This page provides updates on the running/field accomplishments of our athletes who have graduated from Cherokee High School. Please send additional Alumni information to Coach Shaklee or to the Webmaster.
The seasons follow in chronological order. Click on the desired season or on the "most recent entry:"
Cross Country, 2006-- On August 20, 2006, Alum Marc Pelerin ('02) now a graduate of Villanova University, finished two weeks serving on the staff at RunningWorks' Cross Country Camps and made preparations to move to his new school, George Mason University, where he will seek an MA in Communications. With several seasons remaining because of redshirting and injuries, Marc will run for GMU throughout the year! The following pictures were taken at RunningWorks -- the dance pictures, the shower pictures, and those with Mike Kerrigan have been suppressed in the interest of good taste!
-- On August 31, 2006, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, now a second-year Captain of the Cross Country team, did an interview with the school's electronic newspaper, GoDuke.com. Check out that interview at: Krieger Q and A.
OMG Quote of the Interview: "After graduation, I'm planning on working for an insurance company as an actuary, helping them create and price different insurance plans and helping them with their finances . . .." Oh, you wild and crazy guy!
-- On September 9, 2006, four of Cherokee's Alums were racing and two of those were our most recent graduates!
Alum Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton University, opened the season at home in the Princeton Invitational. Tom took 32nd place in 27.03.80 on their new 8K course. GO TOM! Complete results at: Go Tigers.
Alums Matt Dolan ('05), Greg Bredeck ('06) and Rich Nelson ('06), all running for The College of New Jersey, traveled to the Connecticut College XC Invitational in Waterford, CT. In the 8K race with 387 competitors, Matt, in his second year of college cross country, was first among the Alums, finishing in 68th overall (27:11) and 9th on the TCNJ team. Greg followed in 106th place (27:50) and 14th on the TCNJ team, while Rich cross the finish line in 142nd place (28:32) and 19th on the team. GO MATT! GO GREG! GO RICH! Results at: TCNJ Results.
-- On September 16, 2006, two of Cherokee's Alums were racing, while several others were spectators at their Alma Mater's Cherokee Challenge!
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, opened his season at the James Madison Cross Country Open on the course at the New Market Civil War Battlefield Park. Keith completed the 7900 meter run in 25:37, finishing 8th overall and 4th on his team. His team took 1st in the 9-team event. GO KEITH! Complete results at: JMU Sports
Alum James Maneval ('05) of the University of North Carolina, Charlotte, redshirted last year, opened his official college competition at the Winthrop University Invitational in Winston-Salem, NC. James finished the 8K race in 27:46, 25th overall and 11th on his team. His team took 2nd in the 9-team race. GO JAMES! Winthrop Results
Alums Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton, Greg Bredeck ('06), and Rich Nelson ('06) of TCNJ, and Vin Marziano ('06) of LaSalle were at the Cherokee Challenge to support their former team and, perhaps, to grab some free food! Welcome back, guys! The photographer never saw Rich Nelson but he caught Tom and Greg near the snack bar, and Vin Marziano later on. Check out the Marziano picture and decide whether he . . . 1) lost a bet; (2) is playing the role of Chingachgook in the school play, Last of the Mohicans; (3) found the Christian Brothers at LaSalle are back to their old tricks; (4) suffered a hazing ritual on his CC team.
-- On September 17, 2006, Alum Mike Candy ('05) ran the Philadelphia Distance Run. He finished the half-marathon in 281st place (out of some 11,000 runners) and clocked a 1:25.14! All the details on the Distance Run are at: Run Philly
-- On September 21, 2006, Alums Matt Dolan ('05), Greg Bredeck ('06) and Rich Nelson ('06), all running for The College of New Jersey, traveled to Haverford College for the Main Line Invitational. In the 4 Mile race, Matt finished 68th overall (21:29) and 10th on the TCNJ team. Greg followed in 72nd place (21:45) and 13th on the TCNJ team, while Rich crossed the finish line in 94th place (22:49) and 20th on the team. Results at: Haverford Results.
-- On September 29, 2006, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, traveled to Oregon to compete in the inaugural Bill Dellinger Cross Country Invitational on Pre's Trail at Alton Baker Park, a 7,770m course at the University. Facing stiff competition from several nationally ranked teams, Keith finished in 40th place in 24:14.74 (second on his team)! Go Ducks.
Alum Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton University and Matt Dolan ('05), Greg Bredeck ('06) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey participated in the Paul Short Invitational at Leheigh University. In the 8K College Men's Open Race, Tom crossed the line in a fantastic 25:39 taking 10th place, while Matt took 134th in 27:00, Greg took 154th in 27:09 and Rich took 185th in 27:21. As the places suggest, it was a large field of 474 finishers! Complete results for the College Men's Open Race: Paul Short Results.
-- On September 30, 2006, Alums James Maneval ('05) of the University of North Carolina, Charlotte and Will Andes ('06) of George Mason University competed in the Mason XC Invitational at Bull Run Regional Park, Centreville, Virginia. James finsihed in 68th place in 27:04.45, while Will ran "unattached" and finished in 28:52.80, 104th in the 8K race. GO WILL! Results at: Mason's Very Annoying and Cheesy Website.
-- On October 7, 2006, Alum Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton University, fresh off his great race at the Paul Short Invitational, showed up at Holmdel Park to encourage the team and his brother, Alex, in the Shore Coaches' Meet. Asked if the beard is part of a drama presentation at school, Tom explained that he was just lazy. Ah, a true Princetonian! GO TIGER!
-- On October 8, 2006, Alum Mike Candy ('05) of Philadelphia Biblical University ran the Long Beach Island 18 Mile Run. He finished 18th in 2:01.21.
-- On October 14, 2006, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, competed in the 2006 Pre-Nationals Invitational on Indiana State's Lavern Gibson Course. Pre-Nat's is always a terrific meet because many ranked teams show-up to prep for the up-coming Nationals. Duke took 26th out of 36 teams in the Blue Race! Keith finished 1st on his team: 70th place, clocking a 24:40.90! PDF results available through: Indiana State University. The pictures were shot by Cheryl Treworgy of Pretty Sporty and may be purchased at that site.
Alums Matt Dolan ('05), Greg Bredeck ('06) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey, traveled to the University of Albany for the 40th Annual UAlbany Cross Country Invitational. In the Munsey Championship 8K Race, Matt finished in 132nd place, clocking 27:54.5. In the Men's Purple 8K Race, Greg finished in 18th, clocking a 26:55.7, and Rich was right behind him in 20th, with a 26:58.0. Complete results at: Finish Right Results.
-- On October 28, 2006, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Keith again took first on his team, finishing 11th overall in 24:41.5. His team finished 4th behind NC State, FSU and Virginia. Complete results at: ACC. The pictures were shot by Cheryl Treworgy of Pretty Sporty and may be purchased at that site.
Alums Matt Dolan ('05), Greg Bredeck ('06) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey, competed in the 8K New Jersey Athletic Conference Championships at Richard Stockton College of New Jersey in Pomona. For the first time in his college running, Greg beat his old Cherokee Alum, Matt Dolan, crossing the line 27:37.28 and taking 22nd place overall. Matt was close behind in 27:50.89, taking 26th place; and right on his heels came Rich in 28:05.29, taking 28th place! Their team, TCNJ, took 7 of the first 9 places in the 7-team race, easily winning championship laurels! Complete results at: TCNJ Athletics
-- On November 4, 2006, three of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alums Greg Bredeck ('06) and Matt Dolan ('05) of The College of New Jersey traveled to Williamstown, MA for the Division III ECAC Cross Country Championships. The team finished 2nd behind Williams College with Greg completing the 40-team 8K race in 4th place on his team and 23rd overall (27:13), and Matt following in 7th place on the team and 78th overall (28:14). Results at: Cool Running
Alum Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton University stayed at home to compete in the Old Nassau Run on Princeton's new course on West Windsor Fields. Tom finished in 7th place overall, stopping the clock at 25:41.50! Full results at: GO Tigers
-- On November 11, 2006, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, competed in the NCAA Southeast Regional Cross Country Championships at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. Keith stopped the clock at 31:52.05, finishing in 34th place (2nd on his team). Thirty-two teams were in the race, with 220 runners. Duke finished 9th overall. Further details at: NCAA SPorts. The pictures were shot by Cheryl Treworgy of Pretty Sporty and may be purchased at that site.
-- On November 14, 2006, we ran into Rock Marziano, Father and # 1 fan of Alum Vin Marziano ('06) of LaSalle University, who updated us on Vin's progress. Vin "redshirted" this year but he is training (and studying) diligently! On October 23, 2006, Vin ran his first race of the season, the 4 mile Haverford Invitational in 20:33 taking 3rd overall. He especially enjoyed passing former Triton and SJ star, Rudy Belko of Villanova! And on November 5, 2006, Vin ran an Open 5K, the Philadelphia Catholic League Alumni Race on the famed course at Belmont -- remember Parachute, Flagpole and, for you old college guys, Surekill? -- in Fairmont Park. He finished 3rd in that race too, behind John Butler, a LaSalle 5th year senior, and LaSalle's Ass't Coach Bryan Skelly (former Washington Twp and SJ star and now with the Philadelphia Track Club), in 16:11. GO VIN!
-- On November 18, 2006, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University, competed in the 98th Annual IC4A and 22nd ECAC Cross Country Championships on the famous 5 Mile course at Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx, New York. Keith took 14th overall and 1st on his team in 25:34.7, helping his team to finish 4th in the 15 team field. Except for the first photograph which is a file photo from the Duke website, the pictures were taken by Susan Pearsall of Smugmug and may be purchased at that site. Complete results at: Cool Running
-- On November 19, 2006, Alum Mike Candy ('05) of Philadelphia Biblical University ran the Philadelphia Marathon! Mike finished 5th in his age group and 272nd overall in his first marathon, stopping the clock at 3:04.52. Like so many others who have had the marathon experience, Mike had a rough time in the final 4 miles! He just missed his goal of running under 3 hours but he is still very excited because he qualified for the up-coming Boston Marathon in April! The official Philladelphia Marathon site: Philadelphia Marathon.
-- On January 5, 2007, Alum Tom Yersak ('05) of Princeton University participated in an intense Dual Meet at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis that came down to the final event! Tom ran the 3K finishing 6th among the scorers in the race with a disappointing time of 9:22.50. Full results at: Go Princeton Tigers.
-- On January 6, 2007, Alum Will Andes ('06) of George Mason University participated in the Father Diamond Invitational at the Mason fieldhouse there in Fairfax, Va. Will is addressing a couple of health issues and this race was probably not the best place to test his condition! He had the mixed-pleasure of running the Mile against American stars like Alan Webb -- who ran a sub-4 minute pace -- Sam Burley, and former NJ champion Justin Schied, and he didn't fare well, limping in at 4:58.47. Get well, Will . . . go fast! Details at the incredibly annoying Mason website: Go Mason.
-- On January 19, 2007, Alum Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey traveled to Collegeville, PA for the Ursinus Collegeville Classic. Do they still call that place, "Uranus?" Just a thought . . .. Anyway, Rich ran the mile in 4:39.3, 15th in a field of 45 finishers. Details at: Ursinus
-- On January 27, 2007, three of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alums Alums Rich Nelson ('06) and Matt Dolan ('05) of The College of New Jersey competed in the Seamus McElligott Invitational at Haverford College. Rich ran pretty well, competing in both the 800m (8th of 27 in 2:01.62) and the 1600m (10th of 29 in 4:32.43) on the old boards at Haverford! Matt had a tougher time running the 3K in 9:40.68. Full results at: TCNJ Athletics.
Alum Marc Pelerin ('02), now a graduate student at George Mason University, stayed at home to compete in the George Mason Patriot Games '07. Marc continues to deal with nagging injuries that have affected his entire career and this was his first hard workout in months! He entered the 3K but, because his calf problems re-emerged, he finished in a slow 8:55.32. Still, it's a step in the right direction! Get healthy, Marc . . . go fast! Full results at: G. Mason
-- On February 2, 2007, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University traveled to the famous NY City Armory for the New Balance Collegiate Invitational where he clocked a 14:54.21 in the 5K Championship Race. Keith has had an annoying injury through the later part of the Cross Country season but he's coming back! Indeed, this is about where he was last year at this time and he dropped to his indoor PR of 14:37.24 by March! Stay tuned! Complete results at: The Armory. The pictures were shot by Cheryl Treworgy of Pretty Sporty and may be purchased at that site.
-- On February 17, 2007, Alum Marc Pelerin ('02), now a graduate student at George Mason University, traveled to Blacksburg, Va for the Virginia Tech Challenge. Marc ran in the Invitational 3K, posting a time of 8:40.67, 25 seconds faster than his time two weeks ago! It ain't "Olympic Trials" but it's another step in the right direction! Full results at: Flash Results.
-- On February 19, 2007, Alums Matt Dolan ('05) and Rich Nelson of The College of New Jersey competed in the NJAC Track and Field Championships at the Bennett Athletic Center in Toms River. Matt clocked 15:39.78 in the Mixed 5K, finishing 1st, while Rich clocked 2:04.94 in the 800m. Their team won the 8-team competition, scoring more than twice as many points as the # 2 team, Ramapo. Complete results at: Bennett.
-- On February 23, 2007, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference Championships at Clemson University in South Carolina. Keith finished in 10th place while clocking a 14:42.27 in the 5K, only 5 seconds above his indoor PR. Not bad when you consider his long-term struggle with an achilles injury! Complete results at: Flash Results.
-- On March 4, 2007, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University traveled to Boston University for the 2007 IC4A Indoor Track and Field Championships. Keith competed in the 5K, finishing in 14:33.02, an indoor PR in the event! Complete results at: Lancer Results.
-- On March 24, 2007, Alums Matt Dolan ('05) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey traveled to the 12th Annual Monmouth University Opener at Kessler Field in Long Branch. Matt ran the 5K, clocking 15:51.01 and finishing 18th out of 48, while Rich ran the 1500m, crossing the line in 4:15.27 and finishing 19th out of 66 competitors. Complete results at: Go MU Hawks.
-- On March 30, Alum Paul McFadden ('05) of Salisbury University in Salisbury, Maryland competed in the Maryland Terrapin Invitational at College Park, Maryland. Paul ran in the 3K Steeplechase, clocking a 10:42.52 and finishing 18th in the event. Complete results at: Maryland Invite.
-- On March 31, 2007, three of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alums Marc Pelerin ('02) and Will Andes ('06) of George Mason University competed in the Track Spring Classic, '07 at the George Mason Stadium in Fairfax, Virginia. Both were in the 800m with Will clocking a 1:56.92, closely followed by Marc in 1:57.39. Complete results at: Go Mason.
Alum Joe Halin ('00), a graduate of Appalachian State University, is now working in "the real world" and volunteering his services to the Moorestown High School Track and CC teams. Joe and many of the Moorestown athletes ran Haddonfield's Adrenaline 5K. Joe -- pictured below, #98 in Cherokee orange -- finished just ahead of Cherokee's top runner Alex Yersak in 16th at 16:04. Complete results at: L and M Sports.
-- On April 6, 2007, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University participated in the 2007 Duke Asics Invitational at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, NC. Keith ran the 5K, finishing in 11th overall while clocking a PR 14:17.77! Keith now holds the top spot for the Alumni 5K! His 14.17.77 "smashes" the previous record of 14:17.99 set by Marc Pelerin ('02) at The Big East in 2006! The next in line is Joe Halin ('00) who held the record before Marc, after running 14:19.97 at the Raleigh Relays in 2005. Cheryl Treworgy of Pretty Sporty took the pictures displayed below and they may be purchased at that site. Complete results for the Duke meet at: Duke Invite.
Alum Tom Yersak ('06) of Princeton University competed in the Sam Howell Memorial Invitational at Princeton. Tom finished 46th in the 5K, clocking a 15:18.50. Complete results at: Go Princeton Tigers.
Alum Marc Pelerin ('02) of George Mason University traveled to William and Mary College in Williamsburg, Virginia for the snow-shortened Colonial Relays. Marc competed in the 1500m, finishing in 24th place in 3:59.54. Complete results at: Go Mason.
-- On April 14, 2007, Alum Joe Halin ('00), a graduate of Appalachian State University, and now a volunteer coach at Moorestown High School, played his new role diligently by wearing a Moorestown jacket with his name - Halin - embroadered on it, and by yelling a warning to a young Moorestown runner who was about to be overtaken at the finish of the 5K by a Cherokee runner: "Look out, here comes the Cherokee kid!" Several phrases come to mind: "Say it ain't so, Joe!" . . . "Et tu, Brute?" . . .. But don't be too hard on Joe: this picture is punishment enough!
-- On April 14, 2007, Alum Tom Yersak ('06) of Princeton University traveled to Franklin Field in Philadelphia for the Penn Quad Meet, a 4-team event with U of P, Villanova, Princeton and Rutgers competing. Tom ran the 1500m in 4:05.64 which is almost certainly a PR in the event! Complete results at: Penn Athletics.
-- On the weekend of April 20 - 21, 2007, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Tom Yersak ('06) of Princeton University stayed at home to compete in the Larry Ellis Memorial Invitational at Weaver Stadium on the Princeton campus. Tom competed in the 5K, finishing in 15:10.53 . . . another PR! For complete results: Go Princeton Tigers.
Alum Marc Pelerin ('02) of George Mason University traveled to James Madison University for the Colonial Athletic Association's Track and Field Championships. Marc competed in the 1500m, qualifying 9th in the trials with a 3:56.91, and then finishing 7th overall in the finals with a 3:56.96! Complete results at: Go Mason.
Alum Paul McFadden ('05) of Salisbury University stayed at home to compete in the Capital Athletic Conference Track and Field Championships on campus. Paul ran the 3K Steeplechase, finishing 5th overall in 10:37.31 and scoring 2 points for his team! The Seagulls easily won the championship over their five conference rivals. Complete results at: Salisbury Athletics.
Alums Matt Dolan ('05) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey participated in the Greyhound Invitational at Moravian College in Bethelem, PA. Matt competed in the 10K, finishing 9th overall in 16:10.25, while Rich ran in the 800m, finsihing 10th in 1:58.07. Complete results at: Moravian College.
-- On April 26, 2007, Marc Pelerin ('02) of George Mason University and Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University participated in the Thursday Night Distance Races at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia. Both have nursed injuries through the Winter and Spring but both hoped for great results. Unfortunately, those problems plus the time of their races -- 9:30 pm and 10:40 pm respectively -- and the wind, rain and cold temperatures made their goals unreachable. Marc ran the College Men's 5K hoping for a PR and to restore his name to the top of the Cherokee Alumni Records in the 5K! Well, alright, perhaps he had other reasons as well! But back on April 6, Keith Krieger ran 14:17.77 and broke Marc's record of 14:17.99 so this goal was not completely out of his mind! Unfortunately, Marc finished a disappointing 18th in 14:42.76. Keith began the College Men's 10K very aggressively and held a front position for quite a few laps before the pace quickened even more and the field began to spread out. Keith still ran strongly and finished the race in 4th place in 30:03.50, ten seconds above his PR and Cherokee Alumni Record of 29:53.85 set back in March of 2005! Complete results on all races at: Penn Relays.
-- On April 28, 2007, Alums Tom Yersak ('06) of Princeton University and Matt Dolan ('05) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey competed in the Lion's Invitational at The College of New Jersey. Tom and Matt ran the 1500m with Tom finishing in 13th (4:09.00) and Matt close behind in 18th (4:11.88)! Rich ran the 800m finishing in 14th (1:59.96). Full results at: TCNJ Athletics.
-- On the long weekend of April 4 - 6, 2007, several of Cherokee's Alums were racing:
Alum Paul McFadden ('05) of Salisbury State University competed in the Mason Dixon Championships at Salisbury. Paul ran the 3K Steeplechase clocking a 10:26.64 and finishing in 5th. He scored 2 points and helped his team take 2nd place behind track powerhouse Christopher Newport University. Details at: Salisbury, pdf
Alum Marc Pelerin ('02) of George Mason University stayed at home for the Patriot Open Invitational. Marc clocked a 3:54.36 and finished 3rd in the 1500m Run, only a few seconds off his PR set in April of 2006 at Princeton, 3:51.50. Complete results at: Go Mason
Alums Matt Dolan ('05) and Rich Nelson ('06) of The College of New Jersey competed in the NJAC Track and Field Championships at TCNJ. Matt ran the 10K clocking a 33:56.21. He finished in 3rd place and scored 6 points for the team! Rich ran the 800m and clocked a 1:56.79 PR. He finished in 4th place and scored 5 points for the team! With that help, the team won the Championship for the 10th year in a row! Full details at: TCNJ Athletics.
Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University stayed at the Wallace Wade Stadium on the Duke campus to run in the 2007 Duke Asics Twilight Meet. Sharpening for the up-coming IC4A's, Keith ran the 1500m in 4:01.22, a big PR for him! Details at: Flash Results.
-- On May 11th, 2007, Alum Keith Krieger ('03) of Duke University competed in the IC4A Track and Field Championships at Princeton University. Keith finished the 5K in 11th place clocking a 14:32.19. Details at: Lancer First Day Results.
-- On May 22, 2007, Alum Joe Halin ('00) was at the Haddonfield Twilight Meet, an event that features only high school distance races, where he paced a young runner through the mile. The goal was only a 4:40 so the race didn't put that much pressure on him! By the way, Joe, who has been working in South Jersey and volunteering his time with the Moorestown High School Track team, will soon take a full-time job at the Moorestown Running Company, a new running shoe store in town. Good luck to him on that!
