2010 Cross Country Season in Review
Under the direction of Doré Madere, the most successful Cross Country head coach in the history of the University of Dallas, the Crusader men's and women's cross country teams wrapped up their respective seasons on Oct. 30, 2010, at the St. Louis Intercollegiate Conference (SLIAC) meet in Hillsboro, Ill.
Women's Team:
Dallas Women's Cross Country finished first in two of their six meets on the year – the Northwood Invitational (1 of 3), and the University of Dallas Invitational (1 of 5).
Mary Jones (Oneida, Wis./Notre Dame Academy) headlined for Dallas in the aforementioned victories. The freshman ran a first-place time of 12:49 in the two-mile race against Northwood and UT-Dallas at the Northwood Invitational, and crossed the finish line in just 26:57, meriting second-place in the 6K race at the Dallas Invitational.
Catherine Sercer (Fort Scott, Kan./Fort Scott H.S.) put together an impressive sophomore campaign. At the UT Tyler Invitational, Sercer turned in a 26:15 7K performance, resulting in 13th place of 68 participants. Two weeks later, at the Texas DIII Championships in Seguin , Texas , she ran a 5K time of 25:36, which was good enough for 11th place of 70 runners in the field.
Yet another underclassman making waves, sophomore Laura Redlinger (San Diego, Cali./Patrick Henry H.S.) had a very consistent season. Redlinger ran her best 6K time at the Texas DIII Championships. She posted a time of 26:14, which was good enough for 19th place.
Heather Capozzella (Enid, Okla./Enid H.S.), a junior, turned in a nice season as well. A member of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Association's (SLIAC) fall 2010 Women's Cross Country All-Sportsmanship Team, Capozzella's best 6K time came at the SLIAC Conference Meet in Hillsboro, Ill., where she crossed the finish line at the 27-minute mark.
For their efforts, Sercer, Redlinger and Capozzella shared the title of Dallas Women's Cross Country Most Valuable Player (MVP).
Additionally, Sercer and junior Patsy Craig (Hillsdale, Mich./ Hillsdale Academy) were named to the SLIAC' Fall All-Academic Team.
Men's Team:
For the Dallas men's cross country team, there wasn't a bigger force on the course in fall 2010 than freshman Clement O'Reilly (Front Royal, VA/Warren County H.S.). O'Reilly finished first among UD runners in 6 of the 7 races, and placed Top 25 several times.
Other underclassmen gaining valuable experience on the season include sophomore Alex Bukaty (New Orleans, La./Jesuit H.S.) and freshman Juan Pablo Mata (The Woodlands, Texas/St. Thomas H.S.).
Veteran leadership was provided by junior John Norton (Louisville, KY/Holy Angels Academy), while a pair of seniors, in Philip Carkhuff and senior Matt Spenla, contributed later into the season. In the six meets Norton competed in, he ran a personal 8K record of 32:23 at the SLIAC Conference Meet. At this very meet, Splena posted a time of 30:48, while Carkhuff finished the race at 31:47.
Crusader senior Billy Gibula (Richmond, Texas/Strake Jesuit College Prep) was named Dallas ' MVP. Gibula had a very steady season, finishing within a minute of his 5K and 8K times, respectively. He also was included on the SLIAC's Fall All-Academic Team, and the conference's All-Sportsmanship Team.
In addition to Gibula, Spenla and Carkhuff, other seniors lost to graduation include Robert Landreaux (New Orleans, La. /Jesuit H.S.), Andrew Natali (Appleton, WI/Appleton North H.S.)