(EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of articles the Times News will be running on former area athletes who are currently seniors in college and have had their spring sports seasons canceled because of the coronavirus threat.)

By Patrick Matsinko

pmatsinko@tnonline.com

Gavin Kemery is one of the countless college athletes to have their senior seasons stopped prematurely.

Instead of running to glory in his final track and field campaign at Moravian College, Kemery found himself standing by as the coronavirus outbreak abruptly ended the spring and winter sports seasons.

But the Northern Lehigh graduate has taken the setback in stride.

“Losing something like running, that means a lot, it’s tough,” said Kemery. “But I guess that’s all a part of it. Not everyone has the perfect Cinderella story.”

Kemery has authored a remarkable career with the Greyhounds.

Despite suffering a few setbacks throughout the fall and winter, Kemery had his eye on closing out his career with another solid spring.

“My goal for the spring was to medal (at the Landmark Conference Championships), because I was in contention for it throughout my career,” he said. “By the end of this year, I was really hoping to get something during the outdoor season. But that kind of disappeared, unfortunately.”

Kemery placed fourth in the 10,000 (33:28.52) and recorded a fifth-place finish in the 5,000 (15:32.34) at last season’s Landmark Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

He was eighth in the 5,000 and fifth in the 10,000 as a sophomore. He flipped those results his freshman season, finishing fifth in the 5,000 and eighth in the 10,000.

The senior battled through injury and illness this past season to post solid results in both cross-country and during the indoor track seasons. Kemery placed 16th (27:23.8, 8K) at the Landmark Conference Cross Country Championships, and 67th (26:22.2) at the NCAA Division 3 Mideast Region meet two weeks later.

“In my cross-country season, I was in the best shape I’ve ever been in,” said Kemery, who noted he pulled a muscle in his foot during the year. “I was training to get back to that shape for the outdoor season.

“So there was a lot to be excited about. I would definitely say I was in good position to do some big things this year.”

Kemery battled the flu during the indoor season, but managed to finish 12th in the 5,000 (16:45.17) and 17th in the 3,000 (9:33.23) at the Landmark Conference Indoor Track and Field Championships in late February.

A state qualifier in both track and field and cross county - where he was also named Colonial League MVP during his high school career - Kemery has continued to grow in both sports while at Moravian.

An English major minoring in economics, with future aspirations to become a market analyst or publicist, Kemery, who was named to the 2019 Landmark Conference Winter Academic Honor Roll, is currently completing his studies for his degree via online courses at home.

Kemery said the hardest part of that is not having the social connection with people on campus.

“Fortunately, we aren’t missing out on the school work,” Kemery said. “But it’s the fact that these are people you’ve grown with for four years, and you’ve really gotten to know in this world of academics.

“So you’re saying a premature goodbye to a lot of important people that you’ve had meaningful experiences with.”

Kemery was also recently welcomed into Chi Alpha Sigma, the National College Athlete Honor Society, which recognizes outstanding college student-athletes for their successes both on the field of competition and in the classroom.

To be eligible for Chi Alpha Sigma, student-athletes must be a junior and/or senior with a 3.4 or higher GPA and have earned a varsity letter.

Kemery wouldn’t rule out the possibility of using the extra year of eligibility given to spring sports athletes by the NCAA, something that might give him the chance to finish his career on his terms.

“It’s kind of unfortunate to lose your last season, but graduate school is always an option for me,” he said. “I have been thinking about it, so I may be running in the future anyway. We’ll see.”