Staten Island, NY | The College of Staten Island Men's Indoor Track & Field team is still in its relative infancy, looking forward to what was supposed to be their third season as a varsity unit before learning the news of winter sports competitive cancellations. The COVID pause, however, hasn't stopped the growth of the program, as it welcomed in a great recruiting class this past year. One of those standouts is Justin Messina, a local standout from nearby Susan Wagner High School who chose to continue his development at the College of Staten Island this past fall.
"I chose CSI because they have great opportunities for me. I am a part of the Verrazano Honors program in which there are lots of others who share a passion for learning and strive to achieve great things," Messina said when asked why his neighborhood school was right for him. "CSI has great courses to help me pass the MCATs, and the campus is very close to home. As far as track & field, the program is definitely moving upward for the next few years, so I'm very excited to continue to learn and compete here at CSI."
A heavily-touted recruit from Susan Wagner, Messina only started competitive running when he was 14 years old, but became a sure-fire target for Head Coach
Andrew Gangemi, and is a part of what can technically be considered his first recruiting class. Messina made the leap into CSI's NCAA Division II program on scholarship over other nationally-recognized programs like Wagner College, and New Jersey's Monmouth University and Seton Hall University. The accomplished student, who is a National Honors Society member, is going to pursue a pre-med track, and is debating on whether to eventually major in Chemistry or Biology.
"I've grown a love for sports medicine through track and want to have a job in the medical field as a result," he said. "I would like to go to med school and become a doctor, and pursuing pre-med at CSI will allow me to do that."
Of course, Messina's exploits in the classroom make him a natural fit for the CSI program, but the other major asset he brings to the table is an unbridled passion for running and his ability to showcase in short and medium distance events. Also a member of the Island Express Track Club, Messina has a personal-best time of 11.1 seconds in the 100-meter Dash and a 37.7 second time in the 300-meter Dash, which would already be CSI indoor and outdoor records. His times in the 200 (23.3 seconds) and the 400 (53.4 seconds) would be just fractions of seconds away from being CSI records as well, and could make him an immediate threat for ECC medals and national qualifications by the time his career gets underway. Understanding that Messina still has his best running ahead of him makes Gangemi plenty excited for the future.
"Justin is exactly the model of student-athlete we are striving to recruit at CSI," said Gangemi. "As an athlete, he is very versatile, he can run anything from the 55 to 400, and has a great discipline to succeed in all of his events equally. He is a model student taking a tough major. He's a great kid who has a great future with us. He is going to easily move our program forward."
Messina is anxious to get started. A two-time New Balance Nationals Qualifier while at Susan Wagner and after earning the school's Heart of a Falcon Award, he is now ready to bring a fresh, workmanlike attitude to the team, understanding that he will help the program grow while he himself improves on his running each and every day. "During my time on my high school track team, we went from a team whose goal was to be city champions, to a team who would be upset if they weren't in Nationals," he explained. "There are a lot of people on this CSI team who went to Susan Wagner with me so they know the kind of work and mentality needed in order to succeed like that. I believe this program has the ability to build to that level of greatness over the next few years, and hopefully I can help to achieve that in whatever way I can."
Obviously, the COVID pause has dealt a bit of a blow to Messina and his cohorts. According to the freshman, the inactivity can have the detriment of setting progress back a bit, but like his teammates he is still working everyday to make sure that when he does step out for an official team practice, he will be ready. "The good thing about track is that you can run anywhere," he said. "I go on runs at the park or to do workouts on the track at Corporal Thompson park. The unfortunate thing is that it's very difficult to improve when you are not competing, so the workouts are really about maintaining general fitness and staying healthy. This way when we can run meets again we can hit the ground running and jump right."
Gangemi shares in that same mindset. One of the great things about bringing in a recruit like Messina is knowing that when organized team activity is permitted, Gangemi knows his unit will be ready to move forward, rather than trying to make up lost ground.
"I think more than anything, Justin is a smart athlete who has been well-coached and sees the bigger picture, and that goes for a lot of the recruits we re bringing in," said the coach. "He comes in with a standard way of thinking that we're not going to go out and start breaking personal records on day one. Instead, we are setting the groundwork now and putting in work so that when the right time comes we're competing for times and medals and championships. He understands the grind, that balance between getting back in an effort to move forward post-pandemic. He will be ready, as will much of our team."
That said, there will obviously be some degree of growing pains associated with the track & field program when it does get underway. According to Messina that is mainly due to the lack of in-person togetherness the team faces. Camaraderie is a big part of the equation, he noted, and it does take time. "The team hasn't had any real practices yet unfortunately so there's a lot of people I've still yet to meet in person," he said. "I've met up with a few teammates for workouts but we haven't completely gotten into the swing of things yet. Right now we are just taking it one day at a time, but once we get word of a season or practice dates, that when things will start to get real."
Many are looking forward to the day when it does become real. Despite the anxiety and the overwhelming excitement that comes with that, Messina is maintaining proper perspective. He knows his time will come, so for now, its about staying focused and disciplined on the things he can control. "I want to stay healthy and to train responsibly so that I don't injure myself. I know that if I can do that, the coaches will help me to become an elite runner," he said. "As for the team, I know that we all want to prove ourselves as the best track program there is. I'm confident in our ability to get there because there's a lot of talent on the team, so there's definitely a bright future ahead."
Born in Brooklyn, Justin and his parents Valerie and Jason Messina, moved to Staten Island when Justin was five years old. He currently lives in Castleton Corners and can be seen running through the neighborhoods and at Thompson Park. He's hoping that the scenery changes in a few weeks and he can do it on the CSI track with his teammates.
Whenever that happens, look for Justin Messina to literally hit the ground running. Like many, he chose CSI, and the Dolphins will be better for it.
