2012 SCAC Men's Cross Country Championship Preview
Story courtesy of the SCAC office:
IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas hosts the 2012 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Cross Country Championships, Saturday, Oct. 27. Official Site | Course Map
Colorado College will be looking to win its fourth straight SCAC title and become the first team to win four consecutive men's cross country championships since DePauw University won seven straight from 2000-2006.
Based on results posted thus far this season, the championship figures to come down to a battle between Colorado College and Trinity University. These two teams have combined to produce the 22 fastest 8K times in the SCAC during the 2012 season. The two teams also produced five of the eight SCAC Runners of the Week this season.
Three time SCAC Men's Runner of the Year Jackson Brainerd may have graduated, but the Tigers return several performers from last year's championship team.
Sophomore Graham Frank, who last year earned All-SCAC honors, posted the fastest 8K time in the league (25:15.00) during the season. After earning SCAC Freshman of the Year honors with a sixth-place finish at the 2011 championship, Colorado College's Nick Hall posted the second fastest 8K time (25:22.00) while senior teammate Max Marinelli has the third fastest 8K this year (25:24.00). Last year Marinelli finished 21st at the SCAC Championship.
Colorado College has not just quality but they have quantity as Tiger runners own six of the top eight times in the league this year. Colorado College's Andrew Vierra, Will Richmond (33rd - 2011 SCAC championship) and Weston Sandfort have the sixth, seventh and eighth best times this year.
Trinity University, who finished fourth last year at the conference championship meet, will come into the SCAC championship with first-year head coach Derick Lawrence. Lawrence, however, is no stranger to the SCAC Championship as he earned All-SCAC honors with a 12th-place finish at the 2006 championships as a member of DePauw's conference title-winning team.
Three of Lawrence's seniors have produced top-10 8K times during the regular season, with Robert Edmonds leading the way with a season-best time of 25:58.16 - the fourth-fastest run turned in this season in the SCAC. Returning all-conference performers, Sal Perdomo and Francisco Escobedo, have produced season-best times of 26:07.18 (fifth in the SCAC) and 26:36.00 (ninth in the SCAC) respectivelly. Perdomo finished seventh at the 2011 SCAC championships and Escobedo followed closely behind in eighth.
Southwestern University returns six of its top seven performers from last year's team. Senior Sam Martinez posted the fastest 8K time among all Pirate runners this season as he ran a 28:09.00 8K. He earned All-SCAC laurels with a ninth-place finish (26:00.90) at the 2010 SCAC championship.
The University of Dallas enters its second SCAC championship with perhaps the youngest team in the league. Six of the seven top times from Crusader runners this season have been turned in by first-year runners. Sophomore Aaron French tallied the remaining top time. Leading the way for Dallas is first-year Javier Secaira who posted the 25th best SCAC time with a 28:29.00.
Centenary College prepares for its first-ever SCAC championship after spending last year as a member of the American Southwest Conference. The Gents will be competing in their third different conference championship meet in three years. Prior to running in last year's ASC meet, Centenary ran in the Division I Summit League championship in 2010.
The Gents will be led by senior Miles McDonald, who owns the 24th-best 8K time in the conference (28:25.40) this season. Classmate Chad Nelson (29:54.90) also figures to finish near the top of the Centenary pack.