Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Women's Cross Country Kicks Off at Colgate Saturday
9/4/2009 8:00:00 AM | Women's Cross Country
Sept. 4, 2009
2009 Men's Cross Country Preview
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell women's cross country team will get its 2009 season underway, traveling to Hamilton, N.Y., for the Colgate Harry Lang Invitational at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 5. The Bison, which were voted second in the Patriot League Preseason Poll this week, are hoping to build on a season in which they finished runners-up at the league championship meet in 2008.
The Bison excelled last year with a very young roster. Although Bucknell finished second as a team at the Patriot League Championships, the squad was not without its growing pains. Now with an added year of experience, the Bison are well on the road to recovery and bringing the Patriot League trophy back to Lewisburg.
"Our women's team is returning seven of our top nine runners. We had a very young team last year and many of them are back this year," said coach Kevin Donner. "With such a young team last year came some overuse type injuries, and some of them have even carried over through parts of the summer. We're really going to have to do a good job of balancing our workouts and our health so that by the end of the year we're at our best."
Looking to be at her best at the end of the season in hopes of claiming an individual league title is sophomore Stephanie Fulmer (Pottstown, Pa./St. Pius X). Fulmer was the runner-up at the championship meet as a freshman, finishing less than six seconds behind the lead runner. After earning a pair of league titles on the track last year and grabbing a handful of All-Patriot League honors, Fulmer is poised for the cross country win and an NCAA berth, according to Donner.
Fulmer's classmate, Caitlin Cavanaugh (Danville, Pa./Danville Area), and current juniors Sarah Moniz (Topsfield, Mass./Masconomet Regional) and Alexa Griffiths (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua) rounded out the Bison's top four league finishers last season, and all will be returning as well. Moniz, who was voted a team co-captain along with senior Gabrielle Skovira (Park Ridge, N.J./Park Ridge), showed signs of a breakthrough following a strong outdoor track season.
"She was a consistent varsity runner for us the last couple years and then this past spring really threw some nice times down in the 1500 and 5K," said Donner. "I think she's ready to really step it up big time in cross country."
Cavanaugh was the Bison's second finisher and placed 12th overall at the league championships, being named Second Team All-Patriot League in the process. She struggled with injuries throughout the spring, but is back to training and eager to make a contribution once again.
Griffiths finished her sophomore season a strong note. After scoring for Bucknell at the Patriot League meet, she was the team's top finisher at the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional. Like many of the Bison, the junior has put in the offseason work needed to contend for an All-Patriot League selection.
In addition to being young, Bucknell is also deep on the line. Junior Alaina Chodoff (Cherry Hill, N.J./Cherry Hill East) has been consistently improving, according to Donner, and is expected to provide some important leadership to the team. Bucknell will also have sophomores Kelly Grosskurth (Huntington Station, Pa./Boyertown Area), Samantha Bower (Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg-Salem) and Alysha Hooper (Meaford, Ontario/St. Mary's) who posted strong freshman campaigns that should continue into 2009.
The Bison will also have a handful of newcomers, some of whom have shown early promise. Among the freshmen who have stood out in the preseason are Leah Goeke (Carnet Valley, Pa./Garnet Valley) and Kelsey Acre (Punxsutawney, Pa./Punxsutawney), an all-state athlete from Punxsutawney.
If the Orange & Blue are going to reclaim their league title for the fourth time in five years, they are going to have to avoid the injury bug. Like any cross country team, staying healthy throughout the season and peaking at the right time are keys to success.
"We have a lot of young talent coming through the pipeline. The key is how are these younger runners going to transition into the Division I training style and be able to balance the academics and the athletics at a high level? Last year we started off really, really fast, and as the year progressed, we kind of faded a little bit. We weren't on top of our game by the time the Patriot League and the Mid-Atlantic Regional came around," said Donner. "This year, we're not quite as ready in August, but our goal is to balance this training so that in October and November, we're running our best. Obviously, if we can be at full strength with our top runners on the line, we're going to be a tough team to beat."
Bucknell will hope to be running its best by Oct. 31 when it returns to Colgate for the Patriot League Championships and Nov. 14 for the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional in Princess Anne, Md. Bucknell's calendar also includes nearby races at the Paul Short Memorial Invitational, hosted by Lehigh, on Oct. 2 in Bethlehem, Pa., and the Penn State National Invitational on Oct. 16 in University Park, Pa.
