The group includes shot put and discus thrower Nick Alexander from Hackettstown, N.J.; distance runner Pierce Conlon of Wilmington; weight thrower Theo Lusardi of Hopatcong, N.J.; sprinter and jumper Ross Shober of Reinholds, Pa.; weight thrower John Viotto of Dayton, N.J.; and middle distance runner Corey Wall of Clarks Summit, Pa.
“We are excited about this year's recruiting class,” Fischer, who will begin his 26th season at the helm of the men's cross country and track and field teams this fall, said. “We have signed six outstanding athletes who will help us continue to improve our competitiveness within the Colonial Athletic Association.”
Alexander, a graduate of West Morris Central High School, was a three-sport standout and served as captain of the football and track and field teams. He finished ninth in the shot put at the New Jersey Meet of Champions with a toss of 54 feet, 2.5 inches after winning the Morris County title in that event with a school-record throw of 57 feet, 7.5 inches. He won conference and county titles in the shot put and discus, and was a New Jersey sectional champion in the discus with a throw of 157 feet. A National Honor Society student, Alexander was also a member of the state champion football team as a defensive lineman.
Conlon was a standout runner at Concord High School and will compete in cross country and track and field at UD. He earned first team All-State honors in cross country twice, captured the Blue Hen Conference cross country championship and finished second in the Delaware Division II race. In indoor track and field, he finished second in the 3,200-meter run and fourth in the 1,600-meter run to lead Concord to the state title this past season. Outdoors, he finished second in both the 1,600 and 3,200 meters.
Lusardi, a standout from Pope John XXIII Regional High School in both track and field and as a tight end in football, won the New Jersey State Catholic indoor shot put title this past winter with a toss of 49 feet, 9 inches and finished 24th in the discus with a toss of 126 feet, 6 inches at the New Jersey Meet of Champions. He also was a standout sprinter with a personal best of 23 seconds in the 200 meters.
Shober enjoyed an outstanding career in track and field and football at Garden Spot High School. In track and field, he ran 15.3 in the 110-meter hurdles and 10.7 in the 100-meter dash and competed in the state championships in the 100 meters. As a senior football player, he rushed for 1,197 yards and scored 17 touchdowns as a tailback to earn first team All-Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 2 honors and lead Garden Spot to the District 3 AAA playoffs.
Viotto, a graduate of South Brunswick High School, was among the top shot put and discus throwers in New Jersey. He earned all-conference honors three times in the shot put and once in the discus during his career and has best throws of 53 feet, 10 inches in the shot put and 164 feet, 8 inches in the discus. He captured the Group 4 indoor shot put championship and finished seventh in the discus and 11th in the shot put in the New Jersey Meet of Champions.
Wall, who graduated from Abington Heights High School, is an outstanding middle distance runner whose specialty is in the 800 meters. This spring, he broke the school 800-meter record that had stood for 25 years, running 1:55.10 to finish 10th at the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association AAA state championship. In addition, he ranked among the top 150 runners in the country in the event.
