Cross Country 2010 Season Preview

08.29.2010

QUICK 2010 SYNOPSIS: Expectations are at an all-time high for The C of I cross country teams this season, a year after both the men's and women's teams recorded Top-10 finishes at the NAIA National Championships. With the men's team returning a pair of All-Cascade Conference competitors, while the women's team returns seven of their top eight runners from a team that finished in ninth-place at the NAIA Championships, optimism is abound for the Coyotes.

CCC/NAIA PRESEASON POLL: Both C of I teams logged their highest preseason national rankings in program history, as the NAIA Top-25 Preseason Coaches’ Polls were Aug. 23.  The two-time defending Cascade Conference women’s champions were ranked No. 6 in the national balloting, earning 503 voter points from the 21 raters representing conference and independents.  The Lady Yotes were one of four CCC schools in the Top-25, as Concordia was ranked No. 9, Eastern Oregon at No. 15, and Southern Oregon at No. 25 – the most ranked teams of any conference in the NAIA.  Biola (Calif.) received 15 first-place votes and was ranked No. 1, followed by defending national champion Cal State-San Marcos, Malone (Ohio), Simon Fraser, and Azusa Pacific.  The Coyote men were ranked No. 11 in the preseason poll after a runner-up finish in the 2009 CCC Championships and a tenth-place finish at Nationals.  The C of I received 367 voter points in the poll – one of four CCC teams in the ranking, including No. 2 Southern Oregon, No. 9 Eastern Oregon, and No. 17 Concordia.  Defending national champions, Malone (Ohio), was ranked No. 1, followed by Southern Oregon, Shawnee State (Ohio), Embry-Riddle (Fla.), and British Columbia.  In the CCC, the Lady Yotes were picked to win the league title, just ahead of Concordia, Eastern, and Southern, while on the men’s side, the Coyotes were picked second, behind Southern Oregon, and just ahead of Eastern Oregon and Concordia.

LAST SEASON / RUNNERS LOST: The Coyote men improved as the 2009 season rolled along – including winning the team title at the Coyote Invitational in October.  The C of I went on to record their best finish ever at the CCC Championships, taking second, earning an at-large bid to the NAIA National Meet, where they finished tenth overall.  The Coyotes will lose a pair of contributors from last season – J.J. Burk, who was the No. 4 runner in the pack, along with Geoff Williams, who was the No. 10 runner on the squad.  The Lady Yotes had an outstanding year, knocking off multiple NCAA Division I teams along the away, rising as high as No. 5 in the Top-25 poll – winning the CCC title in convincing style.  At the national meet, the squad logged their highest finish in program history, placing seventh.  The C of I will have to replace four runners out of their top-ten from last season – seniors Molli Lee-Painter, Tegan Troutner, and Chantel Varland, with junior Maggie Miller transferring after the track season.

MEN'S PREVIEW: Last year, the Coyotes had a raw roster that improved throughout the season – peaking in time for both the CCC Championships and the NAIA National Meet.  In 2010, the Yotes return nearly all of the key components from that squad, all with a year of experience under their belts.  Senior Paul Sartin will lead the Yotes again this year after back-to-back All-CCC honors, while Kiprotich Langat, a 2008 All-CCC harrier, looks to return to form after an injury-plagued sophomore season.  An outstanding sophomore class will be the key, led by NAIA All-American, Greg Montgomery, who earned All-CCC honors as a freshman, along with Andrew Hugill, Dominic Bolin, and Jason Hunt.  “Our men are deep, talented, and fairly experienced, said head coach Pat McCurry.  “We should have a tight pack and that will be our strength that we will look to use to our advantage on race day.  This is the type of cross country team that can be really fun to coach.”

WOMEN'S PREVIEW: The recruiting process for the Lady Yotes over the last few years have developed the C of I into one of the premier cross country programs in the Northwest – with the 2010 team one of the deepest squads on record.  Senior Stephanie Helm looks to return to form in 2010, as injuries and illness hampered her last season – yet still earned her third All-CCC honor and second NAIA All-America award.  Fellow senior, Kristine Smith, earned All-CCC honors last season and is coming off a banner track season, while junior Kayloni Jones and sophomore Kaitlyn Gerard both earned All-CCC honors in 2009.  Adding to the depth of the Yotes will be junior Colleen Smith, who was a soccer All-American and has run track the past two springs, along with freshmen Sora Klopfenstein, Hillary Holt, and Myja Maki – who all placed in the Top-25 at the Idaho 5A state meet last year.  “It is our best team to date on paper, but of course we do not race on paper,” said McCurry.  “There is much potential, but also many question marks as we will be relying on some young girls to step up on race day and on new leadership to take the reins.  We will be focusing on just improving through the season, particularly after these two early meets before we hit that critical mid season stretch in October.”

HOME MEET: The Yotes will host a meet in the Treasure Valley for the fourth time (and second-straight year), as the 2010 version of the Coyote Twilight will be held in late October at Fairview Golf Course in downtown Caldwell.  The course resembles that of the NAIA Championships course at the Fort Vancouver Historical Site in Vancouver, Wash. – and was one of the fastest loops in the Northwest last year.

ABOUT THE COACH: Pat McCurry enters his seventh year at the helm of the track & field and cross country programs at The College of Idaho.  In five years (after the Coyote running programs were dormant for nearly 30 years), McCurry has built the Coyote men and women into NAIA Top-25 programs - with the men’s cross country team earning fourth berths to the NAIA Championships, with the Lady Yotes winning the 2008 and 2009 Cascade Conference titles, with the squad finishing ninth at the National meet and seventh in 2009. For his efforts, McCurry was named 2008 and 2009.women's cross country Coach of the Year.   Student-athletes have claimed 14 individual Cascade Conference titles on the track, nine NAIA All-American awards in cross country and track & field, seven All-NAIA Region I awards in cross country, 27 All-CCC awards in cross country - along with 56 NAIA All-America Scholar-Athlete awards.  Prior to his arrival at The C of I, McCurry was an assistant coach at his alma mater, Eastern Oregon University, helping EOU to a national runner-up finish at the 2002 NAIA Men’s Cross Country Championships and the 2003 CCC title in men’s track & field.  As an athlete at EOU from 1997-1999, McCurry claimed two consecutive CCC titles at 5000-meters and finished eighth at the NAIA Championships at 10,000-meters.  His best athletic years came after college while running for Nike Portland, and later the Eastside Track Club - where at the 2003 University of Oregon Preview Meet, the Coyote skipper took home the title in the 3000-meters and has a personal best of 8:13 at that distance.   He also holds the Willamette Invitational meet record and Charles Bowles track record at 10,000-meters from his 2004 performance there.  McCurry has also claimed the title at many Treasure Valley area races, including the infamous Race to Robie Creek in 2005, 2009. and 2010, along with the City of Trees marathon. 

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