The men's cross country team will be taking part in the NCAA Championship in Hanover, Ind. tomorrow -- just not in the way anybody had planned.
After finishing 11th out of 49 teams at Regionals, Tufts failed to earn a bid to Nationals, though junior Jesse Faller, who placed second at Regionals to continue his exceptional season, qualified individually.
"We were all disappointed not to be able to go again as a team," junior co-captain Nick Welch said. "But I couldn't be prouder that if we have to send one guy, that it would be [Faller]. I know he wishes that we were there lining up in our box right next to him. It is tough, but I think we couldn't pick someone better to represent our school and our team."
"I was sad when I knew I'd be going to Nationals by myself," Faller said. "The team aspect of cross country is often overlooked, and it makes a big difference when you have six other guys out on the course suffering like you are. It's a big factor to run for the team and run for something bigger than yourself."
Last year, after finishing fifth out of 11 teams at NESCACs, the men's cross country team advanced to NCAA New Englands in need of a near-miraculous finish to have a shot at the NCAA Championship as a unit. The team accomplished just that, coming in third out of 47 teams to earn a berth to Nationals.
This year, the story was much the same. After taking fourth at NESCACs, the team once again needed a strong showing at Regionals to receive an at-large bid to the national championship. Unfortunately for the Jumbos, lightning did not strike twice: The Jumbos finished 11th and missed the NCAA Championship race for the first time since 2006.
"Every race is always its own entity," Welch said. "It's always going to be different when you have new guys running on your team ... I think the big reason we finished a ways back from last year was this varsity seven -- not any one person individually -- but this varsity seven as a whole just has a ways to go before we're back at that level.
"That happens from time to time; the sport is very cyclical," he continued. "You have your up years and your rebuilding years, and this was one of those rebuilding years for us."
Still, by virtue of his second- place finish, Faller qualified for the NCAA Championship as an individual, a fitting capstone to the stellar year he has put together, emerging as the team's undisputed first runner. In the very first race of the year, at Trinity, he set the tone for the season and finished fourth among 148 competitors.
A few weeks later, Faller took first in the Codfish Bowl at Franklin Park in Boston, despite the team registering on late notice and the race featuring more than just Div. III opponents. At the All-New England Championship on the same course, Faller finished sixth overall out of 316 competitors and first among all Div. III runners. One week later, he again earned a sixth- place finish, this time at the Plansky Invitational hosted by Williams.
"I think I've kind of accepted the fact that I'm one of the top runners on the course no matter what race I'm in -- whether it be a small invitational or Regionals or Nationals," Faller said. "So that gives me a lot more confidence while I'm racing and that alone makes me a much better runner."
What is most notable about Faller, however, is his ability to step up in big spots. At NESCACs two weeks ago, he came in third, missing out on the runner-up position by just one second. When the team needed a strong showing at Regionals, Faller delivered, placing second out of 331 participants.
This string of clutch performances goes back to last year during Faller's sophomore season. Late in the 2007 campaign, he truly emerged as one of the conference's elite, finishing 12th at NESCACs. He also played a significant role in the team's earning an at-large bid, as it was his individual third-place finish at Regionals that led Tufts to the same finish as a team. Once at Nationals, he continued his success, capturing 18th to earn All-American honors.
"I think a lot of racing is about finding a balance between being on edge and staying calm," Faller said. "Nationals is a huge mental game; success is all about being calm in the eye of the storm -- a very large, hectic storm. I think one of my strengths as a runner is remaining calm, and I think it'll help me in this race."
Still, the junior will face stiff competition, including the two male NESCAC Performers of the Year: Hamilton junior Peter Kosgei and Williams junior Edgar Kosgey. Kosgei has won the NESCAC Championship the last two years, while Kosgey moved up from third last year to second this year. At last year's Nationals, the two finished second and 36th, respectively.
"At this point, I would say [Faller's] potential for this race is next to endless," Welch said. "And I say next to endless only because Peter Kosgei is pretty tough to beat. But [Faller's] really in a league of his own. He's at the sort of level where for anybody in Div. III to beat him, you need to catch him on an off day. I would say apart from Kosgei, I think Jesse can run with all of them.
"Anything can happen at Nationals," he continued. "And by being 18th one year, that's no guarantee that you're going to be there again, but at the same time, there's no reason you can't jump fifteen places. On top of that, he's been running so well week to week -- consistent but improving week to week."
While Faller has never seen the course in Hanover, he will get an opportunity today to go over it and gain some familiarity. In terms of strategy, however, Faller already has a game plan.
"I think my strategy will be to get out hard and run in or right behind the lead pack," Faller said. "This has been my strategy for basically every race this season, so there's no reason why Nationals should be any different. I think once the race thins out and people start dropping off the pace, I'll just start picking people off and moving up. And of course, the last mile marker is a green light for passing as many guys as possible."
While almost anything can happen in a race of this magnitude, Faller knows the task at hand is to once again place among the top finishers and repeat as an All-American.
"There's a lot of pressure to be a repeat All-American," Faller said. "I try to put that behind me and just race. It's still going take a big race to be in the top 35, just like it did last year. Since anything can really happen on race day, I wouldn't lock myself too tightly into a top 10 or top 15 goal.
"However, I do think that I am a top-15-caliber athlete, and so I wouldn't be surprised if I finished high in the standings," he said.
