Update Oct. 31: Lauren Sara ’14 (CLAS) finished in seventh place out of 138 runners for the women Huskies, and Nick Aguila ’13 (CLAS) finished 43rd out of 123 runners for the men in the 2011 Big East Cross Country Championships over the weekend in Louisville. The women’s cross country team took seventh place overall and the men’s team finished 10th in the team standings.
The Husky cross country teams are hitting their stride as they head this weekend to the Big East Championships in Louisville. The men’s team won its first New England Championship in 42 years on Oct. 8 in Boston, and 10 days later the women’s team earned its first-ever national ranking.
Women
“This is very exciting for our program, and a testament to how far this team has come in just a few short years,” says Andrea Grove-McDonough, women’s cross country head coach, about the team’s national recognition. “I am so happy for the team and for what this will mean to them.”
In addition to trying to gain a national ranking, the women’s team set a goal of wanting to finish in front of nationally-ranked teams. The Huskies accomplished that goal at the Penn State Nationals, when they finished in second place ahead of No. 20 Penn State and No. 26 Duke.
“What we have going for us this year is we have a tight pack of runners competing, but we have a kid who is capable of scoring low,” says Grove-McDonough, a former All-American distance runner at the University of Minnesota in her fourth year as a Huskies coach and first leading the team. “Lauren Sara ’14 (CLAS) is big time and has All-American potential.”
Sara broke from the pack during her freshman year in Storrs when she led the Huskies as the team’s top finisher in 2010 at the Big East Championships and the NCAA Northeast Regionals. Earlier this season she was the Female Big East Athlete of the Week, only the second Husky to be so honored, after finishing first at the CCSU Blue Devil Invite.
Grove-McDonough attributes her team’s success this year to the collective strength of the team’s individual members, illustrated by the teamwork of Shauna McNiff ’13 (CLAS), who in mid-race will provide vocal support for freshman Lindsay Crevoiserat ’15 (CLAS) as she works through difficulties she may encounter during a race.
“Shauna gets to Lindsay and talks to her,” Grove-McDonough says. “Lindsay says that has saved her every time. Lindsay focuses on staying with Shauna and then has a great close.”
The experienced leadership of upper class team members Heather Wilson ’12 (CLAS), Brigitte Mania ’13 (CLAS), Courtney Dinnan ’12 (ED) and Allison Cooper ’13 (CLAS) has also provided the women’s cross country team with an advantage during races, she adds.
“We’re much deeper than most teams,” Grove-McDonough says. “Everybody is pretty focused on – ‘If I’m taking a leadership role at some point and someone else gets ahead of me at the end, I’ve done my job.’ On any given day it can be someone different. If they all go out together, I only need one of them to hang on for a high finish. ”
Men
Head men’s coach Rich Miller ’95 (ED) says his cross country team has worked hard throughout the season to challenge themselves during their training sessions.
“One of the biggest keys to this team’s early season success has been the ability of our top runners to improve and push the tempo, and our remaining five runners to keep contact with them or stay close,” Miller says. “The strength of this team is not in one or two runners, but in the team as a whole.”
With a handful of nationally ranked teams in the Big East, the conference championships will provide an opportunity for the Huskies to make their mark against top competition that includes Georgetown, Providence, Villanova, Syracuse, Notre Dame, and Louisville, all nationally ranked.
“We go in as a team that has developed significantly in a short period of time,” Miller says. “Our goals at the onset of the season were to develop our team running, contend with the top teams in New England to improve on our past Big East performances as a team.”
Co-captains Scott Johnson ’12 (CANR) and Nick Aguila ’13 have led the Huskies as the team’s top performers this season. Johnson had a top 15 finish at the New England Championships and Aguila had a top 20 finish. The team’s other top performers include Jordan Magath ’13 (CLAS), Ryan McGuire ’14 (CLAS), and Bryan Fowler ’15 (CLAS).
Miller says for the Big East Championships the Huskies will boost the team’s strength by adding Joe Clark ’13 (CLAS), Tim Bennatan ’13 (CLAS), Alex Bennatan ’13 (CLAS), and Mike Duprey ’15 (CLAS) to the competition group.
“We will be striving to close the gap and factor these student-athletes into our top five,” says Miller, a four-time All-East performer in the decathlon for the Huskies and in his first season as head coach. “I’ve told the kids that at this level the thing that separates the good from the great is not their physical ability but their mental toughness and preparation. They should be at their best on the day of the race.”
