After one of the program's youngest and deepest years, the men's cross country team looks to pick up where it left off last fall, this time with a more experienced squad and a drive to best its eighth−place Regional finish.
The Jumbos will once again be led by the duo of juniors Kyle Marks and Matt Rand. The pair returned this fall stronger and more experienced, and both appeared on the national scene last year.
Marks and Rand earned NCAA All−Region Honors with their finishes at the Div. III New England Regional Cross Country Championship race, placing 13th and 17th, respectively. Marks' performance earned him a berth in the NCAA Div. III National Championships, where he placed 64th. Rand returns to competition with significant national experience, fresh off an All−American finish in the 10,000−meter run in outdoor track.
And although the Jumbos' hopes of earning a team berth to nationals last fall fell short, the squad returns even more determined for the 2011 season.
"The team looked really great last year going into late October and early November," senior co−captain Erik Antokal said. "We had high hopes for regionals, but a couple of variables didn't go our way. The good thing now is we're coming into this season with a big chip on our shoulder and a lot of competitive ambition. Guys are ready to run hard and run fast."
Returning six of the squad's top seven runners and 10 of the top 12 looks like a promising start.
The biggest losses to graduation were Chris Brunnquell (E '11) and Jeff Ragazzini (E '11). Ragazzini was the fifth highest scorer for Tufts at the regional meet in 2010, and the pair earned All−Region honors in the 2009 season.
"We [had some losses], but really when you look at the region we're competing with, we didn't suffer as many losses in leadership or in personnel as some teams did," Marks said. "We're both blessed and cursed with a young squad, and we just need to turn potential into some good races."
Along with Rand and Marks, other big contributors last fall were sophomores Liam Cassidy and Ben Wallis and junior Tyler Andrews, each in his first season suiting up for Tufts.
"It was great to have Ben and Liam get the experience of being in the regional meet as freshmen, and so I'll like to see how they perform coming off of an impressive freshmen year," Marks said. "I'm also excited to see how Connor Rose and [co−captain] Scott McArthur perform in their senior years."
After putting in all the miles this summer, the team is confident in its fitness entering the season. Each member of the team put in his best summer of training yet, according to Antokal.
"I feel pretty great about how my training has gone leading into this season in particular, and it's great that I have guys like Matt around me to continuously push me," Marks said. "We have a great group of guys to train with. I'd like to improve on a weekly basis compared to how I did last year and ultimately perform better at a regional and national level."
The runners will get their first taste of competitive action at the Maine Invitational at Bowdoin on Saturday. The race will serve as a chance for the team to gauge its fitness and to run on the course that will play host to the NCAA New England Div. III Championships on Nov. 12.
"We're there to check out the regionals course and to see what the terrain is like and get a feel for the different strategic points so we can make use of them at the regional's meet," Antokal said. "Also we're looking to get an indication of how fit everyone is and see where their base lines are, but not go so hard that the first race of the season is our best race. We want to save that for late October and November."
With all the base training under their belts, now the real work begins for the Jumbos.
"The senior class is really excited to have such an energetic, disciplined and driven team to end our TUXC career on," Antokal said. "We couldn't ask for better guys to do it with."
