Junior Lesley Hanna Interview On Titan YouTube Channel

The UDM men's track and field team will open the 2009-10 indoor season tomorrow as the Titans head to South Bend, IN, to take part in the annual Blue & Gold Meet. The events will start at 5 p.m. at the Loftus Sports Center on the campus of Notre Dame.

SEASON PREVIEW 
The University of Detroit Mercy men's track and field team seems to have most of the pieces in place for a very successful season. The team has an upper class that has improved every year, a pair of All-Horizon League performers and a talented freshmen and sophomore that can make its mark. 

As a whole, Detroit has covered most of the events, adding to its hurdles and jumps, but will be short in the throws and multi event areas. Ultimately, the season will come down to the skilled junior and sophomore class and how they can compete in a grueling and very competitive Horizon League that did not lose much in the way of graduation. 

“Last year, the team was young and we really improved more that what was expected,” said head coach Guy Murray. “We got to that plateau of being good, but now we need to move on to that next step and this is always hard to do. The goal for the men's team is to move up in the league standings and be more competitive on the Division I level,” said Murray. “We have some big meets on our schedule like the Penn Relays so I want us to be able to go there and really compete.” 

SPRINTS 
The Titans have a very talented and accomplished junior class with All-Horizon League sprinters Lesley Hanna and Earnest Cleary. Hanna won the HL indoor 400m and was second in the 200 as a sophomore, while Cleary won the 100m in the outdoors last year and was the league's Newcomer of the Year in running events as a freshman. 

“Earnest and Lesley are working hard to improve and everyone in the HL returns so it won't be easy,” quoted Murray. “They are both engineering majors which is very challenging off the track, so they really need to focus to improve to stay atop the HL as well as achieve on the NCAA level as we think they can.”
Seniors Deonte Osayande and Sam Jones along with sophomores Vushaun Landrum and Joe LaRocca will also add to this group, while freshman Joseph Raffin will bring some very good depth. Osayande scored in the HL indoor 60m and outdoor 100, while Landrum had a great rookie season finishing 3rd indoors in the 60m fourth in the outdoor 200m. Jones is a key member to the Titan relays. 

“The sprint group is our strength and we need guys to be close to the top in its events,” said Murray. “I am expecting a big sophomore season out of Vushaun as he had a great experience at the Canadian juniors over the summer. If we can keep Deonte healthy, then he will get things done too.” 

HURDLES
Sophomore Aviram Campbell is back to anchor the hurdles after a freshman year that saw him take fourth in the 110-meter hurdles, sixth in the 60mH and seventh in the 400mH. He will be joined in the group by freshmen Derek Baker, Anthony Donald, Taylor Hennrick and Vince Lefler. Baker and Lefler were both regional champions in the 300-meter hurdles, as well as high hurdle state qualifiers. While Hennrick was a state qualifier in the both hurdle races and Donald was a two time 300mH Ohio regional qualifier. 

“Aviram did a very nice job as a freshman, really figuring things out quickly and improving every week,” said Murray. “He is another sophomore that I believe will have a big year and I think the freshmen competition on the team will only help him.” 

DISTANCE 
The group, just like in cross country, will be led by junior Pat Liederbach, who scored in three events at last season's Horizon League championships, including a third-place finish in the indoor 5000m. Junior Matt Mahler was another scorer in the indoor meet taking fifth in the mile and 800m, while junior Kevin Smalley was just outside the scoring range in the steeplechase. 

Senior Alex Gould will look for the same kind of breakthrough season in his final track year as he did in cross country and will help the 800m, 1500m as well as distance medley. If senior Kevin Wozniak can overtime some injuries and junior Alex Harris can stay healthy, both of those runners will give Detroit a boost along with sophomore Alex Vanias, who missed both indoor and outdoor a year ago, but has been a top runner for two seasons in cross country. 

“Alex Vanias didn't run at all last year in track, but the way he finished cross country, he is a contender to score in the outdoors, while Alex Harris has shown flashes of great things when healthy,” commented Murray. “Pat had some great races last year at Horizon League time, but Butler's distance runners don't make it easy so everyone has to go out there and earn it.” 

“The middle distances should be better after what Alex Gould showed in cross country joining with Kevin and Matt” added Murray. 

The squad will also feature junior Brian Greenhoe and sophomores Derek Hoerman, Bob Radlich and Erik Westbrook and newcomers in Edwin Gay and Chris Smalley. 

“We need to get them healthy and get everyone running good races on the same day,” said Murray. “Those were the two biggest problems in cross country with this group, but there is no doubt that this is a talented squad ready to breakout.” 

JUMPS 
This unit might be the most improved on the men's side with sophomores Aviram Campbell back in the triple jump and Vushaun Landrum nearly scoring in the long. Junior Lesley Hanna will also fill in the high jump, but two freshmen should also make an impact in Ja'Quan Patterson, a runner-up in the long jump as a senior at the Division 2 championships and Jeffrey Senecal, an Ohio Division 3 regional scorer as a junior and senior in the high jump as well as a regional qualifier in the long jump. 

“Vushaun and Aviram did a nice job for us, last year,” said Murray. “Now with Ja'Quan in the mix, he gives us a long jump threat that will contribute right away and has the potential in the triple jump. Jeffrey also has the potential to impact us as he was well coached in high school and now it's just a matter getting stronger and jumping higher.”