Season Preview: Returning talent, strong freshman class show bright future for Salisbury cross country teams

SALISBURY, Md. – With the majority of a talented team returning, 2010 is poised to be a big year for the Salisbury University men's and women's cross country teams. The Sea Gulls were not thrilled with their finish at the 2009 NCAA Mideast Regional Championships and have been using that as motivation for 2010.

"I thought we were a better team at regionals, we just didn't run very well," Salisbury Head Coach Jim Jones said. "That's kind of been burning our hearts all spring and all summer. I think we can vie for one of those top five spots at the Mideast Regional this year. If we win our conference and are a top five team, we can go to nationals."

With so many runners returning from last year's squad, it has made beginning the 2010 season about picking up where they left off, not starting new.

"Not having lost a lot from last year's team, it's just been an easy transition to figure out who our leadership is going to be for this team," Jones said. "I've talked with those individuals about how we've got to integrate these freshmen into what we want them to do and how hard they want to work."

The incoming freshmen are a talented group that Jones feels can have an impact this year.

"This freshman class is probably one of the better ones that we've had; they're very serious, very dedicated from what I've seen so far this year," Jones said.

Returning Men

After finishing 11th at the Mideast Regional last year and entering 2010 ranked No. 9 in the region, Jones feels his team has improved immensely and could go further than the regional meet this year.

"I think the men are much, much better than we were last year," Jones said. "I feel we can be a dominant team in the conference and go to regionals and be a top five team if we stay healthy and work."

The men's team will be anchored by a mix of running talent. From the great finishing speed of senior Chris Barnard, who should contend for Capital Athletic Conference Cross Country Athlete of the Year, to the pound-out-the-miles steady pace of junior Trent Seawell and everything in between, the returners will be a force to be reckoned with.

Sophomore Steve Berstler, the reigning CAC Rookie of the Year, and junior John Fitzgerald have worked hard through the spring to improve and are much of the reason why Jones is so excited about the men's team.

"That core group of guys is going to be one of the best we've ever had here," Jones said.

 Returning Women

The upperclassmen on the women's side might be one of the most steady in years for the Salisbury program. Four women will pace the team as senior Kristin Stromberg and juniors Becca Stinner, Emily Powell and Anna Steinman will lead the pack.

Stromberg, Powell and Steinman will all set the pace in many races. They don't have great finishing kicks, Jones says, but their ability to keep their speed up throughout an entire race will take the finishing kick out of their opponents.

The finishing kick on the Salisbury roster will come from Stinner. The 2010 CAC 3,000-meter steeplechase champion can close with the best of them, and if she's near the leaders at the end of a race, she will probably blast to the finish line past the competition.

 "Those are going to be our four, but I think these freshmen are going to play a big role down the road," Jones said.

Freshmen

The incoming freshmen have talent, there is no doubt about that, but making the jump to any collegiate sport is a serious transition. With such strong returning runners, Jones knows those freshmen don't have to feel pressure to contribute immediately.

"It's such a learning year for these freshmen," Jones said. "They're adjusting academically to college. They're adjusting socially and they have to adjust to the intensity of the training that we put on them, and that's tough. If we can learn to adjust this year and we can get something out of them that first year, that's a bonus for us."

Two top freshmen who could contribute on the men's side are Ryan Jackson and Joel Anderson. Jackson has never run cross country before, but was an outstanding distance runner in track & field in high school and an accomplished soccer player. Anderson is a runner who came into 2010 in great shape and will also help extend the rivalry with the University of Mary Washington as his brother, Kyle, is a junior on the UMW team.

Andrea Schwienteck, Michele Stromberg, Amy Ferro, Emma Bahneman and Erin Gallagher will all step in on the women's side and have the ability to make a contribution right way. Entering in good shape they have the potential to help the women defend their CAC championship of 2009.

Schedule

When it comes to being comfortable as a freshman or a returner, there is nothing like running on your home course, and Salisbury's athletes will have a chance to do so three times this year, beginning with Saturday's Sea Gull Opener at Winterplace Park in Salisbury. The Sea Gulls will also host the Don Cathcart Invitational (Oct. 2) and the CAC Championship Meet (Nov. 6).

"Our home advantages come at the right times. Between each meet we have about four weeks," Jones said. "We get to establish our times at the Sea Gull Opener. Then with the Cathcart in October, we get to see the difference from our training and how much of an improvement we're making. Then of course, with conference, when we're tapering down we can see some huge gains. It's home-field advantage all the way."

If all goes well, things will be peaking when the teams hit Slippery Rock, Pa., for the NCAA Mideast Regional Championship. Things were not perfect at the regional meet a year ago, so the sights are set on getting back to that point and proving that the 2010 edition of Salisbury University cross country really is one of the best teams the program has seen.