Scots Ready for MWC Meet

Release Date: October 24, 2001

A generation ago, people used to get a kick out of checking their biorhythms, which was the 1970s version of the horoscope. The premise was that a person’s physical (P), emotional (E) and intellectual (I) capabilities were on a constant rise and fall. Every so often, you’d be at or near the optimum level in your P, E, and I on the same day, and you’d probably feel like you could conquer the world. If your P, E and I all slipped way below par on the same day, you might not want to leave the house.

Figuring out how a cross country team will do is a lot like checking one’s biorhythms. For the Fighting Scots, if their CS cycle (Charlie Sunderlage and Cory Shook), their MH (Matt Hargleroad) and their FC (Frank Clark) are all at high levels on the same day, it could mean a very good meet for the Monmouth cross country team. That optimum day hasn’t happened yet this season, but the aforementioned runners’ cycles appear to be in an upswing, as are Monmouth’s Double-D (David Dare) and Double-B (Bryan Bittner) cycles.

“A number of top runners in the conference graduated last year,” said coach Roger Haynes when asked in the preseason about his team’s chances at the upcoming Midwest Conference Championships in Grinnell, Iowa, Saturday. “We have some guys who have had success, but we never put it together at the same place at the same time last year.”

Should Monmouth’s individual efforts come together Saturday, the Scots could make a run at meet favorite Grinnell, and they’ll assuredly improve their sixth-place finish from last year. Three Scots - Sunderlage (6th), Hargleroad (14th) and Clark (15th) are ranked in the top 15 in the conference heading into the meet, and a top 15 finish earns All-MWC honors, a feat Sunderlage accomplished last year while placing eighth. In fact, five of the seven runners who beat him last year have graduated, leaving the door wide open for a high finish from the senior from Sycamore, Ill.

“At this point, we are basically healthy and seem to be ready for the MWC meet, but I don’t have the feeling that we have run our best race of the season yet,” said Haynes. “I’m hopeful that it will come at Grinnell.”

While MWC coaches are impressed enough by Monmouth to rank the Scots behind four-time defending champion Grinnell, Haynes knows anything can happen.

“The North Division schools seem to come to the party at the MWC meet more than any other all year long and they could change up the order of finish quite a bit,” he said. “We just need to be ready and take care of our own races and not worry about what others do. If we can run our best for the season we should finish pretty well.

“As for the women, we are much improved from last year (when the Scots took ninth in the MWC), but we need to continue to improve to move up the conference ladder,” Haynes continued. “It’s been a few years since we’ve had an all-conference runner (Carrie Knauer and Gretchen Vandergriff in 1997), and we have some that have a shot.”

Haynes was referring to juniors Philicia Moredock and Lindsey Whately. Although Whately has been the team’s No. 1 runner all season, Moredock passed her earlier this month with a season-best time at Millikin, leaving her ranked 27th in the conference. Whately, who Haynes said has been “solid all year,” is ranked 28th. “Big race” runner Jeana Fowler and junior Tricia Wasson, the Scots’ No. 1 runner in 1999, will also key Monmouth’s team finish.

Lawrence, led by 2000’s No. 3 finisher Sally Schonfeld, is the narrow women’s favorite, picked slightly ahead of defending champion Carroll.