Hopes set on Heps rerun

After impressive 2006 seasons, expectations are high for the men's and women's cross country teams. Last fall, both teams placed first at Heptagonals — the cross country equivalent of Ivy League championships — and the women ended the season on a particularly high note, finishing 23rd in the country at the NCAA Cross Country Championships.

"We're defending Ivy champions and defending [Regional] champions," women's head coach Peter Farrell said. "Expectations are tough to live up to."

The women are well-equipped to deal with the high standards they have set for themselves. Though several seniors graduated last year, Farrell is optimistic about this year's combination of upper and underclassmen.

"It's a nice blend of upperclass leadership with [senior captain] Caitlin McTague, [junior] Jolee VanLeuven and [senior] Heather Iatauro blended with such strong sophomores like Liz Costello, who was All-Ivy as a freshman, and Christy Johnson, who was also All-Ivy as a freshman," Farrell said.

He added, "We have one of the strongest freshman classes in the country, with three Foot Locker finalists — a high distinction for a high school student — Ashley Higginson, Sarah Cummings and Liz Deir."

Farrell sees McTague as one of the key forces on the team.

"She shows leadership, and she's done a great job in the preseason to bond the team together," Farrell said.

Under McTague's guidance the women have started the season with a bang, capturing overall team victories in their first two meets. They have also climbed to No. 16 in the latest NCAA women's cross country poll.

"We're actually looking incredibly strong," Johnson said.

McTague credits this success to the team's cohesiveness.

"In the past, we've been really scattered," McTague said. "We've had a plan, but everything just falls apart as soon as the gun goes off and everyone is doing their own thing ... This year, I've seen such a vast improvement on staying as a pack and keeping that to our advantage. It's very intimidating to other girls to see this big clump of Princeton runners who aren't going to let them pass."

While the women are focused on repeating their national accomplishments from last year, the men are trying to build on last year's success within the league. After winning Heps, the men placed fourth in their region, and senior David Nightingale placed 39th in the NCAA championships, garnering All-American honors.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Men's head coach Steve Dolan sees the team's goals on two levels: the Ivy League and the national stage.

"Our expectations are high — this is a rich tradition of success in track and cross-country ... We'd like to repeat as the Ivy League champions as a team," Dolan said. "A secondary goal for us is always to compete as well as possible on the national scene."

Thus far this season, the men have garnered a second-place finish out of 22 teams at the Fordham Invitational. They are currently ranked No. 27 in the NCAA men's cross country poll.

A strong crew of returning upperclassmen has helped renew the team's strength.

"We do have a significant group of seniors this year," Dolan said. "We should have really good leadership in captain David Nightingale, our returning All-American, and we have a host of other seniors ... All the seniors on our team are good runners and should be good leaders for us."

Junior Michael Maag and sophomore Ben Sitler are returning top runners from last year's squad, and the team welcomes 11 freshmen this fall, including Dennis Walsh, who finished fifth on the team at the Fordham meet.

In a sense, both the women and men see themselves as their toughest opponents. With such a talented team, injury and illness could be key factors in the outcome of the season. Because distance running is so taxing on the body, it is a serious challenge to keep the team healthy.

"Everyone [is] really in shape," McTague said. "I think that, at this point, if everyone continues to be healthy, the biggest challenge we face is being injured because it's such an injury-prone sport."

The momentum built last fall seems to be flowing over into the 2007 season. At this point, there is a great energy and enthusiasm on the running paths around Princeton.

"Everyone has come in with a positive attitude and is psyched and happy and excited to be running," McTague said.

Cross country fans will get a chance to cheer on the Tigers at two home meets this season: the Princeton Invitational on Oct. 13 and the Old Nassau Run on Nov. 3.