Salukis Need to Realize their Potential to Win Conference Championship
03/15/2001 | 12:00:00 | Cross Country
October 25, 2000
Saluki Cross Country Coach Don DeNoon has only to wish that all his runners, both male and female, will run up to their potential in order to win the conference crown Saturday at the Missouri Valley Conference Championships in Terre Haute, Ind.
"Looking at all the conference data that I have I would think a really good performance by our men would put us in the top five teams," DeNoon said. "Individuals who could step up are Joe Zeibert and Chris Owen who have been our No. 1 and 2 runners all season. They have the potential to be in the top 15 in the conference championships and if they do that well then they will pull the entire team up. We have some people who have run well at some time or another like Ryan Hauser or Travis Pressler and they have to run well for us to have chance and enhance our top five finish."
Illinois State, Northern Iowa, Indiana State and Southwest Missouri State are all on paper better teams that SIU. Drake won last year with Illinois State, Indiana State and Southwest Missouri State finishing above the Salukis who came in fifth. Zeibert has a best time of 25:08 on the 8K course good for sixth best time in the conference. Owen has a best of time of 25:30 while the rest of the lineup runs in the low to high 26-minute range. Last year Zeibert finished 22 with a time of 26:05 and Owen finished 35 in 26:41 with Jason Lehmkuhle of Drake winning with a time of 24:29.
Rounding out the squad with best times is the 26-minute range will be Hauser (26:03), Shane Kelly (26:16), Pressler (26:23), Steven Orange (26:24), Andrew Warnsing (26:35) and Ross Moore (26:42).
"We ran at Indiana State a few weeks back and the kids ran in the 26, 27 and 28s," DeNoon said. "Nobody from our conference ran particularly well that day. Joe ran a 26:28 and Chris ran a 27:05 and the fastest anybody from our conference ran was 25:19 (Illinois State's Mark Reed). Joe was the eighth conference runner across the line behind two Indiana State runners and five from Illinois State. I think both Joe and Chris are better runners now than they were at that meet."
On the women's side there have been four runners that have finished first on the squad with Julia Roundtree the latest to accomplish that feat. Becky Cox, Marissa Jelks and Katie Meehan are the others who have ran well this season. Roundtree has the top time(18:10) in the conference this season going into the meet with Cox the second best time (18:35).
"Anything is possible if all four of my No. 1 runners show up on the same day and bang heads with each other and all the other runners in the conference then we are going to have a great meet," DeNoon said. "Looking at the conference right now Drake is the top school in the poll and has two kids that are running well while Northern Iowa is second with five kids who run just alright. We have the potential to come out of this smelling like a rose or come out with not too much positive to say."
DeNoon feels the field is wide open with the winner scoring no less than 80 to 90 points at best with possibly Indiana State having an edge since it will be run on its home course. SIUC finished third last season with 90 points behind Wichita State (73) and Northern Iowa (88) with Drake (95) and Indiana State (96) right behind.
"I think the talent is so spread out that no one team will run away with the title," DeNoon said. "Our most consistent performer throughout the year has been Becky Cox and our standout right now is Julia Roundtree who ran an 18:10 which is good enough for 19 on the all-time list at SIU. Marissa Jelks has been a top runner for us with a best of 18:51 and was the No. 2 runner behind a girl from Indiana State at the Indiana State race. Our fourth runner is Katie Meehan and she has a best of 18:51 as well."
Meehan finished 12th last season with a time of 18:39 while Cox came in 24th (19:10) and Jelks tied for 58th (21:11). Mary Ellen Hill of Bradley won last season with a time of 17:36. Other runners who raced last season and will take to the starting line again this Saturday are Erin Simone (32-19:24) and Katie Henning (37-19:26) with Jodi Huddlestun rounding out the squad.