Zag Cross Country Teams Get First Test Saturday In Spokane
8/30/2013 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
SPOKANE, Wash. - It's more of an exploratory exercise to see where they are, but the competition will nonetheless still be there at the Clash of the Inland Northwest cross country meet to get the collegiate season off and running Saturday at Mead High School.
The men's 6K begins at 10 a.m. with the women's 4K to follow. Co-hosts Gonzaga University and Eastern Washington University will be joined by Washington State University, the University of Idaho, Whitworth University, Lewis-Clark State College and Whitman College.
"Anytime you line up with a jersey you can fake it all you want, but it is a competition," Gonzaga director of cross country and men's head coach Pat Tyson said. "It is early, and most teams prior to the big meets down the road use this one more for compliance. You can get three competitions out of the way. At the same time, we are putting the jersey on. I wish we had everybody healthy, but we really want everybody healthy by the first Saturday in November in Malibu (for the West Coast Conference Championship). Saturday is a fun little spin. It's only 6K and not a real 8K or 10K venue, but it's more about putting a jersey on, getting some butterflies out of the way and seeing where our competitiveness is at this stage of the game."
There has been some good competition on the men's side, although Tyson said one or two individuals have really stepped up.
"There's no doubt about it. Nick Roche has risen to another level. Like Tate Kelly a year ago, Roche has that same look, has aced his workouts, had a nice summer of training and it's nice to see our steeplechase record holder crank it. He's got a really good attitude," Tyson said of the junior from Tigard, Ore.
But Roche is being pushed.
"We did a little test effort last week and our number one runner was freshman Troy Fraley. He's one of the greater recruits in Gonzaga history, a Footlocker national final winner last year and on paper he's our number one runner," Tyson noted of the freshman from Kalispell, Mont.
Portland, Ore., junior Willie Milam "is solid. He's definitely on fire and shows right now he's ready to help the Zags," Tyson said.
The Bulldog women return some experience and depth.
"Lauren Bergam (sr., Spokane) looks great. Maggie Jones (jr., Richland, Wash.) looks great except for a shin issue. Lara Tuthill (jr., Boise, Idaho) had a great summer of training. Zoe Urcadez (so., Tucson, Ariz.), Amelia Evans (so., Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Taylor Cherry (so., Spokane) are a great group of kids that kind of told the upperclassmen last year they are going to be great. They have a little extra fire and are confident so it will be fun to see them," head women's coach Patty Ley said. "Another I'm excited to see is Allison Fraher (jr., Prescott, Ariz.). I think she'll surprise a lot of people. She's looked good in workouts. If she can make that next leap and understand she can race there it will be fun."
Both the men and women face some early-season injuries which will sideline some of the top runners in the opener.
"We have some injury issues. Our major part of our line-up is not competing," Tyson explained. "Brent Felnagle (jr., Tacoma, Wash.) is nursing a foot injury and there's no need to race him early. Nate Gesell (jr., Auburn, Wash.) has always had knee injuries from when he played baseball as a youngster and he hasn't been cleared yet. Conor McCandless (so., Spokane) is our 5K school record holder and he's had plantar fasciitis in both feet. One is good, but one is nagging and still hurts. You don't want to say Brent and Conor are redshirt material this year. They do have a redshirt possibility, but we're not going there yet. Colin O'Neal (jr., Redmond, Wash.) has a strained groin. He's amazing. He could be our top gun on any given day. Plus redshirt Robert Walgren (jr., Anchorage, AK) and that's a pretty darn good five that won't be competing."
But Tyson said "that's alright because that's the nice thing about having a fairly large squad and a deep squad."
But with the injuries, Tyson asked the question of who is going to be the fourth or fifth man.
"Matt Crichlow (so., Edmonds, Wash.) is greatly improved, he's healthy and he's going to be a possibility. Kyle Branch (jr., Sammamish, Wash.) similarly is looking great. Danny Lunder (so., Covington, Wash.) looked good in our time trial. Andy Phillips (jr., Jackson Hole, Wyo.), who at one time last year we were looking at bringing into the WCC meet and was our top alternate in the WCC, is in the mix. He's a middle distance guy who holds our school record for 800 meters," Tyson said. "Ned Fischer (jr., Colville, Wash.) is our number two all-time in the 5K. He's been a little tired and we've been backing him off the last few days. When he's on, he's on and could be a major player. Braeden Van Deynze (jr., Anchorage, AK) could also be in the mix."
The women are also facing some nagging injuries.
"The good thing is we are getting back to being healthy. There are some people who we'll probably be on the conservative side and not let them run," Ley said. "We have a little thing with Maggie with her shin and Lara. Maggie for sure will be ready for Sundodger (in Seattle Sept. 14) and we're hoping Lara will be as well. We have some nicks and dings but we have a big team. We won't see them at full strength, but we'll have enough of them out there to get a sense of who we are."
Ley said this is an opportunity for some of the other runners to become noticed.
"Some of those have improved a lot, the kids who were sitting in the eleven, twelve and thirteen spots last year and now have stepped up. We'll see who we are. I think it's nice to have them have that weight on their shoulders. You want to race from where you are. We're not in it to race big time and make a statement type of thing, but step to the line, race from where we are and not be concerned if it's not perfect. We have time to correct it," Ley explained.
There's also a good freshmen class, but Ley said it might be tough for them to crack the line-up.
"Our freshmen are going to step up and I think it will be a solid class. Our upperclassmen have developed to the point where it's a lot tougher for a freshman to break in, even a great freshman. Megan Chucka (Issaquah, Wash.) could crack the line-up and has looked solid. Lauren Saunders (Lake Tapps, Wash.) and Emily Anderson (Seattle) have looked very, very good as well. But there's a significant difference in strength between our returners and them. They'll play catch-up and will be great for us if not this year than in the future. It's a great group," Ley praised.
