All-American Team: O'Hara's Legacy on the Track

All-American Team: O'Hara's Legacy on the Track



Tradition, Excellence, Team


When you think of these three words in Pennsylvania track history teams like West Catholic and William Penn come to mind in the sprinting events and North Penn leaves an image of 4x800 greatness imprinted on your memory. 

There are many other great teams to be sure, but I for one will be honest. 

The name Cardinal O'Hara never crossed my mind.

Cardinal O'Hara might not have been an immediate entry on the list you formed when reading the above either, but they most certainly belong there.  O'Hara has made it their mission, tradition, and mark of excellence to graduate their track athletes as high school All-Americans, an honor that they can carry with them for a lifetime.

A Little History

O'Hara began this tradition in the year 2000 and in the 9 years hence 30 athletes have earned 88 All-American certificates in the distance relays and a few field events.  It all began with the quartet of Rich Anderson, Bob Brown, Pat Nash and Sean Duffy during the indoor season of 2000.  This DMR team finished 2nd in the NSIC championship with a time of 10:17.33.  According to Coach Tom Kennedy, who came on board for the indoor 2001 season, prior to the championships Anderson was adding up split times and convinced the other guys that the team could be competitive on the national stage.  Their finish proved that they could and the success continued.  Outdoors that same year the same foursome finished 3rd in the 4x800 at NON with an outdoor school record time of 7:41.93.  What a beginning to a legacy.

Enter Coach Kennedy

When Kennedy took over the program during the winter of 2001 he was already familiar with the success the team was having.  He was coaching at Sun Valley at the time of the O'Hara successes of 2000.  Kennedy decided that he was going to listen to the athletes his first year because they were the "force behind that (competing at nationals)". 

He leaned heavily on Duffy and Anderson, soaking up the desire that these guys had for competing and succeeding at a high level.  His first year coaching, the team earned All-American status in the 4x800 and DMR at both the NIN meet indoor and the NON meet outdoors, respectively.  Most impressive of all of these was the DMR outdoors.  O'Hara finished 4th with a lightning fast time of 10:11.24 in a race in which the national record was set. 

Kennedy was hooked, the athletes were hooked, and the tradition had just inherited a coach with the drive to motivate and prepare his athletes for national caliber performances year after year.

Tradition and Culture Rule


Coach Kennedy considers himself very fortunate to have landed at O'Hara.  As he describes it there is a culture of running at this school that, at most schools, is usually reserved for sports like soccer, basketball and football.  These sports are big, to be sure, but the athletes also compete with fierce competitiveness for the track team come springtime. 

Interest in track and field begins at a young age with the CYO track programs that start kids when they are in elementary school.  They are smartly coached through these early years as they always come to the high school fresh and eager to compete instead of burned out.  Kennedy credits these programs with driving the interest in the sport within the Catholic community. 

Motivation can be Deafening

Coaches and athletes alike that attend meets in the Philadelphia area should be familiar with the encouragement booming from the lungs of Coach Kennedy when O'Hara athletes are competing on the track or in the field.  When Kennedy first took over the reigns of O'Hara he wanted to win everything. 

Everything.  Every dual meet, every invitational, every championship, no matter what it took.  But Kennedy was a great coach in the making, and great coaches do what they do for the kids, so Kennedy "calmed down to benefit the kids", and started to focus on their development as individual athletes.   

Every coach knows that once the athletes are on the starting line the outcome of the race is out of their control.  Kennedy's shouts of encouragement stem from a desire to see the kids do well and benefit him by providing an outlet for all of that nervous energy that coaches possess on race day. 

The shouts undoubtedly drive his athletes as well.  How could you not be psyched up by such a show of team pride. 

Shining Moments to be Sure

Two major moments in O'Hara's history stand out for Coach Kennedy. 

In the indoor 2004 NSIC meet the team competed in the DMR and recorded a third place finish with a time of 10:10.80.  The race was initially a disappointment for the team because Steve Hallinan had the lead with a lap to go, and for those who remember, few athletes could outkick Steve in a mile race.  That day Steve ran a 4:13 split while the first and second place teams had anchors of 4:08 and 4:09.  Not much you can do about that.  The other legs were Greg Thomas, 3:08.7, Jack Braconnier, 49.5, and Matt Willard, 1:59.3. 

As time passed however, the team and Kennedy began to see the race for what it was, US#7 All-Time indoor at the time as well as the National Catholic Indoor School Record, the PA State Indoor Record, the Delco Indoor Record and an O'Hara School Record.

Not bad.

The second moment was during the outdoor 2003 season at the Nike Outdoor Nationals.  O'Hara ran a 4x800 that almost never was; the stars were aligned against that team from all angles.  O'Hara had run a 4x800 time of 7:52 about 10 days prior to the Nike meet and seemed out of contention for the fast heat.  Additionally, the guys were convinced that O'Hara should compete in the 4xMile, an event they felt they could win.  Kennedy stuck with his plan and fought to get his 4x800 in the race he felt they deserved.  He prevailed, and soon the heat swelled to 15 teams after several others fought to get in, feeling that they were better than O'Hara. 

O'Hara was seeded last.  Bring on the pressure.  Kennedy chose a 400 meter hurdler over an 800 runner for his anchor leg.  Bring on the pressure.  The team felt they had passed up their better event.  Bring on the pressure.

But Kennedy had a plan.  Bernie Rendler was the best lead-off leg on the squad and Kennedy knew he could get out well.  Hallinan ran better out of  a crowd as a junior so Kennedy put him second.  Dan Boyle ran third and Tom O'Brien, the 400 hurdler and 1:59.8 800 runner, was placed at anchor.  Rendler led off with a huge 1:55.0 leg, Hallinan also put up a monster time, running a 1:54.9, and Dan Boyle "showed up big" with a 1:55.2 leg before handing off to Tom.  Tom O'Brien was the question mark, but Kennedy's feeling paid off as O'Brien ran a huge PR of 1:56.5.  O'Brien was in third place with 170 meters to go but unleashed a monster kick to finish with a final time of 7:41.89 and a National Championship. 

Guts, grit, and determination define this race, and define the O'Hara distance runner in action.

Spreading the Love

Another facet of this tradition that stands out is the fact that O'Hara goes after All-American status in multiple relays each year, with many of the same athletes on each relay.  In fact, the year of their National Championship the team also placed 3rd in the DMR with a fantastic time of 10:13.05 with three of the same athletes.  Kennedy explains that you "do them when you have them".  When O'Hara runs multiple relays they do have them, often placing inside the top-6 with both relays and only outside of the top-10 once. 

Kennedy explains that the team summons the energy to race multiple times under the pressure of the national-caliber scene by "rallying around each other for motivation".  Kennedy says it is actually a bigger challenge to calm the team down after a successful race on a Friday night so that they can be ready to go for the next day. 

Distance relays dominate the scene at O'Hara, but other events have also produced All-Americans.  Bob McDade finished third in the 2003 indoor NSIC meet with a throw of 55-01.50.  The SMR team of Kevin Ward, Mickey Liszewski, Steve Werner and Ed Buck finished 5th in the event at the 2007 Nike Outdoor Nationals with a time of 3:28.81.  And more recently, Jason Johnson finished 5th in the 2008 NSIC triple jump with a leap of 47-00.25 and 3rd in the 2009 NSIC triple jump with a leap of 48-00.00. 

All of this competing stems from Kennedy's desire to put kids in the position to earn All-American status because he knows what it means to them and it is something that they can be proud of and say that they achieved in high school sports. 

Last Chances Fuel Heroics

In this years NSIC meet two seniors who each had a chance in the past were on the verge of their last chances to earn an All-American.  Mike DeStefano was part of an indoor 4xMile team that finished 9th in 2007 and Joe Sacchetti was part of an outdoor 4x800 squad that missed out despite running a time of 7:50. 

After a disappointing DMR in which the team finished 7th with a time of 10:24.35, despite DeStefano's stellar 4:22.8 anchor, the chances looked bleak.  The 4xMile was as much of an afterthought as the 4x800 team that won the title back in 2003.  The team featured Sacchetti and DeStefano as well as sophomores Mike Hess and Whitfield DeVoe.  Hess had run a 4:45 prior to the nationals weekend and DeVoe had posted a race time of 4:51, however both had shown 4:40 capability in practice. 

Kennedy wasn't even sure that he should run DeVoe, again rolling the dice like he had on O'Brien.  Last chances fuel heroics from the most unlikely of candidates. 

The two seniors had rallied the team before the race, and even though they had their doubts, they were both ready to race with all they had.  The two sophomores, fully entrenched in the tradition of the program, knew that they had to deliver for their senior teammates.  Sacchetti led off with a 4:29.6 leg to put the team in the top-6 at the hand-off.  DeStefano came back from his huge 4:22 leg and held it together for another great time of 4:26.4, and with the pass of a baton he was leaving their fate in the hands of two newcomers to the national stage.  Hess ran the race of his life and pulled off a 4:35.2 leg to keep O'Hara in the hunt for a top-6 position.  DeVoe got the baton and immediately set a pace that was faster than any he had run before.  DeVoe PRed in the 800 and 1200 on his way to a 4:33.4.  But an 18 second drop in time was not what made his run heroic.  DeVoe had been in 5th with a lap to go in the DMR when he was passed by two runners to put him in 7th in the race. 

Deja Vu for DeStefano, but this time he could only watch from the side of the track.  Down the last straight a 4:51 miler, by the numbers, put on the kick of his life to surge past those two runners who had passed him earlier and flung himself across the line in 5th place.  He had succeeded for his teammates, only a mere 8-hundredths of a second ahead of the 7th place finisher. 

The post-race interview at 2009 NSIC

Guts, grit, and determination.  These are the type of performances that typify an O'Hara relay team.  They are committed to one another and believe that when the race is on the line they will all dig deep and pull it out. 



Glory Days Leave Some Behind

For all of the glory and all of the certificates, not all tales end on such a high note.  Kennedy reflected on three athletes as the most poignant examples of this disappointment.  Anthony Heygood, an all around talent at the jumps and hurdles, had run a 15.5 in the high hurdles.  He was an unfortunate casualty of time as there were not enough bodies to go around in 2004 when the DMR ran a time of 10:10.  As a result, O'Hara did not compete in the SMR and Anthony did not get to compete for a certificate.  Kennedy is moved when he talks about this, as though it still bothers him that such a talented athlete did not even get a chance. 

The feeling is the same when he discusses Billy Morgan, a 50.5 400 meter runner who was also a casualty of time and place.  His place was on the 2009 indoor DMR team that missed the 6th and final certificate by a mere .77 seconds.  And Andrew Buemi, a participant in 2007 in the 9th place 4xMile and 13th place 4x800  Andrew was a casualty of an uncharacteristic off-year for the O'Hara relay machine.

These are not the only ones, and if I had talked to Kennedy all night I am sure that he would have recalled each and every athlete he coached, and pulled out a memory that reminded him of how great an athlete that person was in their own way. 

 O'Hara: This Is What We Do


Kennedy told me time and again that he was lucky to be at O'Hara, surrounded by dedicated athletes that appear to make his job easy.  He is right.  O'Hara is steeped in running tradition with a fresh crop of talent around every corner, waiting to become a part of history. 

But that is only half the story.  The other half tells that O'Hara is lucky to have Kennedy.  Kennedy has been around for 8 of the 9 years that O'Hara has made earning All-Americans a right of passage as a track athlete at the school.  "This is what we do", Kennedy states matter-of-factly.  Kennedy also adds that in recent years talented coaches have joined the staff with specialties in the sprints, jumps, and throws.

Kennedy has developed and fostered a sense of pride and accomplishment that makes O'Hara unique in their approach to the sport.  He has also shown a knack for making the right call and putting the best relay out on the track, even if the numbers disagreed with him, and even if he disagreed with himself. 

One of the last things Kennedy shared was that quite often, while out running errands, he will "think about what the kids have done across the years, the heroics", and it will bring a tear to his eye.  O'Hara track and field is what it is thanks to the symbiotic relationship between talented athletes and a passionate coaching staff.

Most people measure success by wins and losses.  If you ask an O'Hara alum I bet they'd share a different kind of story. 



All-Americans of Cardinal O’Hara Boys Track and Field


Name (Class)
# of Certificates
Places
Performances
Pat Nash, ‘00
2
2nd (DMR), 3rd (4x8)
1:51 split out 8
Sean Duffy, ‘01
6
2nd, 3rd, 4th (DMR)
3rd, 3rd, 6th (4x8)
4:15.9 DMR anch, 1:52.9 4x8 anch
Rich Anderson, ‘01
6
2nd, 3rd, 4th (DMR)
3rd, 3rd, 6th (4x8)
3:06.1 1200, 1:56 800
Bobby Brown, ‘01
6
2nd, 3rd, 4th (DMR)
3rd, 3rd, 6th (4x8)
Ran in races where Natl recs set in ind/out DMR, 1:57 800
Tim Curran, ‘01
4
3rd, 4th (DMR)
3rd, 6th (4x8)
1:59.3 in 8, 50.8 out 4
Joe Francisco, ‘02
2
2nd, 4th (4xMile)
3:05.5 ind 12, 4:24 out mile
TJ Coll, ‘02
2
2nd, 4th (4xMile)
4:30.6 out Mile
Vince Gravelle, ‘03
4
2nd, 4th, 4th (4xMile)
3rd (DMR)
4:29.6 ind Mile, 3:11.8 out 12
Bernie Rendler, ‘03
4
1st, 5th (4x8)
2nd, 3rd (DMR)
1:55.0 lead-off Naty Champs with stress frac, 1:56.5 ind 8
Tom O’Brien, ‘03
3
1st (4x8)
2nd, 3rd (DMR)
1:56.5 anch Naty Champs, 51.0 ind 4
Bob McDade, ‘03
1
3rd (Shot Put)
55’01 ½’’ 1st AA individual
Dan Boyle, ‘03
3
1st, 5th (4x8)
4th (4xMile)
1:55.2 split in Naty Champs, 4:30.4 mile
Steve Hallinan, ‘04
10
1st, 4th, 4th,5th (4x8)
2nd, 3rd, 3rd (DMR)
2nd, 4th, 4th (4xMile)
4:13.0 DMR anch, 1:54.1 leadoff 8 out, 1:56.4 leadoff 8 in
6 anchors, 4 leadoffs
Jack Braconnier, ‘04
3
3rd (DMR)
4th, 4th (4x8)
49.3 out 4, 49.5 in 4
1:56.1 out 8, 1:57.7 in
Mike Callanan, ‘04
3
2nd (DMR),
4th (4xMile)
5th (4x8)
All 3 AA same wknd
4:29.5, 3:12 12
Pete Maynard, ‘05
1
6th (DMR)
51.6 ind 400
Dan Brown, ‘05
1
6th (DMR)
1:59.7 ind 800
Matt Van Thuyne, ‘05
1
6th (4xMile)
4:34 out Mile, 4:45 in
Greg Thomas, ‘06
7
3rd, 6th (DMR)
4th, 4th (4x8)
4th (Frosh Mile)
5th, 6th (4xMile)
4:21 DMR anch, 3:07.1 12, 1:57 800,
3 Delco rec relays
Matt Willard, ‘06
6
3rd, 6th (DMR)
4th, 4th (4x8)
5th, 6th (4xMile)
4:26.7 Mile lead off
1:58 800, 3:12.5 12
Charlie McNulty’06
2
5th, 6th (4xMile)
4:32 Mile
Mickey Liszewski, ‘07

1
5th (SMR)
21.8 out 2 split, 22.2 ind 2 split
Steve Werner, ‘08
1
5th (SMR)
50.5 in 4, 50.4 out 21.9 ind 200 split
Ed Buck, ‘08
2
5th (SMR)
5th (4xMile)
1:52.9 8 out, 1:55.0 8 in, 4:23 mile, 3:06 12
Kevin Ward, ‘08
1
5th (SMR)
22.9 200 split with stress fracture
Jason Johnson, ‘09
2
3rd, 5th (Triple Jump)
48’00’’, 47’00 ¼’’
1st jump AA
Mike DeStefano,‘09
1
5th (4xMile)
4:22.8(16), 4:26.4 (Mile), 1:59.9 (800)
Joe Sacchetti, ‘09
1
5th (4xMile)
3:11.2 (12), 4:29.6(Mile),
1:57.8 (800)
Whitfield DeVoe ‘11
1
5th (4xMile)
4:33.4 (Anch. Mile)
Mike Hess, ‘11
1
5th (4xMile)
4:35.2 (Mile)
All-Americans of Cardinal O’Hara Boys Track and Field Page 2

Number of All Americans: 30
Number of All American Certificates: 88