As the Rockets prepare to kickoff their 2010 cross country
campaign, one emotion available in abundance is excitement. Fresh off the
announcement that both the men's and women's teams have earned rankings in the
USTFCCCA NCAA Division I Great Lakes Region polls, the men for the first time
in program history, Head Coach Kevin Hadsell and the Rocket runners have high
expectations for the upcoming season.
Women
This year's roster looks to be the most talented in the school's
history. With six nationally-ranked
teams in the last nine years and five top-two finishes at the MAC during that time,
the Rockets are poised to make another big jump.
"Two years ago we were completely rebuilding and we were sixth in
the MAC and 19th in the region," said Hadsell. "Those same women jumped into the national rankings, produced a MAC Runner-up
finish and a sixth-place finish at the region after one solid year of
trainingll. Now, one year
later, they have made an equally as impressive jump in their abilities and this
is going to be a very tough team to beat as long as we stay healthy."
Seniors:
The Rockets have four seniors on the roster for 2010. Two of those seniors have made a considerable
contribution to the program over the last three years. Audra Brown (Ayersville, OH;
Ayersville HS) was the team's fifth runner in 2009 at the MAC Championships,
finishing 25th overall. She
improved dramatically on the track, placing indoors at 5000-meters and outdoors
at 10,000-meters and running new personal-best times of 17:28 and 36:12 respectively
in those events. Karen Sovacool (Cleveland, OH;
Magnificat HS) was also a varsity runner for the Rockets all three years and
has improved on the track to 10:06 (3000m) and 17:43 (5000m).
"Audra may be one of the most consistent runners we have ever had
at Toledo," said Hadsell. "She is constantly in the mix and made yet another
huge improvement this summer. Audra is far
stronger than I think I would have ever predicted, and I cannot wait for her to
start racing this fall."
Other Rocket seniors include Megan Chambers (Rocky
River, OH; Magnificat HS) and Mo
Gibbs (Whiteford, MI; Whiteford HS).
Juniors:
The Rockets have a very talented and accomplished junior class
that is highlighted by defending Mid-American Conference Champion, Ari Fisher
(Lebanon, OH;
Lebanon HS). Fisher, who was not a
varsity runner heading into the 2009 Championship season, heads into the 2010
season having also won the MAC Indoor 5000-meter title (narrowly missing the
meet record) in 16:38. She also improved
outdoors to 16:24 for 5000-meters which is one of the fastest times ever
recorded in MAC history. Fisher finished
the 2009 season with an NCAA Championships bid, narrowly missing All-American
status by less than one second in finishing 43rd.
Also leading the way for the junior class will be Emma Kertesz (Toledo, OH; Central
Catholic HS) and Lindsay Toussant (Minerva,
OH; Minerva HS). Kertesz missed the second half of the 2009
season but competed at the William and Mary Inter-Regional, helping the team
down perennial powerhouse William and Mary as the team's sixth runner in 22:26
for the 6k. She went on to improve
dramatically on the track running 17:32 for 5000m on the track. Toussant was the team's fourth runner at the 2009 MAC Championships, finishing 20th and narrowly missing
All-MAC. Toussant also improved on the
track to 10:01 (3000m) and 17:33 (5000m).
Other juniors include: Ali Fisher (Lebanon,
OH; Lebanon HS) and Liza Cholin (Oregon, OH; Clay HS).
"The junior class is a class I am incredibly proud of," said Hadsell. "They have improved year-to-year, and this fall
will be no exception. They have made a
significant improvement over the last four months."
Sophomores:
According to Coach Hadsell, one of the biggest surprises will be
the dramatic improvement of the sophomore class. "This is a very good group that needed last
year to mature and develop at their own pace," he said. "Most people know who Devyn Ramsay is,
however, there are a couple of sophomores that made a huge leap forward this
summer and are going to be very surprising."
Headlining the sophomore class is All-MAC runner, was Ramsay (Benzonia, MI;
Benzie HS). Ramsay was the team's No. 3
runner at the MAC Championships, finishing ninth and the team's No. 2 finisher
at the NCAA Regional Championship, just missing All-Region, and finishing 28th. She made a huge improvement on the track and
finished the outdoor season finishing 10th at the MAC Championships
in the 5000m in 17:11.
"Devyn is incredibly tough," said Hadsell. "She is training really
well with the seniors and juniors and will fit right back into the fold when
she opens-up at Minnesota
with the rest of the varsity runners."
Three sophomores that Hadsell pointed out as having made
considerable improvements over the summer are: Kristal Studer (Lawrenceburg,
IN; East Central HS), Hannah Brisson (Casco, MI; Richmond HS)
and Sam Condron (Miamisburg, OH;
Miamisburg). Studer was the team's seventh runner in 2010
as a freshman but improved on the track considerably. Brisson missed most of cross country as a
freshman due to low iron and Condron was not a varsity runner in 2010 but ran
17:52 on the indoor track for 5000-meters.
"Kristal struggled with low iron and a foot issue from high school
as a freshman," said Hadsell. "I think we have both issues under control and she is running
times on our benchmark workouts that indicate a huge improvement. In addition, Brisson and
Condron have made similar jumps this summer and make us a very deep team!"
Other sophomores include Hannah Evans (Lakewood,
OH; Lakewood HS), Richelle Gray (Southgate, MI; Southgate HS), Amanda Mannon (Oregon,
OH; Clay HS) and Danielle Borowske (Kirkland,
OH; Kirkland HS).
Freshmen:
The incoming class for the Rockets includes four of the top-eight
senior distance runners at the Ohio State Meet in 2010. The four women - Jessica Phillips (Attica, OH; Seneca East
HS), Megan Wright (Miamisburg, OH;
Miamisburg), Megan Vogelsong (Defiance,
OH; Defiance HS) and Lyndie Brown (Spencerville, OH;
Spencerville) - have all been named to the All-Ohio teams for their respective
divisions. Leading the charge is
Vogelsong, who was the 2010 Ohio Division II State Champion at 3200-meters
(10:52). In addition, the Rockets'
freshman class also includes one of the top area distance runners in Liz Lemon
(Perrysburg, OH; Notre Dame).
"The freshmen are really coming along nicely so far this
fall. I think that one or more of them
are going to be able to make it into our top-seven and really help us right
away," said Hadsell. "However, our philosophy with freshmen is to
be patient and not try and suck every second out of them."
Adding depth to the freshman class is redshirt freshman and
former All-Ohio Division III runner Lei Bornhorst (Minster, OH; Minster). "Lei is developing really well at the moment
and will be a contributor to the program."
Men
The men's team looks to challenge for a top-three spot at the MAC
Championships and a Top-12 finish at the NCAA Regional. With the influx of talent and the vast
improvement of the returning runners, Coach Hadsell feels that his team is
going to be the biggest surprise of the region.
"We have six or seven men that are already better than our best
runner from last year," said Hadsell. "With such a
strong pack and high-level men, they honestly feel as though they can run with
anyone in the conference at the moment. I am very proud of them. This season
could be the beginning of something very special, and could put the men's team on the
map right alongside the women's program."
Seniors:
The four seniors on the roster are also expected to make a major
contribution this fall - Elisha Kipchumba, Barnabas Kiprotich, Mike Smith and
Joel Kozlesky. Kipchumba was the team's
top finisher at the 2009 MAC Championships and went on to finish 47th
at the NCAA Regionals. Kiprotich was the
team's fifth runner last year but has also made a huge improvement over the
summer to where he is now training in the lead group. Smith, a former all-state runner from Start
that missed six years after high school while serving in the US Army, has
returned to his old form and is also one of the top men on the team.
"Between Barnabas, Elisha and Mike, there is not a lot of distance
between those guys at the moment," Hadsell said. "They
are all very tough, and they are three of our pack of seven that is going to
lead this program this year."
Juniors:
The only junior on the roster is team captain, Jon Dewitt (Cleveland, OH;
St. Ignatius HS). Dewitt was
consistently the team's third runner all of 2009 but is looking to be the
team's leader after a huge summer of training. "For the last 13 years, I have
been searching for a men's team that really bought into the same level of
expectation as the women's program," said Hadsell. "We
have that now, and Jon Dewitt and his leadership is a huge reason for thatl. He is running incredibly
well, and Jon is probably our top runner at the moment."
Sophomores:
The only two sophomores on the roster are transfer Nick Thomas
(Delta, OH; Tiffin
University) and Elliot
Livensparger (Hilltop, OH; Hilltop HS).
Livensparger was the team's fourth runner in 2009, while Thomas won the
Toledo Tune-up 5000-meters on the track last spring.
"Nick had struggled with injuries before arriving last
January," said Hadsell. "He's been healthy, and he has
made a shocking improvement over the last four months. I think he has the talent to be an All-MAC
runner this year and possibly all-region."
Freshmen:
The Rockets' incoming class is considered to be the top recruiting
class in school history. The class is
headlined by all-state selections Jacob Barnes (Sylvania,
OH; Northview HS), Jake Kasperski (Farmersville, OH; Germantown) and Trevin Flickinger (Defiance,
OH; Defiance). All three runners earned All-State Ohio
designations in their respective divisions and are each expected to make an
immediate impact on the program.
Other freshmen include Nick Brenner (Stow,
OH; Stow HS), Ricky Adamson (Sylvania,
OH; Central Catholic HS), Taylor
Durczynski (Oregon, OH; Clay HS), Louis
Szilagyi (Millbury, OH;
Lake HS),
David Moore (Dundee, MI;
Dundee HS) and Derek Pohlman (Sylvania,
OH; Northview HS).
"Jacob Barnes had a great summer of training and he is actually
running right now with our lead group of men," said Hadsell. "I think he is a special talent and will develop into one of the top
guys in the MAC and the Region. Trevin, Nick Brenner and Jake Kaspeski are also guys that I think are
very talented."
Both Rocket squads will get their season underway this Friday at
the Bowling Green
dual. The men will be running their full squad, while the women will run a
group of underclassmen.
