The USM Men’s Cross Country team is no stranger to talent. Over the past two seasons, the cross country program here at Southern Maine has sent 3 runners to the DIII Nationals and has created a reputation as a top notch running school. Curtis Wheeler, who was the LEC Runner of the Year in 2007, qualified for Nationals in 2006 and 2007, and last year, junior Tyler Jasud (Rumford, Maine/Mountain Valley) and freshman Alex Gomes (Peabody, MA) both raced at the National Championships. Now, running with a more experienced cast, both Jasud, who is now a senior, and Gomes, now a sophomore, are poised to lead their team to become what Coach Scott Hutchinson thinks may be one of their best teams ever.
“We have a bunch of returning runners from last year and several freshman. With this combination of experienced veterans and young runners I think we look to compete very well in the conference this year,” Hutchinson stated.
With 13 returning runners and 11 freshman on the team this year, the Huskies have set lofty goals for 2009 and are very capable of fulfilling them. Along with Jasud and Gomes returning, the Huskies have several other veteran leaders that are willing to step it up and do whatever it takes to help the team succeed. Some of these returners include senior captains Justin Richardson (Turner, ME/ St. Dominic), Nick Downing (Winthrop, ME), and Jon Letendre (Rumford, RI/LaSalle Academy). Veterans Corey Gobbi (Haverhill, MA), Jon Fulford (Kennebunk, ME), Doug Mercer (Lakeport, NH/Laconia), Riley Ploch (Old Town, ME), Ryan Dyer (Gorham, Me) and several others will also provide experienced running.
Not only has the team been ranked 4th in the New England DIII Men’s Cross Country Poll, but for the first time in school history the Huskies have been ranked nationally, coming in at number 27 in the DIII Coaches Poll. This is a huge confidence builder for the runners as both Coach Hutchinson and the team know that they might have a magical year ahead of them. Despite all the pre-season attention, Hutchinson has kept his runners motivated and wants them to stay focused on the big picture, which for them includes the LEC Championships and the Maine State Championships. Coach Hutchinson touched on the importance of these two major titles:
“The national rankings we’ve received have been great and we are very proud to be known as a good running school. What we’re focused on now, though, are the main tasks at hand and these are the LEC’s and the Maine State Championships. These two championships are huge for us and play into our overall main goal, and that is to make it to nationals as a team. We set this goal as a team at the beginning of the season and with hard work and dedication it’s definitely a goal we can fulfill.”
The LEC’s will be held in Keene, New Hampshire this year at Keene State College on Saturday October, 31st at 12:00PM. USM will be competing mainly against KSC for the top spot this year as they came in second to the Owl’s in last year’s championships. The Maine State Championships will be held in Waterville on Saturday October, 17th also at noon. This particular race features several other different Maine colleges including Bowdoin College, Bates College, Colby College, University of Maine Farmington, UNE, St. Joseph’s College, Maine Maritime Academy, and University of Maine Presque Isle. The Huskies will look to take the title away from the Polar Bears of Bowdoin College, as they have finished 2nd to them in both of the last two Maine State Championships. Maybe faster than ever this year, USM seems like they have a good grasp on this race as at least 5 Husky runners have finished in the top 20 in the previous two years.
“To be ranked nationally for the first time in school history is an honor, but no one has really let it get to their heads negatively. Everyone is really confident right now about how our team is performing, and, if anything, I think the national ranking has kept us more focused mentally because it’s something we want to maintain and not just a predicted title we want to hold,” Senior Captain Justin Richardson mentioned. “Everyone has been working extra hard in practice to be in their best physical shape possible to bring the team where we need to be, and that’s going to nationals as a team.”
The poised USM Men’s Cross Country team began their season last Wednesday with their Alumni Meet held here in Gorham, in which Jasud was the victor. The regular season will begin Saturday September, 12th at the University of New England Invitational in Biddeford.
The former 2006 & 2007 LEC Champions are embarking on their 2009 season with a humble swagger in their step as it looks like they will achieve much success in the near future, and it will hopefully get them to where they want to be as Divison III Men’s Cross Country National Champions.