2008 Marietta College cross country preview
Pioneer men and women looking for continued improvement this fall

Aug. 18, 2008
MARIETTA, Ohio — The Marietta College women's and men's cross country teams hope to continue what the program has established over the past four years, improvement. Since Derek Stanley took over the program as the head coach in 2004, the women's team has moved up to sixth place in the Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) and the men's squad has progressed to eighth.

"We have steadily improved in both programs, but you just don't make large jumps with the depth and quality in the conference,” Stanley said. "We have to be patient and continue our climb to the top by performing consistently and competitively each meet, especially at the conference and regional championship meets.”

With steady improvement the goal, Marietta's women return all of their letterwinners from last year's 16th place regional squad. Behind juniors Randi Robertson (Avon Lake), Kaity Smith (Essex Junction, Vt.) and Shannon McDonald (Lorain/Amherst Steele), the Lady Pioneers could spark a great deal of improvement. All three women received All-OAC recognition at last year's championship meet by finishing 11th, 13th and 17th, respectively. Add to that contingent senior Jessi Larrison (Batavia), junior Logan Wern (North Canton/Hoover) and junior Brenda Puckett (Eaton/Preble Shawnee), who are all returning after running in the top seven on a regular basis last year, and sophomore Mehgan Cline (Dublin/Coffman), who is returning from injury, the women's team is looking for it's best conference finish since the late 1980's.

To assist with this improvement are six incoming freshmen, who will be looking for their place on the team and fighting for a top-seven spot. All of the freshmen bring impressive running résumés and two of them have experience at the high school cross country/track & field state meet level. Reba Leonard (Brookville) qualified as an individual and finished 37th at the 2006 Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) Division II State Cross Country Championships. Jennifer Emmert (Martinsburg, W.Va.) qualified in the 1600m and 4x800 relay at the 2008 West Virginia State Track & Field Championships.

"This women's team will be one of the most exciting and competitive teams I have ever coached,” Stanley said. "I cannot wait to see what we can put out there come late fall.”

The men's program is also looking to follow the lines of improvement during this cross country season. The Pioneer men return eight letterwinners from last year's squad, which placed 25th in the region.

"Our men have their work cut out for them but there is definitely potential to be the best men's team I have coached here at Marietta,” Stanley said.

Sophomore Max Kenngott (Akron/St. Vincent-St. Mary) and junior Mike Siringer (Willowick) should battle for the top spot on the team. Coach Stanley described Kenngott's race at last year's regional meet as the best performance by a freshmen he has ever coached. Siringer is looking to translate his best summer of training to date into a strong season this fall. One addition to the cross country team is junior Josh Mickle (Madison), who made the decision to move from soccer to cross country. Mickle is part of the endurance squad in track & field, specializing in the 1500m run, and is looking to bring some of that speed to the cross country course. Also looking to contribute to the top seven will be senior Joseph Wynes (East Aurora, N.Y.) and junior Cody Thomas (North Olmsted). Both ran at the regional championships last year.

Four freshmen will look to break into the front seven, led by Terrance Wallace (Westerville). Wallace finished 13th at the 2007 OHSAA Division I Regional Cross Country Meet and just missed an invitation to the state meet. Justin Rupp (Salem), Andrew Guimond (Marietta) and Michael Sparling (Erie, Pa.) will also be competing for their place on the team.

"As hard as it is to move up in this conference on the men's side, I am confident that with a healthy team our men will prove a formidable opponent for the other teams in the OAC,” Stanley said.

Marietta opens the season at home on Aug. 30. The Pioneers will then host the Carl Broughton Invitational on Sept. 13. The Broughton Nature and Wildlife Education Area will also be the site of the 2008 OAC Cross Country Championships, which are slated to take place on Nov. 1.