Men's Cross Country
Fall 2010 Cross Country Preview
On August 10th, Rocky Mountain College will welcome the newest edition of cross country runners with high hopes. After a surprising '09 campaign, the RMC Men should have another stellar year.
Last year the team finished 2nd in conference with a very young team and sent two athletes to the NAIA National Championship race in Vancouver, WA. This year the squad will welcome five new freshmen to the team. Robby Baker (Bakersfield, CA), Jonathon Barnes (Zilla, WA), Cory Berry (Kimberly, ID), Drew Keller (Shelbey, MT), and Brett Weidler (Laurel, MT).
"This is the best recruiting class so far at Rocky," stated Coach King. "All five freshmen have the chance to fight for a top seven spot on the team. This will add a tremendous amount of depth to the team."
Top returners from last year include Senior team captain Joel Harris, Junior team captain Derek Enciso, Joe Clark, Noah Kiprono, Richard Knowlton, and Jason Schuerman. Missing from last year's line up will be national qualifiers Eayoall Atsbeha and Cesar Mireles. Both will be red-shirts for the fall. "Strategically we are building for the 2011 campaign by holding out Cesar and Eayoall."
"I'm very excited for this year," said Coach King with a smile. "We are on track to have even more success this year. I can't wait for camp to get everyone together."
Two more Men join the Team
High School teammates Robby Baker and Alex Garcia from Ridgeview HS in Bakersfield, CA will be joining the Men’s Cross Country program for the 2010-2011 season. Robby and Alex was Ridgeview’s number one and number two runners, while switching positions throughout the year.
“Both Robby and Alex are very good runners and should be able to help the team as Freshmen,” stated Coach King. “At this time, the plan is Redshirt Alex in preparation for next year’s team, but he will be essential in developing the team’s unity and cohesiveness as we build up both of their endurance to cope better with the longer races for cross country.”
Alex’s personal bests include a 15:01 3-mile, 15:20 5k, 9:46 2-mile, and 4:27 mile with Robby’s personal bests set at 14:55 3-mile, 15:25 5k, 9:33 2-mile, and 4:22 mile.
“Both Alex and Robby have great potential and will help the program grow tremendously in the next few years. I’m very happy they have decided on Rocky Mountain College to continue their education and athletic careers.
