2009 Season Preview: Garnet Cross Country Teams Look to Run Away From the Pack
Entering his 11th season at Swarthmore College, cross country head coach Peter Carroll enters the 2009 season with a large stable of runners for both the men’s and women’s teams, with both squads hoping to compete for a Centennial Conference title as well as a top-ten finish at the NCAA Mideast Regionals.
The men’s team – the largest in Swarthmore history – will be led by a trio of seniors: captain Andrew Van Buren (Hudson, Ohio), Jonnie Tompkins (Swarthmore, Pa.), and David Riccardi (Syracuse, N.Y.). The group will need to quickly fill the void left by departing seniors Erik Saka and Dan Hodson - consistently two of the Garnet’s top finishers in 2008 - if the 2009 squad has any thoughts of improving on last season’s fifth-place finish at the Centennial Conference Championships.
Helping to fill the shoes of Saka and Hodson will be junior Patrick Harnett (Syracuse, N.Y. / Westhill), who posted several Top 5 times in 2008, and a talented crop of fourteen newcomers hailing from all over the country.
According to Carroll, the team goal for the men’s squad in 2009 is to record a top-ten performance at the NCAA Mideast Regionals; 2008 marked the first time since 2004 that the Garnet finished outside of the top-ten performance at the NCAA Regionals.
The 2009 women’s squad will be led by seniors Nyika Corbet (Myrtle Point., Ore.), who achieved all-Mideast regional honors for the third time in her career, Ashley Davies (New Providence, N.J.) , who was an all-Centennial performer two seasons ago, and Lauren Deluca (Audubon, Pa.), a stellar 800m runner on the track.
Also in the mix will be sophomore Melissa Frick (Swarthmore, Pa.), who finished second-team all-Conference in 2008, sophomore Hannah Rose (Croton-Hudson, N.Y.) who earned first-team all-Centennial honors in outdoor track this past spring, and Rebecca Woo ’11 (Davis, Calif.), who ranks third all-time in the outdoor 3000m Steeplechase at the College. The team will try to improve on its seventh-place finish (out of 44 teams) in the NCAA Mideast Regional meet and seek a berth in the NCAA championships.
The 2009 women’s squad will also strive to be a success in the classroom once again, as the 2008 squad was recognized for its academic excellence by the US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association, having averaged a 3.49 team GPA, while four individuals were recognized for carrying a minimum 3.5 GPA and finishing in the top 25 percent of the NCAA regional championships.