The Greater Capital Region Track, Field and Cross Country Invites You…

by Peter Sheridan

The Greater Capital Region Track, Field, and Cross Country Hall of Fame was founded in the summer of 2017 with the goal of providing recognition to those athletes, coaches, officials and contributors who have achieved superlative performances or have made significant contributions to the history and growth of these sports in the Greater Capital Region area of upstate New York.

In our second year, the decision was made to include road racers in the mix as potential members. Although armed with formidable track and cross country achievements, the trio of Tom Dalton, Barry Brown, and Elizabeth Maloy DeBole, have magnificent road credentials, as well.

The GCRTFCCHOF would like to cordially invite all HMRRC members to be part of the celebration as we honor these three and eight other inductees in the Class of 2019 at the Albany Marriott on September 21st at our second annual banquet.

The Three Top Road Racers Being Honored:

The first runner from the Capital Region to break four minutes in the mile was Barry Brown, a Colonie High School and Providence College product who competed in the Olympic Trials in the steeplechase and later set American masters records in several events.

Another runner who made his mark as a masters champion was Tom Dalton, a 1981 Siena graduate and dominating figure in area road racing. Road racers were considered for Hall of Fame induction for the first time this year. Tom Dalton has set HMRRC records with the most wins in the Stockade-athon, Corporate Challenge, Troy Turkey Trot, Delmar Dash, and the Bill Robinson Masters 10K.

Elizabeth Maloy DeBole parlayed a state championships achieved at Holy Names and a stellar career at Georgetown into a run at an Olympic berth, finishing seventh in the 5,000-meter finals at the 2012 U.S. Trials.

They still talk about Gary Connor’s amazing run over the Sunken Meadows course on Long Island in the 1968 State Cross Country Championships, his second of two golds in the meet as he dominated distance running for Niskayuna in the late 1960s.

The 2019 inductees into the Greater Capital Regional Track, Field and Cross Country Hall of Fame:

Barry Brown (Colonie ‘62, Providence ‘66)

First runner from the Capital Region to break the four-minute mile, running 3:58.8. Competed on 23 U.S. National Teams and qualified for the Olympic Trials three times.
Established 12 USA age-group records, including American Masters records at 10,000 meters, the half marathon and marathon.
Multiple winner of USATF Masters Runner of the Year and Roadrunners Club of America Masters Roadrunner of the Year titles.

Tom Dalton (CBA Syracuse ’76, Siena College ’81)

Undefeated in dual meets and invitationals during three years of cross country at Siena College.
Five-time USATF Masters Cross Country Runner of the Year.
Champion, Albany Corporate Challenge (14 times), Schenectady Stockade-a-thon (7 times), Troy Turkey Trot (8 times). Record holder in Turkey Trot for 10,000 meters.

Elizabeth Maloy DeBole (Holy Names ‘03, Georgetown ‘07)

Won state high school championships in cross country, indoor and outdoor track, setting sectional records in the 1,000 indoors and 1,500 outdoors.
Finished seventh in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials 5,000.
Currently head coach of cross country and assistant track coach at Stanford University, where she has been named NCAA West Region Coach of the Year in both cross country (2016) and indoor track (2017).

Gary Connor (Niskayuna ‘69)

Two-time state high school Class A cross country champion. Won the 1968 race by a record 33 seconds.
Three-time Section 2 Class A Cross Country champion who set nine course records in his career.
When he ran 9:24.9 for a full two miles on a cinder track in 1969, it ranked second on the all-time Section 2 list.

Cliff Lehman (CBA ’56, New Hampshire ‘60)

Coached Christian Brothers Academy of Albany for 34 years with a dual meet record of 317-29-1. He compiled 184 invitational and championship meet wins.
Coached 60-foot shot putters in four decades and had a 50-foot thrower for 30 consecutive years.
Honored as Region 1 Coach of the Year by the National Federation of High School Coaches.

Heidi Mann Vittengl (Queensbury ‘82, University of Florida ‘87)

Set a national high school record in the heptathlon and state records in both the pentathlon and heptathlon. Her then state heptathlon mark of 4,953 points has only been surpassed once in 38 years.
Won consecutive state championships in the pentathlon and captured the TAC Junior National Championships heptathlon while in high school. While competing for Florida, she became the first woman to win the Penn Relays heptathlon three years in a row. In addition, she was designated as an All American twice and was a four-time SEC All-Academic team selection.
Inducted into both the New York State Public High School Athletic Association and Empire State Games Halls of Fame following a diverse athletic career that included excellence on the golf course, as well.

Vince McArdle (Vincentian ’60, Manhattan ‘64)

A solid high jumper and long jumper at Vincentian Institute before blossoming as a sprinter and 440-yard hurdler at Manhattan.
Ran a number of 46-point 440-yard relay legs, set a field house record in an indoor meet at Navy with a 1:11.0 for 600 yards, and dominated outdoor meets in the 440-yard hurdles as a senior. He was runner-up in the NCAA Championships and finished eighth in the 1964 Olympic Trials with a career-best 50.7.
The All-American received the Metropolitan Coaches Association Founder’s Award as the top college athlete in the New York City area.

Sarah Palmer (Schuylerville ‘11, Penn State ‘15)

Won five consecutive state high school outdoor high jump championships, sits second on the all-time area list with a best of 5-9 ¼ and broke the state freshman record with a 5-8 1/2.
Indoors, she won two state federation titles, the Eastern States Championship and was a three-time All-American.
Helped Penn State win three Big Ten team titles and was a finalist six times, indoors and out, in the conference high jump championships.

Jen Petersen Jette (Fonda-Fultonville ‘93, Michigan ‘97)

Ranks high on the all-time Section II outdoor lists in the 100-meter hurdles (14.3), high jump (5-9) and pentathlon (3,397), with a state title in the latter.
A state indoor high jump champion who went on to place third at the indoor nationals in the pentathlon. Still holds the all-time area indoor pentathlon mark of 3,393 and ranks high on the lists in the 50-meter hurdles (7.5), 55-meter hurdles (8.1) and high jump (5-8).
After a Big Ten career at Michigan, took up coaching at Colonie, where she compiled a dual meet record of 89-9 and coached two All-Americans and a state champion.

Klarrisa Ricks (Holy Names, ’11, Syracuse ‘15)

Burst onto the scene with a state freshman class record of 7.58 for the 60-meter dash in the indoor nationals after winning her first of two state meet titles. Holds all-time area indoor bests in the 45 (6.11) and 55 (6.95) and sits second on the long jump list (18-11 ¾)
Won the Penn Relays Championship of America long jump to kick off a senior year outdoors that included three gold medals at the state meet in the 100, long jump and 4 x 100 relay. Her 11.93 in the 100 is the all-time area best, and her 19-10 ¾ in the long jump continues to rank second.
After initially attending Columbia, transferred to Syracuse and competed for two years with a long jump best of 19-3.

Ed Springstead (Cortland State)

Has coached cross country and track for more than 60 years, winning state cross country championships at Colonie in 1962 and at Shaker in 2010. The latter team also won the state federation title and competed in the Nike Cross Nationals.
Has coached numerous individuals and teams to Section 2 championships. Among his outstanding athletes was Barry Brown, who became a world-class competitor in the steeplechase and marathon.
Served as the Section 2 boys’ cross country coordinator for many years. An early fall season meet, the Ed Springstead Invitational, has been named in his honor.

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Pace Setter : September 2019