The Seattle University cross country team continued to grow and develop during the 2010 season, ending with its top performances of the year at the 2010 Great West Conference Championships.
The men lived up to the preseason polls by placing second with five runners in the top 20 and three named to the All-Conference teams. The women came in fifth, led by freshman Cara Talty’s (Raritan, N.J.) seventh place finish and All-Conference performance in 17:20.26.
“This season was really all about the team and was a full team effort. Erik Barkhaus and Cara Talty led the way for the men and women this season, but everyone’s efforts were important for this season to be as successful as it was,” said head coach Trisha Steidl.
The men’s team this year was an experienced one that focused on the conference meet all year long. Barkhaus (Whitefish Bay, Wis.), a junior, was consistently the top finisher for the men and placed third in the GWC in 24:03.77 for First Team All-Conference honors. Sophomore Kelton Sears (Maple Valley, Wash.) came in eighth in 24:23.17 and junior Matthew McClement (Bellingham, Wash.) finished 14th in 24:48.71, both earning Second Team All-Conference.
Seniors Hans Heitzinger (Scottsdale, Ariz.) and Michael Van Nuland (Newcastle, Wash.) came in 15th (24:50.51) and 16th (24:52.09), respectively, and Adam Kollgaard (Kent, Wash.) came in 29th in 25:31.91 to wrap up their cross country careers at Seattle U. Freshman Jeff Baklund (Auburn, Wash.) ended his first season with a 31st place finish in 25:36.64.
“The end result of the men’s season was nothing other than phenomenal. The conference race was fantastic to watch. Every guy was ‘on’ on the day they needed to be and gritted it out as best as they could in order to run down every point they could,” said Steidl. “This was the most cohesive, positive, and strong group we’ve ever had here. They’ve raised the bar for future years.”
The women’s team was a young one that pushed each other to grow and continue to get stronger as the season progressed. Along with Talty, junior Sarah Bolce (Sacramento, Calif.) ran at the championships and finished 20th with a time of 17:47.31, junior Celeste Cassidy (Bellinham, Wash.) came in 23rd in 17:58.43, sophomore Lauren Hammerle was behind her in 24th in 18:00.96, and freshman Hannah Mittelstaedt (Maple Valley, Wash.) was 27th with a time of 18:08.73. Senior Allison Prather (Carpinteria, Calif.) and junior Ashley Dalton (Bellingham, Wash.) also competed for the women.
“The conference meet standings don’t show how strong our women’s team was this year. The performances they put together when you look at the season as a whole were much improved over previous seasons,” said Steidl. “Similarly to the men, the women’s team is the most positive and cohesive team we’ve ever had and that paid off immensely in terms of how successful we were and how much fun and trust we had as a team.”
The men’s second place finish came with 56 points, behind Utah Valley’s 34 point finish with four runners in the top ten. The women ended with 90 points, just one point behind South Dakota in a gut-wrenching finish.
“The men and women both did a great job of paying attention to the small and ever important details this season. We had far fewer injuries than we’ve ever had and much more consistent performances at meets. While the intention of the season was not to prove how important it is to focus in on those ancillary details, it was a positive side effect of the season,” said Steidl. “Hopefully we can take that information and utilize it to help us continue to become stronger and improve as we move into the track season and future years.”
Saying farewell to the Redhawks are seniors Nick Cannata-Bowman (San Francisco, Calif.), Graham Miller (Spokane, Wash.), Heitzinger, VanNuland and Kollgaard. Returning male runners include Barkhaus, Sears, McClement, and Baklund.
Expected to see her degree but potentially returning for her final season of eligibility is Prather, who placed 53rd at the conference championships in 19:22.54. The rest of the team will return to compete for Seattle U next year.
“We’ve set the bar high for next year’s cross country season,” said Steidl. “Our men’s team is graduating some important members of our conference team this year, so it’s important we bring in strong men to fill in the void they are leaving behind. On the women’s side, I have no doubt we will have a great team next year. With so many returners, we will be very strong and experienced, and the new student-athletes we bring to the team will add to our strength and depth.”
The distance runners are preparing for the indoor track and field season, which is set to kick off on January 15th at the UW Indoor Preview.