Ten High School Athletes To Join Ferris State Program

The 2001 class features seven female and three male athletes. The list of women includes Kelly Beagle (St. John's), Stefanie DeLong (Muskegon/Whitehall), Sarah Duesing (Sault Ste. Marie), Jessica Kellogg (Delton/Delton-Kellogg), Emily Kooiker (Hesperia), Mary Miller (Sault Ste. Marie) and Atesha Olds (Kingsley). Scott Pocan (Lansing/Sexton), Joe Swendroski (Rockford) and Mike Viel (Big Rapids) will join the men's track and field squad.

"As a group, they should have an immediate impact," Kavalunas said. "They will start filling spots for us next year and add depth to our squad. They will strengthen some important areas such as the distance and field events for us."

Duesing, who will also play women's basketball at FSU, recorded the second-best high jump (5-8) in the state during the 2001 season. She was the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) Upper Peninsula Division I State Champion in the high jump, 300-meter hurdles and the long jump.

"If Sarah (Duesing) can come in as a freshman high jumper and perform similar to what she did in high school, she will certainly contend for a league title and an All-America spot," Kavalunas said. "Although we will only have her during the outdoor season, she should be a steady performer for us."

Olds, Beagle and Kooiker will all compete in the field events. Olds, the younger sister of current FSU women's track and volleyball squad member Alaina Olds, was a 2001 MHSAA Division III All-State discus performer (118-3) while Beagle qualified for the 2001 MHSAA Division I State Championships in the discus. Kooiker reached the 2001 MHSAA Division III State Championships in the pole vault.

DeLong, Kellogg, and Miller will also compete as members of the Bulldog women's cross country team. DeLong was a 2000-01 MHSAA Division II state qualifier in both cross country and track, Kellogg was a 2000 MHSAA Division III All-State Cross Country honoree and Miller earned MHSAA Cross Country All-State accolades four times (1997-2000) during her prep career.

"With a number of distance girls graduating, we needed to recruit several kids who could step in and compete right away," Kavalunas said. "In our program, they should develop rapidly."

A 2000 MHSAA Division I All-State Cross Country selection, Swendroski, who was the number two runner for the nation's third-ranked high school cross country team, will compete in both men's cross country and men's track at Ferris State. He helped Rockford to four-straight OK-Red Conference Cross Country Championships, three regional cross country titles and the 2000 MHSAA Division I State Cross Country Championship.

Pocan garnered 2001 MHSAA Division I All-State Pole Vault honors (14-4) while Viel received 2001 MHSAA Division II All-State 800-meter dash recognition (1:58.23) at Big Rapids High School.

"Joe (Swendroski) should come in and be a big contributor for us in both track and cross country," Kavalunas said. "Scott (Pocan) has the tools to be a consistent scorer for us in the vault and (Mike) Viel is a local runner who is fairly young in terms of experience. All three of these young men will come in and make a significant impact for us."

In addition to the above signed recruits, several recruited walk-ons have also announced their intentions to join the FSU program for the 2001-02 campaign.