MONMOUTH, Ill. - The cross country program contributed to the
success of Monmouth College's men's athletic program last year, recording a second place
finish at the Midwest Conference Championships. Fueled by league titles in indoor and
outdoor track, the Fighting Scots went on finish second in the MWC's All-Sports
Standings, and the only school to beat Monmouth was also the team which topped MC in
cross country - Grinnell.
Led by some of the key contributors from coach Roger Haynes'
track team, as well as some strong freshman runners, Haynes feels he has a cross country
group which can again challenge Grinnell, and he's also high on his women's squad, which
has a similar blend of talented veterans and promising newcomers.
The teams debuted at Elmhurst College Saturday, and they each
finished in the top half of their 20-team fields. The men, led by 22nd-place finisher
Brian Bittner, took sixth at the meet, while the women, who received a strong outing
from Lindsey Whately (29th), placed 10th.
"It was a very nice team race," Haynes said of the men. "I'm
very pleased with what our freshmen contributed."
Freshman Zach Barr, who figures to challenge for the Scots' No.
1 slot in time, was the second MC runner to finish, placing 42nd, and Anthony Welty, son
of former All-MWC runner Joe Welty, also scored for the Scots, placing fourth for the
team and 47th overall.
"It remains to be seen if we'll be able to unseat Grinnell this
season," said Haynes. "We have such a strange mix of guys. Bittner is really an
800-meter runner, Barr is unproven in cross country with just one year of experience and
Saturday was Welty's first-ever cross country race." Another 800-meter standout, Aaron
Calder, was third for the Scots at Elmhurst, placing 44th overall.
Monmouth's traditional distance runners, Frank Clark and Matt
Hargleroad, figure to improve the team as they get back into condition. Clark was fifth
for the Scots Saturday, and Hargleroad, who earned all-conference honors at last year's
MWC meet, was sixth. Freshman Sean Fitzgerald rounded out the top seven, and other team
members for Monmouth include senior David Dare, junior Aaron Wright, sophomore James Van
Dyke and freshman Brandon Zeman.
"Overall, they're not proven, but I think they can accomplish
some good things this season," said Haynes, whose team will have to overcome the loss of
2001 All-MWC runners Charlie Sunderlage and Cory Shook.
While the men have been among the conference's top teams for
several years and have had an all-conference runner for 12 of the past 13 seasons, the
women are primed for what could be their best campaign in half a decade.
"I was really pleased with the women's race Saturday, probably
even more pleased than I was with the men," said Haynes. "We beat Ripon, which we
haven't done in several years, and Lindsey Whately edged a girl who placed sixth at the
conference meet last year."
Like the men, freshmen also contributed to the team's success,
as Aleksandra Forsman was second across the line for the Scots in 43rd place and Erin
Mann was the No. 5 runner.
"Forsman finished near the top 50 in the state last year in AA
for Dekalb," said Haynes. "She's a talented runner, and Erin Mann did fine for her first
college race."
Haynes looks for veterans Elizabeth Altekruse, Philicia Moredock
and Jeana Fowler to improve as the year wears on, and he's already seen an improvement
from Fowler.
"She was a scorer for us last year, but she didn't score
Saturday," said Haynes. "I think she got the message, and she looked very strong in our
long training run Sunday."
Other team members include senior Jennifer Latchford and juniors
Becky Duncan and Shannon Fitzjarrald.
"I think the women definitely have a good shot of moving up in
the conference," said Haynes, who saw the squad come in seventh in the MWC last season,
an improvement from ninth in 2000. "Four runners have a realistic shot at earning
all-conference honors if they run their best race, and we haven't had one of those in a
while (Carrie Knauer and Gretchen Vandergriff in 1997)."
The Scots, who don't have any home meets this year, return to
action this Saturday at Western Illinois University. The teams will run five other meets
before heading to De Pere, Wis., on Nov. 2 for the MWC Championships.
Men's Cross Country
| Women's Cross Country
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