Top Ten of 2012-13 - #10 - Donnie Noble Sweeps Landmark Track Athlete of the Year Awards
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College starts its countdown of the top 10 honors and moments of the 2012-13 season today with a look at our No. 10 highlight – Senior Donnie Noble sweeping the Landmark Conference Track Athlete of the Year honors.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College starts its countdown of the top 10 honors and moments of the 2012-13 season today with a look at our No. 10 highlight – Senior Donnie Noble sweeping the Landmark Conference Track Athlete of the Year honors.
Noble had an outstanding senior year on the track for the Greyhounds as he helped the team sweep the Landmark Conference Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field Championships for the fourth straight year. He also won five individual Landmark titles in 2012-13 while being named the Landmark Co-Indoor Track Athlete of the Year with Kwane Hayle of Susquehanna University and earning Landmark Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year honors.
At the Landmark indoor meet on February 23rd in Selinsgrove, Noble won both the mile and the 5,000-meter races for the third straight year as he was named the Indoor Track Athlete of the Year for a second consecutive meet. Surprisingly, Noble was injured heading into the meet.
"Donnie literally hadn't run for about two weeks going into the meet," stated Head Coach Jesse Baumann. "He warmed up on the track the morning of the meet and was limping while simply jogging for a mile. I talked to him after the warm up because I didn't want to jeopardize his season but he assured me he'd be fine. I truly had no idea what to expect from him going into the mile and that may have been as nervous as I've ever been as a coach. However, he took charge of the race midway, never looked back, and pulled away from the rest of the field the entire last half. He did the same thing in the 5k."
Noble won the mile race in a time of 4:22.72, and then captured the 5,000-meter run in 15:34.61. While neither time was a Landmark meet record in 2013, Noble is the meet record holder in both events after his times from the 2012 championships.
When the two-day Landmark Outdoor Championships rolled around on April 27th and 28th at Goucher College in Towson, Maryland, Noble would win three events with titles in the 1,500-meter, 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter races.
"The competitive atmosphere encourages you to race your best," Noble explained when talking about three races in about 24 hours. "The coaches did everything to ensure we were fresh for those two days, giving us Gatorades, pasta, and we ice bathed in the shower tubs. So I guess I would say it was hard but not impossible. You just have to put your mind to it and trust your coaches."
Noble won the 1,500-meter run in 3:59.19 at the outdoor championships, and he set new meet records in the 5,000 meters in 15:08.71 and the 10,000 meters in 32:09.15.
"Donnie pulled off an impressive triple, setting a PR in the 1,500 in the middle of the meet for a little icing on the cake," Baumann said. "People were coming up to me from other teams in the middle of the meet complimenting him on how incredible the triple he was completing really was.
"Often in a championship meet, and especially if people are running multiple events (in Donnie's case, two indoors, three outdoors) you'll "sit and kick" in other words, hold back, let other people do the brunt of the pace work, then just sprint the last few hundred meters. Donnie took control of all five of his conference meet races with more than a half mile to go, in some cases with much more (outdoor 5k) and won in convincing fashion. He was tough as nails when he needed to be, and most certainly deserved to win both awards. At the outdoor meet, he spent over 10 miles on the track in two days and won all 3 events!" Baumann finished.
Noble finished his track & field career in May with 11 individual Landmark championships, a number that would have been higher had ne not missed the outdoor championships in 2012 due to an injury. Noble was a four-time Landmark Track Athlete of the Year, also winning the honor indoors in 2012 and outdoors in 2011.
He also finished his career with three school records – the mile indoors with a time of 4:18.21 at the 2012 Landmark Championships, the 5,000-meter run indoors in 14:36.23 at the 2012 ECAC Division III Championships and the 5,000-meter run outdoors with a time of 14:37.43 at the 2013 ECAC Division III Championships, he last collegiate race.
"I am happy about the records all the same," stated Noble. "With that being said, I enjoyed running the 5k that set the outdoor record, the most. The way the race played out was perfect to me: I went out on pace for nationals with teammate Dillon Farrell, then I had the lead, lost it to Bryan Marsh of Wesleyan College, and then I was able to out kick him to win the race. Granted, it would have been nice if I had qualified for nationals but I am happy my last run was the fastest I have ever run in a 5k outdoors."
Number nine on our countdown will be announced on Monday, July 22nd.
No. 10 - Donnie Noble Sweeps Landmark Conference Track
Athlete of the Year Awards
No. 9 - Women's Volleyball Wins School Record 29 Matches
No. 8 - Women's Basketball Wins Play 4Kay for 5th Straight Year
with over $16,000 Raised
No. 7 - Micah Leonard Sweeps Landmark Conference Field Athlete of
the Year Honors
No. 6 - Women's Track & Field Team Wins 2 More Landmark
Conference Titles
No. 5 - Dillon Farrell Wins Landmark Conference Men's Cross Country
Championship
No. 4 - Men's Cross Country and Track & Field Teams Sweep
Landmark Conference Team Titles for 2nd Straight Year
No. 3 - Travis King & Micah Leonard Honored as Greyhound Senior
Athlete Award Winners
No. 2 - Micah Leonard Finishes as Runner-Up in Triple Jump at NCAA
DIII National Championships
No. 1 - Baseball Wins Landmark Conference Championship
