P-P Cross Country runs fast, looks hot
By Lauren Sauter
Sports Associate

Pomona-Pitzer cross country runners are looking good this season, and I am not just talking about on the XC course. They look good drinking Gatorade, they look good eating fruit, they look good at parties, and they look good when I interview them (I’m talking about you, Andy Barnette!).

For those of you only familiar with cross country because of its devastatingly good-looking participants, here is a crash course on the mechanics of the sport: women run 5000m or 6000m (3.1 miles and 3.7 miles, respectively), and men run 8000m (4.9 miles). Each team may consist of 7 runners, but it is the top 5 finishers whose scores are tallied into the team total. The point-value corresponds to the finishing order; for instance, a runner who comes in fifth contributes 5 points to the team total. It follows that the team with the lowest total points is the winner, to be bestowed with honor, glory, and medals made of precious bronze and nickel alloys.

Last Saturday, September 20, both men's and women’s teams woke up early, ate bananas and granola bars, and headed over to the UC Riverside Invitational to hopefully kick ass. The course was located in UCR’s agricultural fields, providing runners with a picturesque scene of orange groves, as they pushed themselves to run faster than you could possibly imagine. It is known as a “fast” or “quick” course, which is a sexy way of saying “easy." Don’t get me wrong: there is nothing easy about distance running. However, on a “fast” course, an experienced runner can push his or herself that much more, and the result is a very good time.

Placing first and second among Division III schools, the women’s team scored a total of 265 points, placing second in DIII and ninth overall. Being in one of the larger meets of the season, the women runners were in the company of 180 total participants from Division II and NAIA schools, as well as club teams with annoying names like “See Jane Run."

Returning sophomore Amy Rapp was P-P’s top finisher for the second time this season, placing 25th overall. She came in at 19:05.8 in the 5000 meter race, a personal record. Although the temperature on Saturday reached 90 degrees, Rapp said she felt good throughout the race, pushed on by team members in the first few miles.

Following quickly behind Rapp were sophomore Nika Strzelecka (19:45.3), senior Susie Roley(19:55.5), junior Isa Barth-Rogers(20:04.4) and senior Stefanie McDougall(20:09.5). Roley, as well, achieved a personal best on this course.

"Our 1-5 split of 64 seconds is very strong," said Head Women's Coach Kirk Reynolds. "We haven't had that small a split for a number of years, and we also haven't had that fast of a top-5 for about a decade. We had spectacular races from most individuals on the team, which is exciting this early in the season. For the 5k distance, if we can get our entire top-5 under 20 minutes and tighten up our 1-5 split even more, we can be a very strong team."

Coach Reynolds has high hopes for the season, and his sentiments are echoed in the team. Although SCIAC competition does not start until mid-October, runners are gearing up for the challenge. "We have a strong group of runners, " said McDougaall, "There is always someone to run with in practice, and we push each other on."

Reflecting on the hard work put in thus far, Reynolds stated, "The season has started very well. We have veteran runners providing experience and leadership, and we have some newcomers who are settling very well onto our team. We're having a lot of fun. In workouts, we've been putting in a ton of hill work, and we've spent the past two Sundays running miles and miles up Mt. Baldy Road up to 6000 feet elevation. I'm hoping all the work pays off at the end of the season in some nice races by our runners."

The members of the men's cross country team also posted a number of personal bests. Led by returning All-American Crosby Freeman '06, P-P was first among NCAA DIII teams and 11th overall, with a score of 315 points. Not only that, but their top ten runners all achieved personal bests over the 8000m course. Freeman came in at a cool 25:37.90 to secure 52nd place out of 316 competitors. Close behind in 54th place was Will Leer '07 with a time of 25:42.10. In 62nd place was Nate DeFelice '04 (25:48.60), followed by Sean McCarron '07 (26:36.80) and David Maas '06 (26:46.30). Freshman standouts Leer and McCarron promise to make this an exciting season for the cross country team. Remarked senior Andy Barnette, “This is definitely the most promising team I’ve seen in my four years here.”

Leer, making a remarkable showing in his first year here at Pomona, is optimistic about the prospects for the season. Although he admits to being a little intimidated at first by the impressive resume of his fellow runners, Leer enjoys working with the team. “Crosby and all the seniors are great leaders. They really pull us along in practice, taking the team to a new level in training and pushing us to take our performance a step further.”

Saturday’s meet was followed by an intense practice run on Sunday morning, not an easy task after a night of celebrating the glorious win. Just ask DeFelice.

The next step is certainly something to anticipate. Both top seven women’s and men’s cross country runners can be found looking tan, lean, and tough as they run 6000m and 8000m, respectively, at the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto this Saturday.