You can lay to rest any notion that the Colorado College men's cross country team remains content with last year's Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championship and appearance at the NCAA Division III national meet.
With their commitment to training during the last three months, the Tigers firmly demonstrated that they want much more.
Most of the team's top veterans spent their summers in or near the Rocky Mountains, including several locations at altitudes considerably higher than Colorado Springs, in an effort to be at their best during the 2010 season.
"Coaches are always concerned that a team might take things for granted or rest on its laurels," said head coach Ted Castaneda, who is entering his 30th season at CC. "I'm not worried because a lot of guys stayed in Colorado all summer to train. In fact, there is a higher level of commitment, more excitement, and the willingness to put in even more work to achieve even better results this year."
Leading the pack is junior Jackson Brainerd, who earned All-America honors with an 18th-place finish at the Division III championship and came from behind in the last five meters to win the West Regional in a time of 25:26.65.
Brainerd became the third Tiger to win a regional title, joining Scott Kang (1986) and Julian Boggs (2006), but the first to do it as a sophomore. He also finished first at the SCAC championship two weeks earlier.
“Jackson is a very strong competitor, especially in big meets,” Castaneda said. “His goals are to place very high at both the conference meet and the regionals, and he certainly wants to become a two-time All-American. Jackson has a shot at a top-10 finish at nationals this year.”
Seniors Dan Kraft and Andrew Wagner expect to be right on Brainerd's heals. Both earned all-conference and all-region honors last year. Both are diligently training for a higher finish this season.
Kraft finished 18th at regionals with a time of 26:24.03. His mark of 26:40.50 at the NCAA championships was good for 91st place. Wagner was one spot behind at the regional meet with a time of 26:26.00. He took 164th place at nationals, clocking in at 27:11.80.
Both runners turned in impressive performances during the 2010 track season, with Wagner running a 3:52 in the 1500 and Kraft a 15:24 in the 5K, and both look to carry that momentum into the fall.
“Dan has been stepping it up and could place in the top 12 at regionals and possibly be an All-American,” Castaneda said. “Andrew has set very high goals, especially after what he did in track. They were putting in 80-plus miles every week this summer. We've got a very strong three runners up front.”
David Wilder and Max Gerken engaged in their own intra-squad rivalry last fall and should round out a solid top five for the Tigers. Wilder spent his summer working and training in the mountains, while Gerken is a life-long Colorado resident.
At the 2009 West Regional, Wilder finished 29th in a time of 26:57.19. That was 1.55 seconds and one spot ahead of Gerken, as both runners earned all-region honors.
“They were a big factor in helping us get to nationals, surging over the last 400 meters at the regional meet,” said Castaneda.
At least five more returning runners could challenge for a spot on the travel roster. The list includes Mike Dougan, who trained in Colorado Springs all summer, as well as Robby Caseria, Ben Taber ,Nick Geyer and Andrew Vierra.
“There are probably seven guys going for the final four spots,” Castaneda said. “It's difficult to predict the outcome of that competition. They all want to be among the top seven because they know how good this team can be.”
Because the team is stocked with so many veterans, it will be difficult for newcomers to break into the top seven. But that certainly doesn't mean the first-year runners won't ratchet up the level of competition.
“On paper, Grant Rice, Andy Pontbriand, and Sam Pratt-Otto and appear to have the best shot for the freshmen at challenging for a spot in the top seven,” Castaneda said. “There's hope that maybe one of them do it, but it's going to be tough of the talent and experience we have returning.”
Colorado College opens the 2010 campaign with a time trial at the University of Colorado, then will compete in a pair of meets on its home course at North Monument Valley Park.
After the time trial in Boulder on Sept. 4, the season officially opens the following week at the CU-Colorado Springs Rust Buster Invitational.
CC's annual home meet – the Colorado College Invitational on Sept. 18 – could feature the strongest field the Tigers will see in Colorado this season. Three top Division II programs from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference – Adams State College, Colorado School of Mines and Fort Hays State University – are slated to participate.
“Winning it will be tough, but this is the kind of competition that will help make us a national contender,” Castaneda said. “We don't need easy wins; we need the best competition we can find to prepare for the end of the season.”
Another key event on the 2010 schedule is the Dan Huston/Pre-Nationals at Wartburg College on Oct. 9. It's the first of what the Tigers hope will be two races on the host course for Division III nationals.
“It is very important to have the opportunity to run the course where nationals will be held, especially having aspirations of a top-15 finish this year,” said Castaneda. “It's an immeasurable benefit.”
The conference championship takes place in Seguin, Texas, on Oct. 30, while the West Region meet is scheduled for Nov. 13 in Salem, Ore.
“We want to finish among the top two at the conference meet,” Castaneda said. “We're not taking anything for granted just because we won it last year. We have the talent and work ethic to contend for a top spot at regionals, but making it to nationals is our top priority.”
