Freshmen Ethan Bush and Keynaud Randolph SMASH their PBs in 800m at Towson Univ.
Track & Field Head Coach Mark Pryor had his training plan all laid out for the outdoor season. It was geared toward peak performances in late April and early May so that his athletes could qualify for the NJCAA Outdoor T&F Championships. This plan has served Pryor well in previous seasons especially in 2018 when his first T&F athlete placed 8th at the Junior College National Championships in the men's 400m dash (:47.71) earning JUCO All-American status. But sometimes, plans are made to be broken. In this case, both his freshman Ethan Bush and Keynaud Randolph performed well above those plans on April 1st at Towson University.
Keynaud Randolph is more of a distance runner, excelling in the longer events like the 5,000 meters or in cross country running 5.0 miles (8k). Ethan Bush is a middle-distance runner who competes in the 800m and 1500m events. Both athletes arrived on the CCBC Catonsville campus with modest PRs in the 800m, 1600m and 400m. So far, under the training program created by Coach Pryor, both student-athletes have improved leaps and bounds in their events since the outdoor season started on March 17th. A major leap was taken at the Towson Invitational when both ran in the 800m event.
Keynaud's best time in 800 meters at Forest Park HS was 2:11 and in the 1600m was 5:08.77. In two short weeks, Keynaud has improved his time in the 1600 meters by :27 secs to 4:41 (4:24.22 - 1500m). At the Towson Invitational, Keynaud improved his 800-meter time by :10 secs to 2:01.59. He was scheduled to run the 5,000 meters at George Mason University, but a recent tailbone issue prevented him from finishing.
Ethan's best time in the 800m at Franklin HS was 2:06.31 and in the 1600m was 4:59.52. In two short weeks, Ethan has improved his time in the 1600 meters by :19 secs to 4:40 (4:23.38 - 1500m). At the Towson Invitational, Ethan improved his 800-meter time by :3 secs to 2:03.08. 47-degree cold weather at George Mason University last weekend prevented Ethan from another improvement but he was still able to produce another 2:03 clocking. Ethan has also run :53.07 for 400 meters. His high school best for 400m is :52.54.
Full results from the 2023 Towson Spring Open can be found here: TFRRS | 2023 Towson Spring Open - Meet Results
Coach Pryor believes that as the weather gets warmer, his athletes training will get more intense; thus producing greater improvements in his young charges and more PBs. When asked what was a factor that helped produce these improvements, Pryor stated, "I had to help them believe that they could run a lot faster than they imagined". The current training program is asking the student-athletes to run times faster in practice then they did in high school, which in turn is creating faster race times. The goal of the track team here at CCBC Catonsville is to help the athletes move on to the next level in their sport along with their academics.
Pryor is hopeful that his student-athletes can continue to be focused in training both consistently and with a higher yearning to accomplish more. The next few scheduled competitions will surely test his athletes mentally and physically as they compete against NCAA Division-I and Division-II schools. On April 22nd, the team will compete at the John Hopkins/Loyola Invitational. The following weekend, the team travels to Shippensburg PA to take on NCAA Division-II schools and then on May 3rd, the Liberty Univ Twilight will give the athletes one of its hardest tests against Division-I schools. Coach Pryor believes Ethan and Keynaud are ready for the challenge.
This Saturday, the team is scheduled to compete at the first ever Mid-Atlantic JUCO Invitational held at Howard Community College in Columbia MD. The action starts at 10am.
GO CARDINALS!!!!!!!! #JUCOproduct