19 years at Emporia State before deciding to call it quits.

“I appreciate what this university and community has done for my wife, Kathy, and me over these 19 years,” Harris said in a press release.  ”I personally have invested myself for almost two decades in running a respected program in the MIAA and NCAA Division II, and I feel good about what we have done.”

The legacy left by Harris will prove to be big shoes to fill. During almost two decades at ESU, Harris managed to be an 11-time MIAA coach of the year as well as a 2001 National coach of the year for Women’s Outdoor Track and Field. Harris also led the Women to an MIAA championship that year.

Former All-MIAA distance performer and assistant coach Eric Wellman will take over Harris’ duties as the cross country coach. Wellman will also serve as the assistant track and field coach.

“It caught me off guard,” Wellman said of Harris’ leaving. “I think we were all pretty surprised. I know that he kind of was looking for maybe one more challenge in his career. (We) definitely (weren’t) expecting it at the time that it occurred… but things opened up for him, and it was a great situation for him.”

Wellman ran for Emporia State from 2003-2008 where, among other accolades, he holds the fourth best time in ESU history in the mile run with a time of 4:08.85.

In addition, Steven Blocker will run the track and field teams. Blocker has served as an assistant coach with the Hornets since 2009 and ran for the University of Northern Iowa in college, as he was a member of three Missouri Valley Conference championship teams.

Blocker also served as an assistant coach at Santa Barbara City College in California before coming to ESU.

Senior cross country runner Asher Delmott noted Harris’ impact on the team.

“He was kind of like a father figure to the track team, just making sure that you’re always doing the right thing, whether it’s in sports or school,” Delmott said.

Despite the new faces for the track and field teams, Delmott sees the program heading in the right direction with Wellman and Blocker.

“It’s been a pretty smooth transition just because (Wellman) has been an athlete here,” Delmott said. “As a graduate assistant, and now as a coach he knows how Coach Harris did it, and so it’s just been a smooth transition.”

ESU begins their cross country season with a home event at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sep. 2. They also have a second home meet at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sep. 30.

Brandon Schneeberger

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The Emporia State track team performed well in their midweek open yesterday in a meet that saw a majority of the

Emporia State junior Katie Mona passes senior Kathryn Davison on their way to the finish line in the women’s 800-meter dash during the ESU Midweek Open Wednesday night at Welch Stadium. Kellen Jenkins/ The Bulletin

 events won by the Hornets. Despite the event being relatively small, Head Coach David Harris was pleased with the effort he saw.

            “This meet’s twofold,” Harris said. “We wanted a tune up one last time before Drake (this weekend)… The other part of it is that many of these athletes now this is their last competition before the conference (meet). It’s 10 days out, so we felt like we wanted to give them one more opportunity without traveling somewhere.”

            Those athletes gearing up for this weekend’s meet against Drake included runners in the 800 meter run. Coming in first and second respectively were Katie Mona and Kathryn Davison. Mona finished the 800m in 2:14.47 as Davison finished right behind her in 2:15.23.

            “We were trying to get faster times to go to Nationals,” Davison said. “I don’t know if it’s just the weather or if we needed that higher competition level, but it was a good workout.”

            The men saw their own success in the 800 meter as Will Hohmeier finished in first place. After the race, Hohmeier commented on the preparation the run got him for this weekend’s race in Drake.

            “It was definitely an effort just to get ready for this weekend in Drake,” Hohmeier said. “In the eight (hundred meter), we had a lot of guys in it, so everyone had someone to work with. It was a good race.”

            Other Hornets who earned first place finishes for ESU included Kevin Roulhac in the discus throw with a distance of 172-03. Deja Jackson also fared well picking up a first place finish in the women’s discus throw throwing for 152-00.

            The women also took the first three spots in the shot put as Valeria Jordan finished first followed by Elizabeth Lewis and Ashley Watkins respectively. Freshman Andrew Etheridge picked up a first place finish in the 110m hurdles as well with his time of 14.54.

            The Hornets are now looking forward to this weekend’s big meet at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. The event will be one of the bigger ones for ESU this year and is a prelude to the MIAA Championships which will be held at Witten Track on May 7-8.

            “Drake is a fun relay meet,” Harris said. “We’re not going up there to run any individual events… We’re going up there to run relays in one of the greatest relay carnivals in the country. It is just a fun environment to compete in.”

Brandon Schneeberger

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In an event that saw nearly 1,000 collegiate athletes compete, Emporia State set two school records, had 12 provisional qualifiers and had two automatic qualifiers in the ESU Relays at Witten Track.

            “I’m just very happy with the meet,” said Head Coach David Harris. “In fact I’m elated that we were able to run this many competitors through a meet in one day at Emporia State. I believe we did a good job. I was very happy with our team. They came to work and help, and, of course, they came to compete.”

            Josh Schuler tore things up for the men in winning the 100m dash as well as tying an ESU record of 10.29 seconds in the event. Schuler also won the 200m dash and helped the 4×100 relay team win with a time of 40.79 which is second best in ESU history.

            “I was a little disappointed with our time,” Schuler said. “But I mean it was a good day to run, and our hand offs were good, so I felt great about it. I thought we ran faster.”

            Derwin Hall, Ryan Dickson and Shjuan Richardson were also responsible for the first place finish.

            “I felt like we had a good race,” Hall said. “Everybody’s hand offs looked really crisp and solid. I think the wind kind of bothered us a little bit. But we still ran the same time we ran last week, so that’s good.”

            Other top performers for the men included Josh Honeycutt in the triple jump and long jump in which he finished second and sixth respectively.

Briar Ploude (first place) and Marcus Calleja (fifth place) earned provisionals in the high jump as Kevin Roulhac in the hammer throw (third) and discus (fourth) also earned a provisional. Bret Gross earned a championship for ESU finishing first in the pole vault.

For the ESU women, Jennifer Robinson and Deja Jackson both earned provisionals. Robinson earned hers placing second in the high jump with a jump at 5-07.00. Jackson threw for 143-08 and placed fourth in the discus to earn hers.

“Certainly on the women’s side, we had two seconds (Robinson and Katie Mona) that did really well,” Harris said. “Two seconds in a meet like this is a good performance.”

Katie Mona was the other second place finish with her time of 4:40.47 in the 1500m. Mona placed second in the event behind Kansas State’s Sara Stoakes. After leading down the stretch, she lost to Stoakes by just .51 seconds.

“I had been drafting off of her for awhile, so once I actually got the wind, it felt a lot harder, and I just didn’t have enough at the end, the last 100,” Mona said.

The Hornets look to continue their success this year on Thursday and Friday at Witten Track as they compete in the ESU combined Multis.

Brandon Schneeberger

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Kevin Roulhac broke his own record this past weekend at the Jayhawk Classic when he cleared the previous week’s record by six inches. Roulhac’s throw of 61-04.75 landed him second in the event, earning him a provisional qualifying mark. Other provisional qualifiers for the men included Zach Rosenberger in the pole vault and Andrew Etheridge in the 60m hurdles.

“Kevin (Roulhac) is getting very consistent and his confidence is very high,” said ESU Head Coach David Harris.

The women were able to put together two fourth place finishes. Courtney Maddux finished fourth in the 1000m and Sonya Schement finished fourth in the pole vault. ESU will return to action on February 4-5 as they travel to Lincoln, Neb., to take place in the Husker Invitational.

“We left a lot of our top athletes home to train and get ready for Nebraska,” Harris said.  “We felt like the young ones needed to compete and continue to gain experience”

Brandon Schneeberger

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Harris

How do you feel so far about the indoor season?

We got a really good evaluation at Wichita of where we are. I think that, in terms of the scoring and things, the men competed head to head with Wichita State. I mean, 17 points is not much. We could’ve done a few things different… In reality, we competed hard against a Division I school that is the Missouri Valley Conference Champion. That was a good way to come back. The women got fourth out of four. You could say, I think, on the women’s side, we’re younger, we don’t have as much depth, we’re looking for people to step up. On the men’s side, we had some people step up in that meet.

Brandon Schneeberger

Who specifically do you see having an impact this season?

On men’s side, I see our seniors are having the greatest impact. We have a very strong senior group on the men’s side. Many of them are national caliber competitors. Josh Honeycutt in both jumps, Josh Schuler in the sprints, they sort of take care of their areas. Zach Rosenberger in the pole volt is an All-American. And then we have others coming down from there. Will Hohmeier, Adam McGovern – they’re going to be senior leaders this year, and they’re going to make a huge difference in our program. They’re good leaders of the rest of them. I think how they go our team will go. Kevin Rouhlac in the throws is a tremendous leader – another senior, national caliber performer. That core group of athletes is gonna to make a huge difference in our program.

What newcomers do you see having an impact?

I have a seen a possible impact person in Carley Herring. I think she’s a freshman from Missouri that we were very happy to recruit. She’s going to have a lot of work cut out for her with the kind of conference sprinters that we have. But, as a sprinter, I think she’s going to make a difference.

Do you see more success coming during the indoor season or outdoor?

We’re set up as a pretty good indoor team. On the men’s side, we have some high caliber national athletes that can take care of events in this conference meet. Many of them have been MIAA champions, so they’re going back to try to do it again. That’s a good feeling as a head coach to have that. I think we’re set up really well indoors. Outdoors, probably not as much because of the depth that’s required outdoors in the throws and more of the events that you add.

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The Hornet Men’s track team finished second behind host Wichita State on January 12 defeating Division I teams Sam Houston State and Oral Roberts. First place finishes and provisional qualifiers for ESU included Briar Ploude in the high jump, Adam McGovern in the 3000 meter dash, Will Hohmeier in the Mile run and Derwin Hall in the 60 meter dash.

The Women’s track team finished fourth overall with Deja Jackson earning a provisional qualifying mark in her first place finish in the weight throw.

Other provisional qualifiers for the Men included Josh Schuler (second in the 60 meter dash), Andrew Etheridge (third in the 60 meter hurdles), Josh Honeycutt (third in the triple jump) and Kevin Roulhac (second in the weight throw). The track teams will compete in the Central Missouri Invitational on January 21 for their next meet.

Brandon Schneeberger

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Hohneier

Running fast has been this Hornet’s job for the past four years, and he doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon. Despite not being heavily recruited, senior cross country and track runner Will Hohmeier has established himself as a leader both athletically and motivationally for the Emporia State cross country and track team.

“I was still on the team his freshman year when we brought him on to the team,” said Eric Wellman, the assistant cross country and track coach. “And he wasn’t a really highly recruited guy. He was kind of a developer – kind of a role player – he’s gotten better every year. (He’s) really developed as a leader, too, and just improved each season on the team.”

The Emporia State track team is currently in its indoor track season in which Hohmeier is focusing his attention on the mile run. This year Hohmeier hopes to break personal records by running a 4:05 mile. Hohmeier also ran cross country. A season in which he led the Hornets in two meets and finished in the top 20 in three.

Hohmeier, who hails from St. Louis, Mo., originally planned on playing soccer during high school. However, when he didn’t make the team his freshman year, he decided to give cross country a try.

“Our soccer coach kept talking about cross country,” Hohmeier said. “And I had some friends on the cross country team, so I just switched over and ran cross country. (I’ve) been running every since.”

In high school, Hohmeier enjoyed success going to state in the 4×8 relay run. He decided Emporia State would be a good fit mainly because of coach Harris.

“(Harris) has had twenty years of experience here, and he has a history in running,” Hohmeier said. “He ran the mile back in his day at a 4:08, so I know he knows what he’s talking about.”

Hohmeier hopes to qualify for nationals this year, but also has plans for the Emporia State track team. With a senior in just about every field and the addition of distance runners, Hohmeier sees this year’s team improving from last year’s conference meet.

If Wellman finds a fault in Hohmeier, it’s his selflessness.

“He’s always thinking about the team,” Wellman said. “I like that, and I want him to continue doing that but (also) to just see what he can do to push himself and to get himself around the track a little bit faster.”

After graduation, Hohmeier, a business management major, plans on working at Western Waterproofing – a service for restoring buildings. But for now, Hohmeier’s job is just running.

“Will’s a natural leader, I would say,” said teammate and junior runner Andrew Wayman. “I mean, he’s a business major. He likes that leadership role, so he really is a leader on this team.”

Brandon Schneeberger

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Williams

Samuel Williams, junior business management major and member of the ESU track team, was found dead late yesterday afternoon. Williams was thought to be missing and was last seen at 11 a.m. on Sunday at his residence.

Authorities reported in a release that Williams lost control of his motorcycle north of Emporia on K-99 and Lyon County Road 150.  His body was located one tenth of a mile off the roadway.

Williams was an international student from the Republic of Côte d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast) and was 24 years old.

Don Weast, assistant director of media relations, said Williams was an All-American on the Emporia State track team, running the 60-meter, 200-meter and the 4-by-100 meter relay.

“We’re dealing with this individually and as a team,” said David Harris, head track and field coach. “That’s all that I want to say right now. We will be ready to talk in the morning but we need to deal with this as a team right now.”

His teammates had only good things to say about him.

“He was just a great guy,” said Kenton Lonberger, junior communication major and member of the track team. “He was really loyal and had great values. He stood up for what he believed in and that reflected in every aspect of his life. He was always there as a friend and he was a great guy to be around.”

Williams held several records for ESU including a 4-by-100 meter relay record acquired in May at the NCAA Championships. Lonberger is on the record holding team.

“On the wall downstairs, he has a record in the 60; he has a record in 4 by 1,” Lonberger said. “He was one of the most gifted athletes I’ve ever been around and been a teammate with. The guy had more talent than most people dream about.”

Although he had no family who lived in the U.S., Lonberger said that Williams’ teammates more than made up for that.

“It’s like losing a brother,” he said. “We were so close, all of us. It’s really like losing a family member. We’re struggling now but we’re going to overcome this. He was from France so he didn’t have family here. He had family, but not blood.”

A candlelight vigil for Williams will be held at 8 p.m. tonight in Welch Stadium.

———UPDATE———

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