PAT LONGOBARDI — Sports Writer
In any long distance event, it takes a lot of mental concentration to run for a long period of time.
For SCSU senior captain Joseph Poulsen, this has been something that he strives in doing during every day on the track.
Poulsen is one of the leaders of the distance side for the SCSU men’s outdoor track and field team, and usually does his talking on the track.
Most of the long distance event Poulsen runs require more ability than one would expect.
“I run the steeplechase which has four hurdles on the track that spans three lanes, and there is a water pit and you run over that,” Poulsen said. “It is a unique event and it is a different distance event outdoors. We do outdoor runs for over an hour every day, and we have workouts on hurdles and things like that.
“We have a pretty small squad (on distance) right now. We all get along well. We are all out running together like for 70 minutes every day. So obviously we talk and hang out a lot. So we are a tight squad.”
Poulsen got off to a fast start some top finishes during the outdoor season. He had a first-place finish in the first meet at the UConn Spring Invitational in the 3,000 meter steeplechase in 9:36.28.
Poulsen also finished first in the 10,000 meters event to help lead the Owls to a fourth place finish at the Metropolitan Championships last weekend in 31:49.70.
Poulsen was ranked No. 11 on the national leaderboard in the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a mark of 9:11.62 from the Sam Howell Invitational.
SCSU head coach John Wallin, in his second season, said Poulsen is a very hard worker and has strived to be one of the best.
“He is not a vocal leader but he does speak to the team from time to time,” Wallin said. “He definitely leads by example. He goes out, he runs hard and he is not afraid to challenge some of the top competitors. We love as coaches to have an athlete on the team who like to challenge athletes and to accept those challenges, and to compete to the best of their ability. He got a late start during indoor, and was not quite as successful and what he was looking for.”
Poulsen, from Oxford, Conn., is an elementary education major at Southern.
The Owls will next compete in the Penn relays on April 26-28 followed by the Yale Springtime Invitational on April 29 before the championship meets role around the corner. SCSU will then host the Northeast-10 Conference Championships at Jess Dow Field from May 4-5. The Owls will go for their 20th consecutive Northeast-10 Conference championship.
Poulsen said he is looking for continued success this season including qualifying for the national meet.
“It was nice (being named captain),” Poulsen said. “I have been cross country captain for the past two years. You do not really need to do anything as a captain. We have a small team. It is just something by name. But it was nice that they picked me for it.
“I pretty much just want to stay healthy. For the team, I want to keep winning conference after conference. We won New Englands last year, and I want to keep winning New Englands.
“It has been a lot of fun (being at SCSU). I love the team. I am very happy I came out to Southern, and I would not change it at all.”
“Joe brings a lot of moxie and a little bit of attitude,” Wallin said. “He is a tough kid and he works hard. We like that he sets the tone and that he will challenge for the lead and for the win. We like the way that he does business. As long as he gets himself in a great position, then he will have great success.
“Interestingly, it (steeplechase) is the only event with coordination. You jump over hurdle barriers and there is also a water jump which is exciting too. Joe does a lot of distance stuff for the amount of speed and coordination.”
