Meet the Newcomers: Men's Track Athletes
11/18/2009 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
Nov. 18, 2009
USAF ACADEMY, Colo. - This week, GoAirForceFalcons.com wraps up its preview of the freshman members of the Air Force track and field team by highlighting the 20 newcomers that will compete on the track during the 2010. The group features six state champions, including a three-time Colorado 2A champion in the hurdles.
Three-time champion Daniel Baer (Greeley) won the Colorado 2A title in the 110-meter hurdles during the 2006, 2007 and 2008 seasons and set the state meet record in that event as a senior. Named Athlete of the Year by the Greeley Tribune, Baer also earned the state title in the 300-meter hurdles as a senior.
Baer is one of two freshmen hurdlers that spent the 2008-09 academic year at the Academy's Prep School. Justin Manchester (Panama City, Fla.) was the runner-up in the 300-meter hurdles at the Florida 2A championships. In addition, he won the 300-meter title in the high school division at the annual Florida Relays and was the 10th-ranked high school senior in the nation in that event.
Brendon West (Fredericksburg, Texas) was the Texas 3A champion in the 100-meter dash, while anchoring his 4x400-meter relay team to the Division I title at the 2009 Texas Relays. As a sophomore, West also picked up a second-place finish in the 400-meter dash at the state 4A championships.
Air Force added an additional sprinter in Uzor Udensi (San Antonio, Texas), a two-time Texas 5A runner-up in the 100-meter dash at the Texas Association of Private and Parochial School (TAPPS) state meet.
Jeremy Drenckhahn (Plymouth, Minn.) was the Minnesota state champion in the 3200-meter dash, while also earning a top-10 finish in the 1600-meter run and at the state 2A cross country championships. Classmate Blair O'Bryant (Douglasville, Ga.) was the Georgia 5A state champion in the 800-meter run. Also a talented sprinter and pole vaulter, O'Bryant will pursue the decathlon at Air Force.
Two additional champions will join the Falcons' program. Daniel Gieck (Manitou Springs, Colo.) was the state 3A champion in the 110-meter hurdles in 2008, while Andrew Quallio (Tallahassee, Fla.) was the Department of Defense Dependent Schools (DoDDS) Far East cross country champion while attending Jama American High School in Japan.
Cameron Edwards (Park City, Utah) and Chris Espinosa (Albuquerque, N.M.) finished second in the 800-meter run at their respective state championship meets. Edwards also finished third at the Utah cross country championships and fourth in the 1600-meter run at the state track championships.
The Falcons also added distance runners Ted Artz (Satellite Beach, Fla.), Matt Bell (Denver, Colo.), Zak Boston (Navarre, Fla.), Donald Jackson (Duluth, Ga.), Cory Johnson (Indianola, Iowa), Sam O'Hair (Rocklin, Calif.) and Seth Pelletier (Wells, Maine), as well as sprinters Anthony Delgado (Austin, Texas), Chad LIscar (Columbus, Ga.) and Cale Snider (Bonney Lake, Wash.)
Air Force opens the season on Friday, Jan. 15, with the annual Air Force All-Comers Meet.
Players Mentioned
