Men & Women's Cross Country Set for Busy 2009 Season
(August 31, 2009) - After 10 days of pre-season training, the Green Mountain College men and women's cross country teams are the cusp of their 2009 season. The schedule features 8 meets over the course of September and October, highlighted by the NAC Championships October 31st at GMC.
On the women's side, head coach Gail Schnaars brought on 6 freshmen to complement the squads' 4 upperclassmen and 6 sophomores. Returning senior Jordan Williams (Schuylerville, NY) and fellow co-captain junior Nicole Horvath (Fort Edward, NY) will lead the squad this year. Horvath will likely move to the number one spot after the departure of senior Lauren Disessa and is joined by a strong supporting cast. Junior Cristie Durand (Killingworth, CT) and sophomores Bridget Combes (Londonderry, NH), Deborah DeLuca (Burlington, MA), Elissa Fiore (Lebanon, PA), Kat Kehrt (Cranbury, NJ), Tori Knoss (Plymouth MN) and Luca Neugebauer (Lafayette, NY) will provide support and battle for position throughout the season. Joining the team this year are freshman Taylor Conley (Yorktown, VA), Teal Cummisk (Dickinson, NY), Rebecca Flack (Atlanta, GA), Whitney Rose (Kalamazoo, MI), Kelly Silin (York Beach, ME) and first-year senior runner Shannon O'Neill (Woburn, MA).
Despite the youth in the team, coach Schnaars expects the underclassmen to push the returning group and progress at a rapid rate. According to Schnaars, "Despite the number of young runners, our talent pool is very deep and I expect those youngsters to make an immediate impact."
The men's team is led this year by sophomore co-captains Aaron Ashton (Salt Lake City, UT) and Jonathan O'Neill (Bethel, CT). They are supported by juniors Brian Commins (Merrimack, NH) and Scott Preavy (Morrisville, VT) and new members freshman Jacob Annello (Salem, CT)and Christopher Donovan (Bedford, MA).
While the team is not large, the re-building process has begun for coach Schnaars.
The men and women's cross country teams open their 2009 season at Johnson State on Sept. 5th at 3:00 pm. On October 17th, GMC will host their third annual GMC Invitational with five other schools in attendance. GMC is also proud to announce the 2009 men and women's NAC Championships will be held on campus October 31st. In attendance will be Castleton, Johnson St., Lyndon St., University of Maine Farmington, Maine Maritime and Thomas College.
