Wood's Pratt-Perez signs to run with NCAA Division I Bucknell

Ethan Pratt-Perez’s senior year keeps getting better and better.

The James Wood High School senior — who achieved his best-ever state meet finishes in cross country (second in the fall) and indoor track (third in the 3,200 meters) in the winter — signed to compete for NCAA Division I Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa., on Tuesday in a signing ceremony at James Wood.

Pratt-Perez’s scholarship with Bucknell of the Patriot League will cover everything except room and board. James Wood track sprinter Megan Vreeland also participated in Tuesday’s ceremony and will compete for NCAA Division II Flagler College in St. Augustine, Fla., on a partial scholarship.

Pratt-Perez was The Winchester Star Boys’ Cross Country Runner of the Year in the fall, when he ran a top time of 15 minutes, 9.4 seconds for 3.1 miles. In indoor track, Pratt-Perez recorded a time of 9:24.45 in taking third in the 3,200. Pratt-Perez’s top outdoor track times for his career are 4:20.59 for 1,600 (a converted mile time), 9:15.20 for the 3,200, and 1:56.69 for the 800.

James Wood track & field coach Craig Woshner suggested to Pratt-Perez that Bucknell could be a good fit for him both in terms of athletics and because of its engineering program. After making contact with 23rd-year Bucknell head cross country and track coach Kevin Donner, Pratt-Perez made a trip to Lewisburg in February.

“The campus was nice, and the community seemed very well-knit together,” said Pratt-Perez in a phone interview. “I got a good vibe from it, and I feel like the engineering program is going to be good for me.

“They offered me a deal that I really couldn’t refuse. They were the clear choice.”

Pratt-Perez gave Bucknell a verbal commitment last month.

Pratt-Perez said he knows his training will he more difficult in college, but he’s looking forward to it.

Pratt-Perez thinks he’ll be able to work well with Donner, who guided the Bison to fourth out of 10 teams in the Patriot League meet and 12th out of 26 teams in the Mid-Atlantic Region meet in cross country, fourth out of nine teams in the Patriot indoor track meet, and fifth out of nine teams in the Patriot outdoor track meet in the past year.

Pratt-Perez added that Donner seems like someone who is willing to listen to athletes if they think there’s something wrong with them, and will ease off training to avoid injury.

“I think he has the motivation and the willingness to do what it takes for me to get to where I want to,” Pratt-Perez said.

Vreeland said up until a few years ago, Flagler’s track team was distance-oriented and made up of runners from the cross country team, so she’ll join a growing program. The Saints were third out of six teams at this year’s Peach Belt Conference indoor meet and took third out of seven squads at the outdoor meet last year.

Vreeland’s best individual times are 13.63 for the 100 and 27.83 for the 200, and she’s also a member of the James Wood 4x100 team that ranked third in the area and placed third in the Class 4 Northwestern District last year. This year’s 4x100 team is again third in the area.

After Vreeland contacted a lot of schools along the East Coast, Flagler replied to her in January, and she visited the campus at the end of March. The Saints’ current roster features four women from Virginia (including one each from Fauquier and Dominion high schools) and one from Frederick, Md.

“I love the area,” said Vreeland in a phone interview. “When I met the coaches and the rest of the team, it just felt like I belonged there. They were very welcoming. And they have the program of study that I wanted to do, so it was kind of a win-win.”

Vreeland — who will study coastal environmental science in addition to law at Flagler — gave a verbal commitment shortly after her trip in early April.

“When I was a sophomore or even a junior, I really didn’t think I would be able to compete at the collegiate level,” she said. “I’m also a swimmer, but I just love running so much. I love running more than anything. It’s given me some of my closest friends. It means a lot to me.”

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