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11 Eagles Named to All-Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Squads
Akbar, Duffy, O’Brien and Seymour earn second straight honors

May 16, 2003

Matt Seymour was named to the All-Patriot League Outdoor Track Team.

WASHINGTON — American University’s men’s and women’s track team placed 11 student-athletes on the All-Patriot League Outdoor Track and Field Teams as announced by the league office. Seven men and four women earned spots on this year’s squad. Seniors Samia Akbar (Herndon, Va./Oakton) and Sean O’Brien (Tewksbury, Mass./Winnisquam Regional), junior Matt Seymour (Rockville, Md./Magruder) and sophomore Sean Duffy (Holmes, Pa./Cardinal O’Hara) all make their second consecutive appearance on the All-League Outdoor squad.

Duffy repeated as the champion in the 1500-meters at the Patriot League Championships to earn All-League honors. He also ran on the victorious 4x800m relay team which earned All-League honors for O’Brien, junior Carlos Hunt (Waldorf, Md./Waldorf) and freshman Phil Gaeta (Herndon, Va./Oakton). O’Brien also won the 800m at the meet and placed second to Duffy in the 1500m. Hunt was third in the 3000m steeplechase while Gaeta was fourth in the 1500m.

Seymour won the 5000m for the second consecutive year to earn All-League recognition. Sophomore Pat MacAdie (Acton, Mass./Acton-Boxboro Regional) finished second to Seymour to earn the first All-League track honor of his career. Junior Frank Malpigli (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) was the runner-up in the 10,000m to earn All-League honors as well.

Head coach Matt Centrowitz was named the Patriot League Men’s Coach of the Year after leading the Eagles to a third-place finish while having athletes compete in only nine of the 21 events at the meet.

Akbar earns All-Patriot League honors after defending her title in the 5000m in impressive fashion, winning the race by 34 seconds and setting a new Patriot League record in the process. Akbar also ran on the 4x800m relay team that finished second and earned All-League recognition. Also on the relay team was junior Leah Heinecke-Krumhus (Suwanee, Ga./Batavia) and freshmen Keira Carlstrom (Oakton, Va./Oakton) and Zaia Wharton (Elkins, W. Va./Elkins). Carlstrom also won the 1500m by nearly five seconds.

The American University track team returns to action May 30-31 at the NCAA Regional Championships hosted by George Mason in Fairfax, Va. The competition begins on May 30 at 4 p.m.

American University, which fields a 19-sport NCAA Division I athletics program featuring 10 women’s sports and nine for men, is in its second year of membership in the Patriot League. Since joining the Patriot League, the University has captured league championships in men’s cross country, women’s cross country, women’s lacrosse, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and women’s volleyball, and a regular-season title in men’s basketball.

American became a full member of the Patriot League on July 1, 2001. Chartered by an Act of Congress in 1893, the University features students from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and more than 160 nations worldwide.