Men’s Track & Field Head Coach Talks Impact on Team of Multiple Seasons Being Canceled

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The 2020 Rowan's men's indoor track & field team. The team won the regional championship last season before the pandemic canceled their outdoor season. - Photo / Rowan Athletics

The men’s track and field team is certainly in the running for championship glory this season. All they need are races to start and finish.

Throughout his tenure, Head Coach Dustin Dimit has maintained a presence of positivity with his teams. As he has come to learn over the years, coaches have to put out what they want to get from their players, and that philosophy has been at the core of their success for years.

Unfortunately, this energetic attitude can be rather taxing at times, especially considering the uncertainty caused by the pandemic. As a result, the team has been collectively impacted in a significant mental manner.

“It’s been definitely hard, and even more so than any other sport with indoor track and cross country being cancelled,” Dimit said. “Thankfully, the guys have been able to enjoy the feeling of being on the team and around each other.”

Nevertheless, the squad carries on, continuing their traditional running and lifting routines as if the season’s status was a foregone conclusion. Everything will remain business as usual in terms of preparation so that if the season is a go, they’ll be more than ready to go.

As for expectations for the upcoming season, Dimit set the bar sky high, demonstrating an unwavering level of confidence and faith in his team. 

“The expectations are what they always are: win the conference, then the region and then the national title,” Dimit said. “We’re definitely one of the favorites, and with 17 returning runners with nationals experience, we’re looking to be number one or two in the country.”

All in all, there has been a noticeable trend developing over the past few months. Whether it is the softball team, the men’s track & field team or the many other excellent programs here at Rowan University, expectations for their performance couldn’t be higher as Coach Dimit so eloquently illustrated.

“The ones that deal with the excuses and adversity best,” Dimit said, “are the ones that win.”

If that principle holds true, then there will be some significant hardware to collect come this spring… 

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