NCAA III CHAMPIONSHIPS PREVIEW FOR CALVIN CROSS COUNTRY TEAMS
The Calvin men's and women's cross country teams will fly to Spokane,
Washington Thursday evening for Saturday's NCAA III Championships with
Whitworth College serving as host. The championships are scheduled for
Saturday afternoon with the men's race slated to begin at 2:00 pm (EST)
with the women's race to follow at 3:00 pm (EST). The races will be
held at Spokane's Wandermere Golf Course.
MEN'S OUTLOOK
The Calvin men's cross country team will be making its 16th team
appearance at nationals, ranking it 10th among NCAA III schools in NCAA
III Championships appearances in men's cross country. Calvin has posted
three top-four national finishes, having finished third in 1989, second
in 1998 and fourth in 1999. Ranked number-one in the latest NCAA
Division III men's cross country poll, Calvin came within 17 points of a
national title in 1998 as North Central won the crown with 106 points
followed by Calvin in second with 122 points. A year ago, Calvin took
fourth with 164 points, marking the first time that Calvin has posted
back-to-back top-four national finishes in men's cross country.
Although ranked number-one, Calvin expects to be in a fierce battle for
the national title Saturday as several teams have solid chances at the
title. Although ranked lower in the polls throughout the year,
fifth-ranked North Central of Illinois is still the team to beat on
Saturday as the Cardinals have captured the last three national titles.
Since the first NCAA III men's cross country championship in 1973, North
Central has won an incredible 12 national titles. Since 1973, North
Central has finished below third only once and over the last 13 years,
it has finished either first or second. This past weekend, North
Central took first place in the rugged Midwest Regional with 72 points
led by senior Tim McCoskey's first place time of 24:25. McCoskey is
considered the odds-on favorite to claim Saturday's individual national
title with Thor Esbensen of Nebraska Wesleyan also considered a strong
threat for the crown. North Central's string of three straight titles
began in 1997 when it edged Mount Union for the national title by two
points 94-96. In the race, Mount Union placed four runners in the
top-16 but the Cardinals were able to slide enough runners inside Mount
Union's top-five to win the crown by the closest margin in NCAA III
Championship history.
Other teams expected to battle Calvin for the title include
second-ranked Keene State of New Hampshire; third-ranked
Wisconsin-Oshkosh and fourth-ranked Wisconsin-LaCrosse.
A year ago, Keene State finished as the national runner-up behind a trio
of All-America performances. Led by senior Wilson Perez, the Owls have
a strong top-five and possess the firepower to win Saturday''s race with
Perez one of the contenders for the individual title. Wisconsin-Oshkosh
is coming off of a fourth place finish at the Midwest Regional while
LaCrosse was second. Oshkosh is led by junior Phil Keskinen and senior
Abe Mendoza while LaCrosse is paced by junior Tyler Foos.
Seventh-ranked Wisconsin-Platteville is another team to watch as the
Pioneers took third at Saturday's Midwest Regional with 106 points.
Calvin has been paced by its top-five of seniors Dan Hoekstra and Paul
Petersen, juniors Joel Klooster and Justin Momany-Pfruender and
sophomore Cameron Harrison. Hoekstra and Klooster are considered top-10
individual threats while Momany-Pfruender also has the ability for a
top-10 finish. At Saturday's Great Lakes Regional in Hanover, Indiana,
the trio cranked out a 1-2-3 Calvin finish as Hoekstra was first in
25:24; Klooster second in 25:35 and Momany-Pfruender third in 25:40.
Petersen and Harrison have also been strong throughout the year and are
capable of big performances. Petersen was seventh at Saturday's Great
Lakes Regional while Harrison was ninth. Calvin's national roster is
filled out by freshmen Tim Avery and Kris Koster with senior Kevin
VerBeek (South Holland, IL) serving as alternate. Avery and Koster have
had sensational freshman campaigns, earning first team All-MIAA and
Great Lakes All-Region accolades. Four of Calvin's runners have prior
experience at the NCAA III Championships. Hoekstra was 79th at the 1998
championships in Carlisle, Pennsylvania and 41st at the 1999
championships in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Klooster did not run at the 1998
national meet but was 51st at the 1999 championships. Momany-Pfruender
is making his third trip to nationals. As a freshman in 1998, he
finished 38th, missing an All-America spot by three places. At the 1999
nationals, Momany-Pfruender ran to All-America accolades (top-35) as he
placed 23rd. Petersen competed in his first national meet last year,
finishing 61st. Harrison, Avery and Koster are all making their first
trips to nationals.
Calvin is led by head coach Brian Diemer who was recently named Great
Lakes Region Coach of the Year for the sixth time in the last seven
years.
WOMEN'S OUTLOOK
The two-time defending national champion Calvin women's cross country
team is making its 12th appearance at nationals, ranking it sixth in
team appearances at the NCAA III women's cross country championships.
Calvin has posted six top-four national finishes including national
titles in 1998 and 1999. Prior to that, Calvin finished fourth in 1995
and 1996 and second in 1992, 1993 and 1994. Ranked second in the final
NCAA III women's cross country poll of the year, Calvin took first place
in 1998 with 124 points and followed with a dominating score of 85
points in its 1999 national title performance.
Top-ranked Middlebury of New Hampshire is considered the favorite for
Saturday's national title. A year ago, the Panthers finished second
behind Calvin with a score of 119 points. Middlebury returns six of its
top seven from last year's team and has been ranked number-one for every
week of the 2000 season. At the New England Regional this past
Saturday, Middlebury took first place with a score of 60 points, one
point ahead of third-ranked Williams of Massachusetts. Fourth-ranked
Wisconsin-Oshkosh; fifth-ranked Luther of Iowa and sixth-ranked St. Olaf
of Minnesota are all considered threats for the title as well. Of the
expected contenders, Wisconsin-Oshkosh has the most national titles with
four.
There are a number of contenders for the individual national title led
by senior Barb Swallow of Springfield College who captured the Northeast
Regional title this past Saturday along with senior Johanna Olson of
Luther College who took first place at Saturday's Central Regional.
Calvin returns four of its top seven from a year ago as seniors Sarah
Gritter and Rashel Workman along with juniors Erinn Boot and Lindsay
Carrier competed at the 1999 NCAA III Championships in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin. Gritter will be making her fourth appearance at nationals as
she was 61st in 1997; 83rd in 1998 and 49th in 1999. A three-time
All-American in track and field, Gritter has the potential to move into
one of the top-10 spots Saturday. Workman will also be making her
fourth appearance at the NCAA III championships as she was 87th in 1997;
67th in 1998 and 97th in 1999. Boot and Carrier are both making their
second national appearance as Boot was 50th in 1999 and Carrier 135th in
1999. Junior Laura Medema and freshmen Jessie Lair and Sarah Hastings
are making their first appearance at the NCAA III Championships. All
seven Calvin runners were named to the All-MIAA first team and Great
Lakes All-Region squad.
Calvin is under the direction of veteran head coach Nancy Meyer who been
named USTA National Coach of the Year twice. She was recently named
Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year for the seventh time in the last
eight years.
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