Samuel Ellison Hometown: Dresher, Pa. High School: Upper Dublin Position: Cross Country/Distance Birthdate: 12/05/1992 Experience: So./So.

On Ellison: Proved himself to be a consistent BIG EAST scorer as a freshman, when he was also a part of the Wildcats champion distance medley relay squad at the Penn Relays ... Has a bright future and should make big strides during the coming year.

2012 Indoor: Scored a big individual win in the championship section of the 500 meters with a personal best time of 1:01.92 at the New Balance Collegiate Invitational ... Also set a personal best -- by a margin of nearly two seconds -- in the invitational section of the 800 meters at the Penn State National, finishing third out of 15 runners with a time of 1:49.35 ... Ran the thid leg of the unseeded 4x400 meter relay at the Penn State meet and had a split of 47.5 in a 10th place finish for the Wildcats ... Won his individual heat and placed eighth overall in the 1000 meters at the NYC Gotham Cup with a time of 2:27.47 ... Finished first in the event at the season-opening Jack Pyrah Invitational (2:33.80).

2011 Outdoor: Ran the third leg (800 meters) of the distance medley relay to help Villanova win a Championship of America title at the Penn Relays ... It was the 94th Penn Relays championship for the Wildcats and the 24th in the DMR ... Also helped the Wildcats finish fifth in the IC4A section of the 4x400 meter relay at the Penn Relays, running the anchor leg in the preliminaries and the second leg in the final race ... Helped Villanova set a season-best time of 3:10.22 in the 4x400 relay at the IC4A Championship ... Individually, placed fifth in the 400 meters at the BIG EAST Championships ... Set a personal best in the event with a time of 47.61 at the Hurricane Alumni Invitational, where he came in sixth ... Won his section and placed sixth overall in the 400 meters at the Mason Spring Invite ... Ran the 800 meters in a time of 1:52.01 at the Colonial Relays.

2011 Indoor: All-BIG EAST in the 500 meters with a third place finish at the conference championships ... Had a time of 1:03.15 at the BIG EAST meet ... Earlier in the year won the 500 meters at the NYRR I meet with a personal best time of 1:02.76 ... Earned BIG EAST Track Athlete of the Week honors for that performance ... Won the 500 meters at the Jack Pyrah Invitational in his collegiate debut (1:05.79) ... Runner-up in the 800 meters at the NYRR II meet in a personal best time of 1:51.22.

Upper Dublin High School: Team captain for the indoor and outdoor teams as a senior ... Helped the team finish in third place at the state championships in the 2009 indoor and outdoor meets ... 2010 Suburban One American Conference Athlete of the Year ... Placed fourth in the 400 meters and eighth in the 800 meters at the 2010 PTFCA state championships.

Personal: Born 12/5/92 ... One of two children of Roy and Patricia Ellison ... Has a sister, Simone ... Undeclared major in the school of Liberal Arts ... Aspires to have a career in journalism or writing.

PERSONAL BESTS

400 Meters            47.61             2011 Hurricane Alumni Invitational
500 Meters            1:01.92           2012 New Balance Collegiate Invitational
800 Meters            1:49.35           2012 Penn State National

CAREER AWARDS

All-BIG EAST                            Indoor 2011 (500 Meters)
Penn Relays Champion                    2011 (Distance Medley Relay)
BIG EAST Academic All-Star              2010-11