Hello Red Dragons!

As you may have heard, the SUNYAC made the announcement yesterday afternoon that fall sports would be suspended this upcoming semester and that competition for winter sports would be delayed until January 1st, 2021. While we wanted to be able to have cross country and a normal start to indoor track and field, we also needed to be able to execute it safely and we weren't able to achieve that standard in time for this fall. There are a lot of questions right now about what this means for the program during this upcoming, and we anticipate having more answers in the upcoming weeks from the NCAA, the SUNYAC, and our campus.

We are still very happy to have the semester beginning, and to have the new members of the team with us starting in late August! We are working to take the viewpoint that challenges are really just opportunities in disguise, and that a positive mentality will help us all get through this faster!
 

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Moving on to good news! The Cortland Challenge, (formerly the 3-2-1 Challenge, or the Day of Giving) which has been a huge source of support over the past years was once again a wonderful show of support for our program. While we don't know what all the challenges we will be facing this year are yet, it is great to know that you are supporting us!
 

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And finally, some great news! The program has had exceptional success academically over the past year! Brent DiVittorio was named a CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) Academic All-American for the 2019 – 2020 season. There are only 48 honorees across the country; the award is voted on for a combination of Academic Excellence and Athletic performance.

DiVittorio was joined by 4 teammates in earning Academic All-American honors from the USTFCCCA (US Track & Field/Cross Country Coaches Association) for the track and field season: David Bernstein, Ryan Konotopskyj, Connor Lewis, and Nolan Vest. This award has a stringent GPA requirement, along with the requirement of being on the 'national list' – top 50 in the country in your event). Vest, along with three other Cortland athletes (Chad Dunham, Sam Himes and Cabel McCandless) earned Academic All-American recognition in the fall for cross country

Finally, 50 (!) members of our team – nearly half of the roster – earned a spot on the SUNYAC Commissioner's Academic Honor Roll for the 2019 -2020 year! Academic success and professional preparation are very important to us, and we're proud of what these folks have done to achieve this high level of success!


As always, we thank you for your support and interest! Stay Safe and Sane!
Steve
 
Steve Patrick '97
Head Cross Country/Track & Field Coach
SUNY Cortland

Previous Updates:
June 2020
May 2020
April 2020
March 2020
February 2020 (PDF)
January 2020 (PDF)
December 2019 (PDF)