Last season’s failures almost hampered Syracuse sprinter Shamel Lewis’ track career.

At the men’s Big East Indoor Championship last season, Lewis failed to qualify for the final heat of the 60-meter dash. He contemplated what he was going to do with his track career.

‘A year ago, I remember sitting with him after the end of the Big East Indoor meet,’ sprint and hurdle coach Dave Hegland said. ‘He was wondering if he was one of those kids that was just never going to get any better because he hadn’t progressed a lot in his freshman year.’

Last year was hectic for Lewis. He struggled to grasp the technical aspects that Hegland preached. It wasn’t until late in the outdoor season that Hegland’s teachings began to take form.

This season, Lewis developed a new sense of patience and learned to let the race unfold more gradually and control his pace.

‘Last year, he just rushed things and had the wrong conception of what it was supposed to feel like.’ Hegland said. ‘I think now he knows what it’s supposed to feel like.’

This year, Lewis has built off of last year’s success and has taken his talent to the next level. With the Big East Championship over, Lewis now shifts his vision to this weekend’s EAC/IC4A Indoor Championship. The event marks Lewis’s last chance to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships, a goal he set for himself earlier in the year.

At this year’s Big East Indoor Championship, Lewis qualified for the finals and he placed second overall with a time of 6.82 seconds.

‘I still don’t believe it now.’ Lewis said. ‘Last year, I didn’t even make the finals in this meet and to come in second this year was incredible.’

Lewis, a sophomore from Riverhead, N.Y., didn’t start running track until his junior year in high school. He was more of a lacrosse player. Track helped him stay in shape during the offseason.

Lewis planned to try out for Syracuse’s lacrosse team this year. But his recent triumphs have opened his eyes to a new world of potential for himself in track.

‘I’m trying to qualify for nationals.’ Lewis said. ‘I’m fairly close. I think I have a good chance; hopefully everything goes right. If I practice right who knows what can happen.’

After nationals, the outdoor portion of the track season begins. With his success during the indoor season already under his belt, Lewis figures to become a key contributor for the men’s outdoor team.

Lewis has high hopes for the track and field team this year and expects a lot out of the talented men’s squad.

‘I honestly think in outdoors we could take first in the Big East overall as a team.’ Lewis said. ‘Just because of the amount of talent that we have on the team and we have a huge cross country team, which is going to amount to success outdoors. I think we are going to take it.’

In the Big East Indoor Championships this year, Syracuse had its best showing in 16 years. The Orange came in fourth place out of 14 teams. The fourth place finish marks the best finish for a Syracuse men’s team since 1993, when the Orange posted the same mark.

Individually Lewis doesn’t know what to expect. He is concentrated on staying healthy and training hard.

‘In track you can be healthy as a horse and still run slow, or you can be semi-healthy and run really fast, or you can be healthy and just run fast.’ Lewis said. ‘I would like to say that I’m going to go out and qualify for nationals, but I can’t lay a hand on it. It’s just so unpredictable.’

rwmarfur@syr.edu

Published on March 3, 2009 at 12:00 pm