Members of the Syracuse University track and field teams are preparing to compete in the ECAC/IC4A Championships on Saturday and Sunday, Mar. 6-7 at the Reggie Lewis Track and Athletic Center in Boston, Mass. Qualifiers for the Orange include Katie Hursey, Tito Medrano, Bernard Bush, and Kwaku Boah.

Junior Katie Hursey, who had a remarkable season with the SU cross country team, will be one runner representing Syracuse in the distance events. The Hampstead, Md. native broke school records in both the 3,000-meter and 5,000-meter events for the Orange women already this season. In the 3,000-meter, Hursey earned her record setting, ECAC and NCAA Provisional qualifying time of 9:24.81 at the BIG EAST Championships, where she placed second. She also set a new 5,000-meter record at BIG EASTs, where she took fourth place with her ECAC qualifying time of 16:40.95.

On the differences between being on the cross country team and the track team:
"My cross country experience differs the most from that of track and field in that track is always the same. There are no differences between courses like there are in cross country, which puts everyone on the same playing field. It doesn't matter on the track if you're good at running hills or not."

On how the ECAC/IC4A Championships differ from other big meets, such as BIG EAST or NCAA Championships:
"Well for BIG EAST it is mostly based on the team. The coaches will put you in the event they think you can get the most points. You want to do your part in your race to get the team points. This means you may not always be running a fast time, but you have to run with a strategy that will get you a good place even if you don't get a great time. ECACs are going to be more individual based, where you get to pick the event you want to run and have fun with it."

On whether she will prepare differently for this race than she would any other:
"No, usually once I do well at a meet I'll stick to the same routine for as long as it works."

On her biggest goal at the ECAC Championships:
"My biggest goal for this meet is to reach my goals in whatever event I run. I'm not sure which event I'm running yet. I would most like to finish with a great time that sets the tone for the outdoor season to follow."

On whether she has competed at the ECAC Championships before and what was memorable from her experience:
"My best memory from ECACs is coming in second in the mile last year, getting my best time of the season, and leaving the track feeling like I had given it all I had."

On the best piece of advice she has gotten from her coaches here at SU that she can use to in this meet:
"The best piece of advice I have gotten is to relax, be tough, and do what they know I am capable of."

Sophomore Tito Medrano, who also had a memorable cross country season, has run the 5,000-meter event for the men's track squad twice this season. At the BIG EAST Indoor Championships, the Lafayette, Ind. native not only attained IC4A qualifying standards with his time of 14:06.56, but also legged out a NCAA Provisional mark. Prior to his BIG EAST performance, Medrano ran the 5,000-meter at the Terrier Invitational where he took fifth with an IC4A qualifying time of 14:13.85.

On the differences between being on the cross country team and the track team:
"I really don't see much of a difference. I am training with the same guys every day. In cross country, I wanted all the guys to keep improving because it only made us better, and it's good seeing hard work payoff. Plus, for the returning guys from cross country, we want them improving during track to contribute even more for next season."

On how the ECAC/IC4A Championships differ from other big meets, such as BIG EAST or NCAA Championships:
"Anytime we go to a meet, it's important to capitalize on it. We race intelligently and beat out as many people as we can. This meet is not nearly as important as NCAAs or Big East, but we'll treat this meet just like any other."

On whether he will prepare differently for this race than he would any other:
"We might back off on our workout before this race, but really it's whatever the coaches want us to do. I'll be treating this meet like all the others."

On his biggest goal at the IC4A Championships:
"Hopefully, a personal best time in whatever event coach puts me in. I'd be content taking home a great time and maybe a win. I'll be taking home some experience for becoming a better competitor too."

On the best piece of advice he has gotten from his coaches here at SU that he can use to in this meet:
"Over the short amount of time here, I've learned to trust my coaches and the training. That alone has helped me tremendously. Also, having confidence in myself and not being scared to take on the better runners."

Graduate student Bernard Bush earned his bid to the IC4A Indoor Championships after meeting qualifying standards in multiple events throughout the season. The Tacoma, Wash. native ran the 55-meter dash in a time of 6.51, finishing second and qualifying for the IC4As at the Syracuse Invitational. Bush competed in the long jump at the BIG EAST Indoor Championships, where he took sixth with an IC4A qualifying mark of 7.32m. Before BIG EASTs, he had already attained qualifying standards at the Binghamton Triangular, where he took first place with a leap of 7.18m.

On how the ECAC/IC4A Championships differ from other big meets, such as BIG EAST or NCAA Championships:
"The IC4A Championships is simply another meet that gets you to where you need to go. It's not as team oriented as the Big East Championships and it's not as big of a deal as NCAAs. However, you obviously want to do well no matter what meet you're competing in, but not as much emphasis is put on this meet indoors as it is outdoors. It's still one of our biggest meets of the indoor season. We kind of use it as a tune up competition for those who are going to Nationals, a last chance meet for those who are trying to make Nationals, and if neither apply then you are using it as a transition to outdoor competition."

On whether he will prepare differently for this race than he would any other:
"I will prepare a little differently for this meet this year. I have yet to make Nationals this indoor season and I usually don't do well at IC4As. Going in knowing that really limits me mentally. With that said, I will definitely be preparing mentally more than anything else. As far as physically, I think I'm getting back to where I need to be. My coach and I saw some good things come together at Big East that we haven't seen all year. I will just hit practice hard this week and see what happens. It will be an interesting meet."

On his biggest goal at the IC4A Championships:
"My biggest goals as of now are to win the long jump crown and stay healthy. Every year I am always in a position to win it, but every year something always goes wrong. Whether it is an injury, or simply scratching some of my bigger jumps, the tide never turns in my favor. But, this year hopefully I can put a good jump together and also put myself in a contention spot for nationals, as well. More importantly though, is health. It ultimately comes down to whether or not I walk out of this meet feeling 100 percent as the outdoor season nears. That's where my real focus lies. Anything else is icing on the cake."

On whether he has competed at the ECAC Championships before and what was memorable from his experience:
"I have competed at these championships before. My most memorable moment was a personal one that came last year. I've always wanted a top three podium spot ever since I came into college. My freshman year, I never qualified for the IC4A Championships. My sophomore year, I had a medical redshirt due to surgery. My junior year, I took fifth. My senior year came around and I managed to get to the podium by placing third. It was very memorable because of the irony. After all this time, I finally got to the podium that I worked for and never actually got to stand on it and receive my medal because we left early. I will always remember how close I was, but how really far away it seemed."

On the best piece of advice he has gotten from his coaches here at SU that he can use to in this meet:
"The best piece of advice coach always gives me at this meet is to 'be smart.' I always get too over-eager at this meet. I also have the tendency to push through injuries. Both of which are two contradicting attributes, especially at a meet that is still fairly early in our overall season. So, he always tells me to be smart about things and don't try to push myself so early. He always reminds me of our ultimate goal, which is outdoor nationals and beyond -- USA Nationals, etc. To jeopardize that for one-spot up on the totem pole at IC4As is not worth it. Though, he never tries to negate the importance of these championships. He simply emphasizes the fact that our focus is on a long outdoor season."

Junior Kwaku Boah is a throws specialist for the Orange. The Baldwin, N.Y. native earned an IC4A qualifying mark in the weight throw at three different meets this season. His best throw of the year came at the BIG EAST Indoor Championships, where his hurl of 18.85m helped him secure third place. Boah also took third at the Syracuse Invitational with a mark of 17.31m. He placed second at the SU Welcome Back early this season with a throw of 16.99m.

On how the ECAC/IC4A Championships differ from other big meets, such as BIG EAST or NCAA Championships:
“The Big East Championships are a team competition where as IC4As are geared towards individual success and getting to NCAAs.”

On whether he will prepare differently for this race than he would any other:
“No, I prefer to have a regiment that stays constant going into big track meets.”

On his biggest goal at the IC4A Championships:
“My biggest goal at IC4As is to qualify for NCAAs, and I would like to at least walk away from IC4As with the school's weight throw record.”

On whether he has competed at the ECAC Championships before and what was memorable from his experience:
“I competed at IC4As last year and the most memorable part was competing against new opponents from other schools that we don't see.”

On the best piece of advice he has gotten from his coaches here at SU that he can use to in this meet:
“I would say the best advice given by one of my coaches was to not get too excited when the big meets come along, but just focus on what has got me to that point and focus on my fundamentals.”