Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Cross Country prepares for the MVC Championship
10/26/2006 | 12:00:00 | Cross Country
Oct. 26, 2006
By Matt Crouch
www.SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - After months of training and five regular-season meets, the Southern Illinois University cross country teams lay it all on the line Saturday at the Missouri Valley Conference Championship.
Set to take place at Pioneers Park in Lincoln, Neb., the women will run a 5K beginning at 10:30 a.m. while the men will run an 8K at 11:30 a.m.
SIU's men's team was picked to finish second in the pre-championship coaches poll. The Salukis tallied 69 points in the poll, trailing Indiana State (79 pts.). Drake came in third (67 pts.), followed by Northern Iowa (49 pts.) and Wichita State (46 pts.).
Rounding out the men's field are Illinois State (6th, 30 pts.), Evansville (7th, 26 pts.), Bradley (8th, 24 pts.) and Creighton (9th, 15 pts.).
In the women's pre-championship poll, SIU accumulated 79 points to come in third, finishing behind Wichita State (96 pts.) and Missouri State (90 pts.).
The Salukis were followed by Indiana State (68 pts.) and Northern Iowa (64 pts.). Rounding out the women's field are Illinois State (6th, 50 pts.), Drake (7th, 37 pts.), Bradley (8th, 29 pts.), Creighton (9th, 26 pts.) and Evansville (10th, 11 pts.)
Southern Illinois head coach Matt Sparks sees the rankings as a challenge to his teams, something they will keep in mind while challenging for the win.
"We set a goal from the beginning of the year to challenge for the win on both sides and nothing's changed. We've had a good two weeks of practice since out last competition and we feel like we could sneak up on some people," said Sparks.
The men's squad has had a surprise year as several freshmen, alongside newcomer Kevin Doran, have stepped up to compete alongside Saluki front-runner Mohamed Mohamed.
"On the men's side, we are a little stronger than I thought we would be with such a young team. I didn't have a lot of expectations, wasn't sure what to expect. The freshman guys especially have stepped up and Mohamed has made some great strides from a year ago. Kevin Doran has also been a great surprise," said Sparks.
"So, across the board for everyone on the men's side, I think everyone that is competing is basically exceeding our preseason expectations."
Sparks sees the key to the men's race being SIU's ability to get out front and challenge Indiana State's top runners.
"Indiana State has two really good front-runners. That is the advantage that they've got over us. I feel like we do have two or three front-runners, they are just young and inexperienced at this level," said Sparks.
"I think if Jeff Schirmer and Kevin Doran can step up and compete right along with Mohamed Mohamed, it gives us a one-two-three punch that Indiana State and some other teams might not have."
As for the women's team, the Salukis come to the championship meet with an experienced squad that has gelled and run as a unit throughout most of the season.
"On the women's side, we are right about where I thought we would be. We've just got to keep working on getting our pack of five-to-seven in the top 15 of the race. They are still only going to be separated by about 20 seconds, it's just a matter of where that first one is. If we could have a couple in the top 10 on the women's side, I think we are sitting in a pretty good situation," said Sparks.
Picked behind Wichita State and Missouri State in the pre-championship poll, Sparks believes that it will be SIU's success that will allow the Salukis to challenge for the team title.
"Wichita State and Missouri State are very similar teams. They've both got really strong front-runners that are going to challenge for the win individually and they've got a couple girls to back them up and should also potentially be in the top 10," said Sparks.
"They are very similar also in that they don't have a lot of depth. They have five solid runners and if something happens to one, they are going to be struggling a little bit. We are very different than those teams in that we have seven solid people that know, clear-cut how to challenge for the win; we've just got a solid group. A lot of times in conference, in a big-meet setting like this, a large pack can pay off big dividends as long as that pack finishes high enough."
Action begins at 10:30 a.m. at the Pioneer Park in Lincoln, Neb. Fans will be able to follow the action live and get immediate results through All Sports Central.
