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Phil and Penny's Archived Articles Archived Articles XC 2001 Pre-Season XC Preview - August 1, 2001 Pre-Season XC Forecast - Revisited August 25, 2001 Newbies and Retreads - September 3, 2001 Northern Nevada Preview..Penny Sparks, Sept. 10, 2001 Mid Season Report Cards, October 1, 2001 Nervous Time - October 2, 2001 Southern Regionals-Northern Regionals State Championship - North and South Articles Phil's Interview with Larry Burgess Penny's Interview with Jonathan Cardenas Phil's Interview with Christa Avena Penny's Interview with Kelsey Engstrom Phil's Interview With Nikki Peterson Phil's Interview with John Dixon Penny's Interview with Bruce Susong XC 2002 State Cross Country Stories Fall 2002 Interview with Centennial's Bill Miller Fall 2002 Reflections From The Sideline Fall 2002 Southern Nevada Regionals - Winners and Losers Penny's Interview with Coach Phil Phil's Interview With Penny Sparks
Cross Country 2003 Handicapping the Southern Teams Collier and Mel Lawrence Interview
Penny Sparks Interview: Geoff Casazza, Chris Cocha, and Karen DeMartini
Nevada: Cross Country Preseason Forecast From Phil Lawton (August 1,2001) There are few certainties in sports and even fewer when it comes to predicting who will do well next year in high school cross country in Nevada, one of the fastest growing areas of the country and a state with one of the most transient populations. It's especially dangerous to predict with the girls. Nearly half of the "impact runners" on girls cc teams in Nevada--and probably most states--are freshmen. For example, of the top 30 finishers at the girls 4A Nevada State Meet last fall 13 were 9th graders (as opposed to only 4 seniors). And looking into a crystal ball it's too murky to tell who those incoming 9th graders are and where they will be running this fall. Last fall, for example, it was pretty well a given that Patrick Swick of Chaparral would be an impact runner; his record as a youth runner, running for the Las Vegas Lizards, was well established. But who knew about Christa Avena? Christa just showed up at Gorman and went from a "nobody" to arguably the number two distance runner in the state (third place in 4A cross country and runner-up in both track distance events, the 1600/3200). And, no, I haven't forgotten about Faith Lutheran's Nikki Peterson. Nikki's high school running accomplishments are even more impressive than Christa's, but 2A is not 4A. (Actually, the two girls have comparable PR's in track and cross country.) But Nikki Peterson was hardly an unknown. Anyone who had followed her as a Red Rock Racer in LVTC races and USA T&F youth championships knew she was "for real". Last year's big winners in 4A were Reno High (boys) and Centennial H.S. (girls). Reno lost of four of their top seven to graduation, but then most boys teams have more seniors than do the girls teams. It appears that Reno was hit no harder by graduation than its closest rivals in 2000, South Tahoe and Galena. On the distaff side, Centennial, South Tahoe, and Green Valley finished within eight points of each other (in that order) and all three teams remain pretty much intact. The boys team most likely to contend for the 4A state championship, aside from Reno, South Tahoe, and Galena, is Chaparral, led by the aforementioned Patrick Swick. Patrick finished 6th last fall in cross country and was runner-up at state in both the 1600 and 3200 on the track this spring. Chaparral graduated no seniors from their top five of a year ago and picked up an off-season transfer from Texas, Joe Burrola (9:58/3200 and 4:30/1600 on the track at state). Swick and Burrola (now a senior) give Chaparral a great 1-2 and make the Cowboys the preseason team-to-beat in Sunrise. After Chaparral, the "usual suspects" from Sunrise are Green Valley, Silverado, Basic, and Foothill--what I call the "Henderson Division". On the other side of the valley in Sunset, Centennial looks like a clear favorite with Cimarron-Memorial, Durango, and possibly Palo Verde--like Foothill, a program on the rise--fighting for the other two spots. (Nine 4A teams go to State; three from the north and three each from Sunrise and Sunset.) Across the state, here are the other returning individuals in boys 4A who finished in the top-15 last fall: Jamalo Adem of Clark (5th), Swick, Kole Krahenbuhl of Basic (10th), Matt Dodd of Reno (11th), Mike Ceparano of Silverado (13th), and Chris Cosmi of South Tahoe (14th). Reno's Chris Concha (24th), who placed third at state in both the 1600 and the 3200, should also be given a top billing among "runners to beat" this fall. Some of the other boys from Sunset who can be expected to lead their respective teams are David Correl and Matthew Yadegar (Cimarron-Memorial), Jordan Stephens and Jorge Martinez (Centennial), Allen Larsen (Bonanza), Marcus Whitehead and Emmanuel Garcia (Durango), Kevin Sully (Palo Verde), Devon and Stephon Davis (Cheyenne), Kumiye Hussein (Clark) and Ray Rodriguez (Vo Tech). From Sunrise also watch for Agustin Luna and Anthony Petrillo (Chaparral), Alex Wilcox and Ron Stoker (Foothill), David Winkler and Korre Heggem (Green Valley), Paul Hafen and Tyler Sorenson (Basic), and Corey Thompson and Brad Royal (Silverado). In girls 4A the competition should be very tight. Centennial, which returns its top seven from a year ago, is led by sophomore Meghan Mathews (runner-up at state) and senior Allison Carney (7th at state). Centennial also has three other returning runners who placed in the top 30 at state last fall. South Tahoe returns four of their top seven, including sophomore Amber Ramos (4th at state) who ran a 11:57/3200 at state this spring. Green Valley, likewise with no graduating seniors, will be led by junior Emily Eskin (6th at state). Other teams that will likely be leaders in the battle for a trip to State are Foothill, Basic, and Silverado from Sunrise; Palo Verde, Bonanza, and Durango from Sunset; and Carson, Reno, and McQueen from the North. The outstanding female runner in 4A is clearly junior Shanna Sparks, the defending state champ. Sparks was 2nd team All Western Region at Footlocker in 2000 and ran 11:19 in winning the 3200 on the track at state this spring. Shanna is a legitimate "national contender". The following girls were All-State (top 15) last year and are returning this fall: Sparks, Matthews, Avena, Eskin, Carney, Karen DeMartini of Reno (8th), Tanya Joyce-Mendive of Douglas (10th), Michelle Glenn of Reno (11th), Lindsay Harris of Green Valley (12th), Karen Brigman of McQueen (13th), Kali Baker of Centennial (14th), and Erica Zampardo of South Tahoe (15th). To that list add the following girls from Sunset who are expected to be among the front runners this fall: Natasha Wicks and Shoshanna Yadegar (Cimarron-Memorial); Natilie Fehrensen and Melissa Voss (Palo Verde); Tamara Dudas, Minette Porterfield, and Jen Fajardo (Bonanza); Patty Boghos and Shana Wilshire (Durango); and Laura and Melissa O'Connor, Kelli Brown, and Megan Romeo (Centennial). And from Sunrise : Deann Bradshaw, Jenni Wardlaw, Beth Stoner, and Megan Karl (Foothill); Jackie Favreau, Katie Hughes, and Stacie DeGagne (Green Valley); Samantha Serrano, Ashley Perkins, and Brianna Krahenbuhl (Basic); Yolanda Chee (Eldorado); Michelle Chee (Rancho); Abbey Mathis and Chaz and Karen LaHodny (Silverado). As an aside, Chaz LaHodny, who placed third at state as a freshman running for Clark and who last year ran for Faith Lutheran, has transferred and is expected to be eligible to run for Silverado in this, her senior year. That will certainly give the Skyhawks a LaHodny flavor since Debbie LaHodny, an\entering freshman, will join her two sisters on the Silverado team. Among the lower divisions (2A/3A), the one team that truly stands out state-wide is the girls team from Lowry. The Buckaroos from Winnemucca won the 3A title in 2000 with 17 points and graduated nary a senior. Lowry is led by sophomore twins Kelsey and Katie Engstrom. Kelsey was the 3A state champ in cross country, as well as both the 1600 and the 3200 this spring. Katie, 7th in cc in '00, was 4th at state in the 1600 and 3rd in the 3200. Heather Thompson, also from Lowry, was runner-up in cc last fall and was the 800 meter state champ in 3A track. Boulder City, North Tahoe, and Spring Creek will fight for the scraps in girls 3A. Boulder City's Kristie McRae (9th at state) is the south's top returning runner. Boys 3A should be more "up for grabs" this fall. Boulder City, the defending champs, was hit hard by graduation and only returns two runners who finished among the top 10 last fall--Justin Barrow (6th) and Aaron Ross (8th). The team most likely to challenge for team honors is North Tahoe, which will be led by Jose Ramirez--runner-up in cc in '00 and both the 1600 and the 3200 in state track this spring--and Tommy Mills (9th in '00 cc). 2A boys is dominated by three outstanding young men: Drew Casselberry of Incline, Greg Sullivan of Beatty, and Chris Clauson of Independence. Seniors Casselberry and Sullivan finished 1-2 last fall while Clauson, who placed 6th in cc last fall, ran a 9:48 3200 as a freshman in winning the 2A 3200 at state. Girls 2A features one of the better teams in the state, at any level, Faith Lutheran. The Crusaders out of Las Vegas are led by Nikki Peterson. The defending 2A cc champ, Peterson was a quad winner in 2A track this spring (400/800/1600/3200). Faith Lutheran has strong returning runners behind Peterson (despite the transfer of LaHodny), and pick up incoming freshman Delayna Jensen, who comes in with outstanding credentials as a runner for the Red Rock Racers. Three returning runners who finished in the top five in 2A last fall are Christine Barrett (2nd) and Sarah Day (3rd), also of Faith Lutheran, and Lindsey Zeller (5th) of Indian Springs. Diana Sitar of the Meadows, who ran sub 6 and sub 13 for the 1600 and 3200 on the track this spring, could be an impact runner in 2A this fall as well. I'm sorry this first column for nevadatrackstats.com is so "long winded" but I did want to mention as many deserving runners as possible. It will be fun to revisit my prognostications come November and see how they show up on the results page. I'll be doing one more forecast, or rather an amended forecast, in mid August before the season starts but once I've had a chance to speak to more coaches. I will then try to highlight the outstanding runners and teams throughout the state, on a bi-weekly basis as the cc season progresses. Through this column I also hope to focus on issues and events that effect us all as coaches, fans, parents, and athletes involved with cross country and track in the state of Nevada--items that likely won't make the local papers but that are important or worth commenting on as I see them. The ideas and opinions expressed will be strictly my own, but readers are welcome to comment, criticize, and offer any suggestions or ideas for future subjects by contacting me through the web site or by e-mail direct.
Nevada: Cross Country Preseason Forecast Revisited (August 25th)
Last year's big winners in 4A were Reno High (boys) and Centennial H.S. (girls). Reno lost of four of their top seven to graduation, but then most boys teams have more seniors than do the girls teams. It appears that Reno was hit no harder by graduation than its closest rivals in 2000, South Tahoe and Galena. On the distaff side, Centennial, South Tahoe, and Green Valley finished within eight points of each other (in that order) and all three teams remain pretty much intact.
The boys team most likely to contend for the 4A state championship, aside from Reno, South Tahoe, and Galena, is Chaparral, led by the Patrick Swick. Patrick finished 6th last fall in cross country and was runner-up at state in both the 1600 and 3200 on the track this spring. Chaparral graduated no seniors from their top five of a year ago and picked up an off-season transfer from Texas, Joe Burrola (9:58/3200 and 4:30/1600 on the track at state). Swick and Burrola (now a senior) give Chaparral a great 1-2 and make the Cowboys the preseason team-to-beat in Sunrise. After Chaparral, the "usual suspects" from Sunrise are Green Valley, Silverado, Basic, and Foothill--what I call the "Henderson Division". On the other side of the valley in Sunset, Centennial looks like a clear favorite with Cimarron-Memorial, Durango, and possibly Palo Verde--like Foothill, a program on the rise--fighting for the other two spots. Across the state, here are the other returning individuals in boys 4A who finished in the top-15 last fall: Jamalo Adem of Clark (5th), Swick, Kole Krahenbuhl of Basic (10th), Matt Dodd of Reno (11th), Mike Ceparano of Silverado (13th), and Chris Cosmi of South Tahoe (14th). Reno's Chris Concha (24th), who placed third at state in both the 1600 and the 3200, should also be given a top billing among "runners to beat" this fall.
Some of the other boys from Sunset who can be expected to lead their respective teams are Matthew Yadegar (Cimarron-Memorial), Jordan Stephens, Jorge Martinez, and Preston Mathews (Centennial), Allen Larsen (Bonanza), Marcus Whitehead and Emmanuel Garcia (Durango), Kevin Sully (Palo Verde), Devon and Stephon Davis (Cheyenne), and Kumiye Hussein (Clark) From Sunrise also watch for Agustin Luna and Anthony Petrillo (Chaparral), Ron Stoker (Foothill), Alex Wilcox (Coronado), David Winkler and Korre Heggem (Green Valley), Paul Hafen and Tyler Sorenson (Basic), Corey Thompson and Brad Royal (Silverado), and Ray Rodriguez (Vo Tech). In girls 4A the competition should be very tight. Centennial, which returns its top seven from a year ago, is led by sophomore Meghan Mathews (runner-up at state) and senior Allison Carney (7th at state). Centennial also has three other returning runners who placed in the top 30 at state last fall. South Tahoe returns four of their top seven, including sophomore Amber Ramos (4th at state) who ran a 11:57/3200 at state this spring. Green Valley, likewise with no graduating seniors, will be led by junior Emily Eskin (6th at state). Other teams that will likely be leaders in the battle for a trip to State are--starting at the top--Foothill, Basic, and Silverado from Sunrise; Palo Verde, Cimarron-Memorial, and Bonanza from Sunset; and Carson, Reno, and McQueen from the North. Carson, especially, is a team from the north to watch. The Lady Senators have four incoming freshman who are all expected to have an impact.
The outstanding female runner in 4A is Carson's Shanna Sparks, the defending state champ. Sparks was 2nd team All Western Region at Footlocker in 2000 and ran 11:19 in winning the 3200 on the track at state this spring as a sophomore. Shanna is a legitimate "national contender".Close behind her is Christa Avena from Gorman who was third last year in 4A cross country and runner-up in the 1600 and the 3200 on the track. The following girls were All-State (top 15) last year and are returning this fall: Sparks, Mathews, Avena, Eskin, Carney, Karen DeMartini of Reno (8th), Taryn Joyce-Mendive of Douglas (10th), Michelle Glenn of Reno (11th), Lindsay Harris of Green Valley (12th), Karen Brigman of McQueen (13th), Kali Baker of Centennial (14th), and Erica Zampardo of South Tahoe (15th). To that list add the following girls from Sunset who are expected to be among the front runners this fall: Natasha Wicks and Shoshanna Yadegar (Cimarron-Memorial); Natilie Fehrensen and Melissa Voss (Palo Verde); Tamara Dudas, Minette Porterfield, and Jen Fajardo (Bonanza); Patty Boghos and Shana Wiltshire (Durango); and Laura and Melissa O'Connor, Kelli Brown, and Megan Romeo (Centennial).
And from Sunrise : Deann Bradshaw, Colleen O' Brien, Megan Karl, and Beth Stoner, (Foothill); Jackie Favreau, Katie Hughes, and Stacie DeGagne (Green Valley); Samantha Serrano, Ashley Perkins, and Brianna Krahenbuhl (Basic); Yolanda Chee (Eldorado); Michelle Chee (Rancho); and Karen and Debbie LaHodny (Silverado). There are four "new" 4A schools that are opening this fall: North Valleys and Spanish Springs in the Northern Region and Coronado and Sierra Vista in Sunrise and Sunset. None of these schools will have seniors and all are expected to feel the "first-year pains" of competition against established programs. The bigger impact that they may make this fall is in the athletes they will "take away" from their surrounding schools: Sparks and Hug in the north and Foothill, Silverado, and Durango in the south. A number of athletes who ran as freshmen and sophomores at Durango and Foothill, for instance, will now be changing their colors to run for Coronado and Sierra Vista. Among the lower divisions (2A/3A), the one team that truly stands out state-wide is the girls team from Lowry. The Buckaroos from Winnemucca won the 3A title in 2000 with 17 points and graduated nary a senior. Lowry is led by sophomore twins Kelsey and Katie Engstrom. Kelsey was the 3A state champ in cross country, as well as both the 1600 and the 3200 this spring. Katie, 7th in cc in '00, was 4th at state in the 1600 and 3rd in the 3200. Heather Thompson, also from Lowry, was runner-up in cc last fall and was the 800 meter state champ in 3A track. Boulder City, North Tahoe, and Spring Creek will fight for the scraps in girls 3A. Boulder City's Kristie McRae (9th at state) is the south's top returning runner.
Boys 3A should be more "up for grabs" this fall. Boulder City, the defending champs, was hit hard by graduation and only returns two runners who finished among the top 10 last fall--Justin Barrow (6th) and Aaron Ross (8th). The team most likely to challenge for team honors is North Tahoe, which will be led by Jose Ramirez--runner-up in cc in '00 and both the 1600 and the 3200 in state track this spring--and Tommy Mills (9th in '00 cc).
2A boys is dominated by three outstanding young men: Drew Casselberry of Incline, Greg Sullivan of Beatty, and Chris Clauson of Independence. Seniors Casselberry and Sullivan finished 1-2 last fall while Clauson, who placed 6th in cc last fall, ran a 9:48 3200 as a freshman in winning the 2A 3200 at state.
Girls 2A features one of the better teams in the state, at any level, Faith Lutheran. The Crusaders from Las Vegas are led by sophomore Nikki Peterson and senior Chaz LaHodny. The defending 2A cc champ, Peterson was a quad winner in 2A track this spring (400/800/1600/3200). LaHodny, who has not run cross country since her freshman year at Clark (when she was third in the State Meet), had an outstanding season on the track this past spring. Faith Lutheran also has an outstanding incoming freshman, Delayna Jensen. Three returning runners who finished in the top five in 2A last fall are Christine Barrett (2nd) and Sarah Day (3rd), both from Faith Lutheran, and Lindsey Zeller (5th) of Indian Springs.
Finally, there is the "coach factor". It's no coincidence that the most successful programs in the state are headed by experienced coaches who coach their distance runners year round. This is not a knock on multi-sport coaches. There have been--and are--excellent coaches in this state who coach cross country and then turn their attention to other sports at the end of the fall season: basketball, wrestling, baseball or softball.... But these coaches are at a distinct disadvantage when they compete against coaches who, in addition to cross country, work with their runners over the winter months and then coach them on the track in the spring. I will confine my examples to southern Nevada, since that is where I've resided and coached for the past 20-plus years, but I suspect the assertion holds true up north as well. (Warren Mills at North Tahoe, Dave Nolte and Lynn Mentzer at Reed, Lee Hurren at Galena, and Roland Martin at Reno come to mind.) First, the success of the Basic program is due to the dedication and expertise of Larry Burgess, the dean of cross country coaches in southern Nevada. (In addition to five team state championships, I don't believe Coach Burgess has never failed to qualify his boys team for the State Meet.) Likewise, Cimarron-Memorial has Harold Vaughn to thank for its long-time success in cross country. Boulder City has been blessed to have Bruce Momsen as its cross country coach for more years than I can calculate. Mike O'Dea has been a super-successful cross country coach wherever he's been, first at Eldorado then Durango and now Palo Verde. John Dixon has been a winner wherever he's coached as well, first at Cheyenne and now at Foothill. Tim Daily worked miracles at Indian Springs; it might take him a couple of years, but I expect he'll do very well at Sierra Vista. Jeff Doyle and Jessica Scobell, both relative newcomers, have had great success at Green Valley and Faith Lutheran. And sometimes two coaches are better than one: Sam Richardson, a veteran coach (Eldorado, Cheyenne, Valley) coaches the boys at Centennial while another veteran, Bill Miller (who coached under John Dixon at Cheyenne), coached the girls team at Centennial to a state championship last fall.
I know I've left out other examples of terrific, successful coaches. So be it. But the coaches I have cited all have one thing in common: they coach their runners year round. They recruit, they raise funds, and they work with their athletes one-on-one from August of one year until July of the next. And come November I suspect these are the coaches who will be traveling to Reno for the State Meet. I rest my case.
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"Newbies" and "Retreads" (September 3rd) Scouting the fresh faces is something that coaches do early in the season. And here in southern Nevada we’ve now had two opportunities to size up the talent: the week one “dual’s/tri’s” and the Lake Mead Invitational in Boulder City. There were a number of runners who stood out among the newcomers this week. Some are 9th graders; some are runners who may have run track last spring but who are new to cross country. And there are two “old-timers” who appear to be making a successful comeback.
Among freshmen girls none stands out like Deleyna Jensen of Faith Lutheran. This young Red Rock Racer can flat out fly! She posted the third fastest time at the B.C. meet on Saturday (behind Nikki Peterson (FL) and Natasha Wicks (C-M). She will likely remain in the shadow of her state champion-teammate Peterson for the next couple of years, but she’s a “good un”. Three other 9th grade girls who have run well early are Katherine Fine of Gorman, Holly Walker of Green Valley, and Debbie LaHodny of Silverado. Lindsay Pardee (sister of recently graduated Kelly) of Durango also looked good in her race at Green Valley on Wednesday: a chip off the proverbial old block. One newcomer who ran well both on Wednesday and Saturday was sophomore Magali Hernandez of Mojave. She placed fourth in her race against the girls of Chaparral and Las Vegas on Wednesday and fifth among sophomore girls on Saturday.
As for old-timers returning, it seems unfair to call Faith Lutheran’s Chaz LaHodny a retread. She never stopped running. But she has not run high school cross country since she was freshman at Clark. She sat out two years due to injuries and transfer restrictions. But that’s now behind her. She may be only the number three runner on her team, but she won the senior girls race at Lake Mead on Saturday, posting the fourth fastest time-of-the-day, and finished third--behind Peterson and Jensen--on Wednesday, running against the best that Bonanza and Cheyenne had to offer. Chaz is back, like a Phoenix rising from the ashes!
Turning to the boys, there doesn’t appear to be any “Patrick Swicks” out there, but several freshmen turned in good performances this first week. Josh Sillitoe of Basic and Alex Hunter of Boulder City went 1-2 in the 9th grade boys race at the Lake Mead Invitational with respectable times. Hunter also placed third in his race--behind two teammates--up at Moapa Valley on Wednesday. Among newcomers who have looked promising are a couple of Bonanza brothers: sophomore Trevor and junior Tyler Peterson. Trevor ran track last spring for the Bengals. Both boys placed in the top five In their race against Faith and Cheyenne on Wednesday and Trevor was second in the sophomore boys race at Boulder City on Saturday. Tyler finished seventh in the junior boys race at Lake Mead. Clark, likewise, has two newbies to watch: sophomore Daniel Melesse and junior Marinko Dyukic. Melesse, especially, raised eyebrows at Boulder City when he posted the second fastest time-of-the-day (behind Bonanza’s Allen Larsen) in winning his 10th-grade race. He placed second on Wednesday, behind teammate Kumiye Hussein, in his race against Valley and Coronado, beating Coronado’s state-qualifier Alex Wilcox among others. Dyukic finished eighth in the race on Wednesday and fourth in his 11th-grade race on Saturday. Also keep an eye on newcomer Ray Rodriguez Jr. of Vo Tech. Rodriguez caught some attention big-time when he beat the best that Silverado, Basic, and Western had to offer on Wednesday and then placed third among junior boys on Saturday. Finally, another newcomer to cross country is Basic’s Bryan Stiles, who right now looks like Coach Burgess’ number three runner (behind Krahenbuhl and Hafen). Stiles placed fifth among junior boys at the Lake Mead Invitational.
As for the old-timers returning as retreads In the boys ranks, the one who truly stands out is Alec Chapman of The Meadows. Chapman was, arguably, Green Valley’s best cross country runner as a freshman, but when he transferred he lost a year of eligibility. Now a junior, Alec made his debut for his new school by knocking off some the “big dogs” from Palo Verde and Cimarron-Memorial on Wednesday. Unfortunately, The Meadows doesn’t have a full boys team--yet at least--but Alec will likely be a force to be reckoned with come State, when he’ll go head-to-head with 2A runners such as Drew Casselberry of Incline and Greg Sullivan of Beatty.
For those newbies and retreads that I’ve overlooked, I apologize. I look forward to discovering you throughout the season. It’s still early, with some runners out there possibly still waiting to lace up their shoes and set foot on the course. Good luck to all of you--veterans as well as newcomers. Is this a great sport or what?
coachphil@aol.com
Parents can be great but...
Most parents that get involved with the program are terrific. I'm reminded of the Angel Park Invitational that Bonanza H.S. sponsored every year. It became a real parent effort. Parents issued press releases, helped set up the course, manned the registration table, acted as course officials, assembled and worked the finishing chute, did all the timing, posted the results, and even raffled off donated prizes after the awards had been handed out to help raise additional money for the cross country program. I was the race director but the parents did most of the work, and they loved it! In 1997 I had the parents of one of my boys drive all night from Las Vegas up to Reno so they could meet us at the airport gate with welcoming signs when we arrived the next morning for the 1997 State Meet. Great parents. This reminds me of an anecdote that's worth a chuckle yet makes another point. In 1991 our girls qualified for the State Meet--also to be held in the Reno area--and we drove up by bus in those days. We departed at "o-dark-30" in busses chartered by the Clark Country School District, but one of my parents wasn't about to get up that early. He slept in. He and his wife left an hour later but assured us that they would still beat us there! As our bus was chugging its way north on US 95 just past Hawthorne, still several hours out of Reno, here comes Carl--honking and waving as he speeds on by. Twenty minutes later we passed him, pulled over by one of Nevada State Highway's finest. When we all gathered at Circus Circus in downtown Reno a few hours later, Carl was there to meet us, but he never mentioned the incident. I kept quiet as well, in front of the kids. But later he did take a ribbing. His daughter has long since graduated, but Carl--who got started as a competitive runner while Carrie ran for Bonanza--has become an outstanding marathon runner in the interim and is a fixture at Las Vegas Track Club races. I still count him as a good friend.
Can parents be a "pain"? Yes, without a doubt. Many runners--especially young girls--can be ruined by overeager dads (usually it's dads). There are numerous examples I could cite but I'll just mention just one. Here in Las Vegas we had a girl, let's call her Bonnie, some years back that was a freshman phenom. She entered the 9th grade in 1986 as a regional youth champion at just about every distance from 400 on up. She was winning local road races all summer and had a 33 minutes and change 8K to her credit. Dad shopped her around at several schools (not really--parents don't "school shop"--but you know what I mean) and finally settled on Las Vegas H.S. She had a great freshman year and only narrowly missed being the individual state champion, finishing second, behind a senior--and the defending state champion--from Carson City. Bonnie"s dad continued to train her--over and above her regular team workouts--and he got away with it for awhile. But by spring all those extra interval workouts and long runs on Sunday were starting to take their toll. She started out like the next Mary Decker, winning all her races on the track from 400 meters up to the 3200. Not only was Dad having her put in extra workouts, her high school coaches at overracing her (we make mistakes too). The result was a series of stress fractures and other assorted overuse injuries. Bonnie was history; she never even finished the 1987 track season. She became a one-year wonder and never ran again, at least in high school. Dad"s dream of a full-ride to a major college had turned into a nightmare.
Is there a lesson there? I hope so. Yes, parents can be great--and usually are--especially when they come out to the races and cheer on their kids, and the team. I see parent booster tee shirts at lots of invitationals. That's terrific! I also applaud those parents that even run with their kids and encourage them to run in the off season. And, yes, I think parents should be involved with their child's training. They should know what their kids are doing for training, and encourage their kids to do those "on-your-own" workouts. They should be involved with things like proper diet; adequate rest, and other health issues; the right shoes for training and racing; and encouragement in maintaining a running log. But please, let us do our job as coaches. If you have questions, ask them; talk to us. If you have criticisms regarding the workouts or the races, whatever, share your concerns with us. We want to win but we also want what's best for your children. We're in this together.
After reading several of her pieces submitted to the web site regarding cross country in northern Nevada, I offered Penny Sparks, mom of Carson's Shanna Sparks, the opportunity to write a guest column for me this month. Not only is Penny much more knowledgable of what's going on up north than I am, but she writes objectively and well as I'm sure you'll find. I hope she will find the time to write for the site on a regular basis. As for me, my last column has come back to haunt me. Now I'm a retread too, having accepted a position as a cross country coach at Bishop Gorman. But it's great to back coaching again! Nevertheless, I will continue to write my column and stive to be as objective as I can while at the same time "tell it like it is." -------------------------------- Northern Nevada 4A Early Season Review September 10, 2001 The Northern Nevada cross country competition looks to be very intense this season. No boy's varsity team dominates the region at this point. At the Galena Invitational, Reno varsity boys were the top team. Reno, Galena and Carson each had three boys finish in the top ten time-wise. However, at the Reed Invitational the Galena boys bumped the Reno varsity boys from the top. Carson varsity did not compete at the Reed Invitational. However, they ran well in San Francisco. It should be very exciting watching the season unfold with these three tough teams.
South Tahoe varsity boys has not shown a lot of team strength at this point, but that this is probably not a true indication of their potential. They have historically come on strong late in the season, as demonstrated by the 1999 boys state champion team. Coach Dominque Westlake takes his time getting his runners into shape, but they are always ready when it counts. The top boy runner in the north at this time is clearly Jonathan Cardenas, a sophomore from Reno. He easily won both the Galena and Reed Invitational. Chris Concha, another Reno High runner, is always tough and definitely one of the most competitive high school runners in the state. Matt Dodd a senior from Reno will also be in contention for the top spot. Hudson Wilvers from South Lake Tahoe is relatively an unknown in the south, but the athletes and coaches up here know him well. He has had bad luck at the qualifying races, but is one of the most talented young runners in the state. His teammate Chris Cosmi will also be one of the top runners if he runs as well as he did last year.
Tim Koepsell and Steven Potly, both from Galena, are running extremely well at this time. Galena's new cross country runner, Micah Parker, and freshman Raul Tibaduiza are making a strong statement in their first high school cross country season. The Galena boy's team looks very strong. They could end up being the top team in the north at Regionals. Josh Corder from Carson is still an unknown in Nevada having just moved from Idaho. But judging by his performances in Idaho he could very easily challenge the top spot before the season is over. Carson's Andrew Pederson and Jeffrey Martin will also be among the top runners from the north. All three boys ran really strong in San Francisco last weekend. Carson may not be able to bump either Galena or Reno from the top spot this year, but they will still be a team to contend with.
The girl's top teams in the north are clearly Carson and Reno. Both teams are loaded with talent and toughness. However, the Carson team really proved their outstanding ability in placing higher overall then Centennial, the defending state champions this last weekend in San Francisco at the Great Race of the Great Bay.
The top varsity runner is, to no one's surprise, Shanna Sparks. She has proven her talent since she won her first state championship as a freshman. But more importantly she has proven her mental toughness and determination by winning the 3200-meter state championship in spite of being out for most the season due to injuries. Joining her this year is Cassia Roth, who not only was a state qualifier in the 3200 and 4 x 800, but has also improved immensely. Cassia's fourth place overall time at Galena attests to her ability. Joining Shanna and Cassia at the top of the Carson girls team are Ali Marson, Sheena Bonaldi and Emily Johnson, all freshman. On the Reno team, Collier Lawrence, 4th at state in the 3200 is looking extremely strong. She ran second overall at the Galena Invitational, and won the Reed Invitational this past Friday. She soundly dominated the front-runner position for her team. Katie McGrath also ran very strong, finishing third overall at Galena and second a Reed. Karen DeMartini, although finishing third among the Reno runners at the Galena Invitational, cannot be counted out. Karen always rallys when it counts the most. Michelle Glenn is racing out of shape at this time, but as the season progresses, so will Michelle. As good as the Carson team looks, the Reno team will be right in there pushing Carson all the way. The two teams should really make things exciting in the north.
Of course we can't forget about South Lake Tahoe. Amber Ramos, 4th at state last year, may have more competition up top to deal with then she did last year, but that won't keep her from going to state. She is one of the toughest competitors in the state. The South Lake Tahoe girls team may not be the power they were last year at this time, but they too cannot be counted out of being one of the top three teams qualifying for state. Other teams worth mentioning are Galena and McQueen, each having some very reputable runners on their team. And McQueen's team scored higher than South Tahoe at the Reed Invitational this past weekend.
Soccer: Friend or Foe? (Part 1) (September 23, 2001)
This is a complicated question as it relates to high school cross country and track, but especially cross country, since cross country and soccer are both fall sports. Most kids are forced to choose one or the other. I had to make that choice myself back in the 1986 when CCSD moved boys soccer (this was before girls soccer was an NIAA sport) from the winter to the fall where It has remained to this day. (From 1982 to 1985 I coached both soccer and cross country at Bonanza.) The boys that chose soccer didn't run cross country; it was as simple as that. As cross country coaches sometimes we get a few castoffs; boys that got cut from soccer then come out for cross country. I used to actively recruit after “cut day” with the blessing of the soccer coach. Not exactly an ideal way to recruit potential runners, but sometimes you do what you have to do.
And this is where soccer is a friend. Soccer is great conditioner. The kids run a lot and build tremendous endurance. It has been estimated that the average soccer midfielder covers in excess of five miles of running during a match. Many of our best cross country runners are soccer players. All three of the girls I coached at Bonanza who made All-State--Connie Johonnot, Erin Aten, and Carrie Wright--came to me as soccer players. Look at some of the 4A runners here in southern Nevada who went to State last year: Emily Eskin of Green Valley, Meghan Mathews and the O'Connor twins of Centennial, Christa Avena of Gorman, Tamara Dudas of Bonanza, and Abbey Mathis of Silverado. They all played high school and club soccer last year.
Here's where it gets complicated. Again, some background. Enter girls soccer as a high school sport in Nevada; it happened in the late 80's, first as a club sport and then officially as an NIAA sport. But in southern Nevada it was a winter sport, while girls soccer in the north was played in the fall. This meant that girls down here could run cross country in the fall, play soccer in the winter, and run track in the spring. And it worked, sorta--more on that later. But then a couple of years ago, after relentless pressure from the north that both ends of the state get “on the same page” in order that Nevada have a state championship in girls soccer, the NIAA moved girls soccer to the fall--except for 4A in Clark County. The southern 4A soccer coaches, many of whom coach both boys and girls, wanted it left as it was--for a variety of good reasons--and they prevailed. For now, at least, girls soccer is still a winter sport in Clark County, and girls who go to the 4A schools can still run cross country in the fall and play soccer in the winter. Sorry, you coaches at Boulder City, Moapa Valley, The Meadows, etc., your girls now have to choose one sport of the other. And guess what? Except for Boulder City and Faith Lutheran, no ”small school” in southern Nevada has been able to find even five girls to run cross country this year. (That ought to be a clue right there that something is amiss.)
OK, let's get back to the 4A schools, where there is no conflict between girls soccer and cross country. Or is there? Enter club soccer. Club soccer is played year round--except during the high school season. Most of these club soccer coaches don't work for the school district. Most of them are dedicated to their sport and they want their kids to practice and play soccer year round. They have matches and take their teams to out-of-state tournaments all year round, including in the fall--during cross country season. They entice their girls with the promise of college soccer scholarships and the opportunity for Olympic glory and the chance to be the next Mia Hamm or Tiffeny Milbrett. "These club coaches are obsessive and possessive," according to one high school cross country coach whom I choose not to identify.
And here’s where soccer is not a friend. Abbey Mathis--I mentioned her earlier--is now a senior at Silverado and she still plays club soccer, but she is not running cross country this fall. Why? Because her club coach made her choose between club soccer and cross country! She chose soccer and Silverado lost their #1 returning runner. That should not have happened. Abby made her choice and I respect her for it. But it’s my contention that she shouldn’t have been forced to make that choice. All of the other girls cited above are all still running cross country, and in trying to do both cross country and club soccer they are forced to find the time and energy for both. It's a trade off and there has to be a price to pay, but at least they weren't forced to choose one sport over the other.
Most coaches feel as I do that doing both--club soccer and cross country--at the same time is too demanding. Jessica Scobell, coach at Faith Lutheran, says that “involvement in two sports at the same time causes a lack of focus”. John Dixon, head coach at Foothill, is more direct: “Club soccer and XC does not mix well. The kids get tired...they are always going to club matches on weekends”. Bill Miller at Centennial claims that last year he made a deal with Meghan Mathews and the O’Connor twins that they do only cross country--no club soccer--from October 1st until after the state meet. But when I talked to Meghan last Thursday and asked her about soccer this year she admitted that her club soccer coach still puts a lot of pressure on her to attend practices and matches, even though she is not going playing in any more out-of-town tournaments until the end of the cross country season.
We do have a problem? Soccer is a sport with a lot of appeal. It's fun! You can have instant success. You can score a goal on your first day of practice. Kicking a soccer ball is a great way to release pent-up energy. And time and tradition is on the side of soccer as well. Some of our kids have been playing it since they were toddlers. There are leagues for kids as young as five years old. The WUSA gets exposure on TV and in the press. Every high school girl in this country who plays soccer has heard of Brandi Chastain, but how many of our girls who run cross country have heard of Lynn Jennings or Deena Drossin? High school cross country--at least in Las Vegas--falls somewhere between girls golf and bowling when it comes to coverage in the local papers and esteem in schools. Most of our kids have never run competitively before they come to high school. There are a few youth running clubs in town, but compare their number to the number of soccer clubs and teams in existence. We're a day late and a dollar short!
(In part two of this editorial I will discuss some possible solutions to the problem and offer suggestions for coaches, parents, and athletes.)
Soccer: Friend or Foe? (Part 2) January 2006
Southern Nevada Cross Country Mid Term Report (September 30, 2001)
At this, the half way point in the season, I thought I'd get together with Penny Sparks, our northern correspondent, and assign grades, with comments, to each of the 4A programs in the State and some of the small school programs here in southern Nevada and the Reno/Carson City area. I hope no one will take offense if we "let the chips fall where they may". If we miss a mark or two, so be it. And where we are heavy handed, coaches and athletes are free to use our comments to motivate their teams to greater success from now until November This will be a three part piece, starting with the southern Nevada 4A schools.
Sunrise Region
Southeast Division:
Green Valley-- A+. Outstanding program, led by the girls team which is currently ranked in The Harrier as No. 8 in the West and No. 23 in the country. The Gators--girls especially--have lived up to their top billing in every way. Coach Doyle claims he has tried to "stay below the radar" but good luck! Both the boys and girls team are deep, deep, deep. Emily Eskin, Jackie Favreau and Lindsay Harris have all been running to form and freshman Holly Walker has given the lady Gators yet another front runner. The boys have been called inconsistent, by some, in that don't have a true #1, but whether its David Winkler, Robert Ragan, Korre Heggem, or Jim Thorne who runs leads the way, it doesn't seem to matter. They just win.
Foothill--B+. Another top-notch program. Coach Dixon seems to have survived the loss of his two best male runners to Coronado and has managed to keep his team focused on their pre-season goal of going to State. After a slow start, Deann Bradshaw is back on track as one of the top girls in Sunrise. The Falcons have had a tough schedule, going up against Sunset powers Palo Verde, Centennial, and Bonanza, but the competition seems to have done them no harm. The girls look like a lock for State. Bradshaw, Colleen O'Brien, Megan Belingheri, and Beth Stoner are solid. The boys, led by Ron Stoker and Geoff Pierce, have beaten Sunrise rivals Silverado and Basic and look State bound as well.
Silverado--B. Solid program with a nice mix of experience and newcomers. Senior Mike Ceparano has led the boys to wins over Basic, Cimarron, and a host of "have-not" teams; their only loss was to Foothill. The key for the boys from here on in will be their 2-5 runners: Corey Thompson, Brad Royal, David Lieberman, and David Contreras. The girls team has lacked for a front runner and was recently upset by Durango, but their depth may be enough to get them to state. Karen LaHodny has been their most consistent runner. The Skyhawks must still overcome the perception, however, that over the years this has been an underachieving program that sometimes peaks too early.
Basic--B. For the first time in years, Basic's boys look vulnerable. Coach Burgess just doesn't have the depth that he usually does; Kole Krahenbuhl is still a front runner, but Coach Burgess may be relying too heavily on newcomers like freshmen Josh Sillitoe and sophomore Kayden Campbell. The boys will have a tough time fending off Green Valley, Foothill, Chaparral, and Silverado. The lady Wolves, led by Sam Serrano, may have an easier time making it to Reno. They will likely fight it out with Silverado for the third ticket to state--behind Green Valley and Foothill.
Coronado--C. For a first-year program, the Cougars has done well. It helped that the boys started with Foothill transfers Alex Wilcox and Sean Stafford and Green Valley transfer Garron Combs. Coronado's boys has been stromped by the big dogs such as Clark, Foothill, and Palo Verde, they but prevailed against the likes of Valley, Mojave, Rancho, and Sierra Vista. The girls haven't been so fortunate; with no experienced runners and a thin squad, they have struggled mightily.
Vo-Tech--C. For the first time in years, The Roadrunners--at least the boys--have lived up to their name. New coach Tony Kyriacou has done an excellent job with the boys. The Vo-Tech boys, led by Ray Rodriguez, Mike Jamison, and Dustin Rasmussen have knocked off Cheyenne, Eldorado, Las Vegas, Valley, and Western--among others--and kept the scores close in their losses to Basic and Silverado. Unfortunately, Vo-Tech has been unable to field a girls team.
Northeast Division:
Chaparral--B. When the Cowboys moved from the "Henderson Division", they gave the Northeast Division instant respectability for the first time in years. The boys team were the pre-season favorites to win the Sunrise Region, and they haven't done anything to alter that forecast. Except for an upset by Clark at the Oasis Invitational, the Cowboys have been unbeaten by local competition. Still, the verdict is not yet in. Patrick Swick and company lack the depth of Sunrise opponents Green Valley, Foothill, and Silverado and could have a "5th man problem". The Chaparral girls team has been mediocre at best. They defeated Las Vegas but lost to Rancho and Valley in their only real tests of strength.
Las Vegas--C-. The best thing that can be said about the Wildcat cross country program is that they can at least field two full teams, barely. The boys have beaten Eldorado, Virgin Valley, and several incomplete teams, but that's about it. The girls haven't fared much better. Jeremy Longo, for the boys, and Maura Banales, for the girls, have led their team in most races. The Wildcats rarely show up at invitationals.
Valley--D+. The Valley cross country program is also struggling. The Vikings haven't shown much potential and have no front runners. They have lots of losses and only wins over Western and a couple of other fellow northeast opponents to show for their efforts.
Eldorado--D+. Eldorado's has two pretty fair front runners: Oscar Nevarez for the boys and Yolando Chee for the girls. Team wise they have not done well, often failing to field complete teams; their only wins have come against Las Vegas (boys only--girls lost), Virgin Valley, and Moapa Valley. At least they show up at invitationals.
Rancho--D+. Another struggling program with no wins outside of the northeast division, except for Rancho's girls beating out Coronado in one meet. Erin Forget and Michelle Chee have run well for the girls team but they have little support.
Desert Pines--F. A moribund program. Actually, it was never alive. The Jaguars have yet to field a complete boys or girls team so far this season.
Sunset Region
Southwest Division
Clark--B+. One of the pleasant surprises so far. Most coaches knew the Charger boys could be good, after all they had Jamalo Adem the defending Sunset champ returning, but no one expected them to be this good. The key hasn't been Adem, who has run well when healthy and available (which is not very often), but a supporting cast of Kumiye Hussein, Israel Zavala, Marinko Dyukic, and Daniel Milesse. Clark got everyone's attention when they upset Chaparral at the Oasis Invitational, but even before that they had crushed Bonanza and Durango--among others--and only lost by only 11 to Green Valley "on the road". The Clark girls started slowly but have gotten better--especially Amanda Gramley and Kara Kofford--as the season progresses. They have an outside shot of going to State. Coach Zwintcher doesn't have much depth on his squad, but he has done an outstanding job with what he has.
Bonanza--B. The Bengals boys have improved this season, led by superb front runner Allen Larsen and the emergence of Trevor Peterson and his older brother Tyler. The boys lack the 4-5 runners to get to State as a team this year, but they have a number of promising freshmen which bodes well for the future. For the Bengal girls the future is now. Three experienced seniors lead this team: Jen Fajardo, Tamara Dudas, and Minette Porterfield. Freshman Kayla Bauder has become a solid #4, but no #5 has yet stepped up. A trip to State hangs in the balance.
Durango--B. Coach Holben's Trailblazers started the season badly, getting blown away by Green Valley, but since then the team has slowly clawed its way back up the ladder. The boys are still floundering without a consistent #1, but if Marcus Whitehead continues to emerge to fill that role, the depth is there with lots of young talent. The girls likewise started slowly but they too have shown good improvement, knocking off Silverado in their last meet. Freshman Lindsay Pardee looks like the "real deal" and Patty Boghos and Tasha Larson have been solid; Durango is back in the hunt for a shot at State.
Bishop Gorman--C-. No one got a later start. The Gaels didn't have a coach until a week into the season, essentially dooming the program for 2001. Coach LaHodny has barely managed to field a team of five girls and the boys have only two runners on their roster. Nevertheless, among those five girls are Chista Avena and Katie Fine. Avena, a sophomore, is the defending Sunset Region champ and Fine is one of the top freshmen prospects In southern Nevada. Both girls should make it to State as individual qualifiers.
Sierra Vista--C-. Coach Tim Dailey, who left Indian Springs to come to Sierra Vista, has had a tough time building a program from scratch at his new school. Unlike his counterpart at Coronado, he did not get much experienced talent among his transfers and the Lions have been soundly beaten in most of their meets. The most promising runners for Sierra Vista have been Chad Waldren for the boys and Tammy Wynne for the girls. This is program that will get better as the season progresses.
Western--F. This once proud program has been in the doldrums for some time and despite his enthusiasm and experience as a runner himself, Coach Hendley has been unable to field a complete boys team or come up with any competitive runners. Girls coach Jackie Strobel has been equally unsuccessful. It looks like "Wait till next year!"for the Warriors.
Northwest Division
Centennial--A+. Sam Richardon and Bill Miller must be doing something right. In three short years they have turned Centennial, a school which graduates its first seniors next June, into a model cross country program. The boys are a step behind the girls, but it's a short step. Except for a double loss to Green Valley at a meet where Coach Miller ran his JV's (his girls were off to San Francisco for an invitational that weekend), the Bulldogs are undefeated against local competition. Centennial's girls have been ranked as high as #10 in the West in The Harrier polls. The boys go at least eight deep, led by Jordan Smith, Jorge Martinez, Jordan Stephens, and Preston Mathews. The girls are led by a superb trio of Allison Carney, Meghan Mathews, and Kali Baker and have depth as well. Both teams are a lock to go to State.
Palo Verde--A. Coach Mike O'Dea has worked his magic again. The Panthers are the deepest team in Sunset and they have front runners to go with depth. Only a loss by the Palo Verde girls to Centennial mars their mid-week ventures. The boys are led by the strong duo of Kevin Sully and Jason Halpin. The girls are led by two of Sunset's best, Melissa Voss and Natilie Fehrensen. Both teams should make it to State easily.
Cimarron-Memorial--B. The Spartans are a bit down this year, at least in numbers, but they do boast of some excellent runners. The boys team has struggled against quality opponents: losing to Centennial, Silverado, and Bonanza, but they still show up in the weekly top-10 coaches poll. Matt Yadegar and Chris Thompson are among the best in Sunset. The Spartans have some depth, but they're a long shot to go back to State as a team. The girls are in a somewhat similar situation: strong at the top with Natasha Wicks and Shoshanna Yadegar but somewhat weak behind 1-2. They'll go as far as their 3-5 runners will take them.
Cheyenne--C-. Coach Sowerby for all of his success as a track coach has never been able to--or had the inclination to--recruit successfully in cross country. The Desert Shield has barely been able to field two full teams this fall. Cheyenne does have two front runners in Stephon Davis (boys) and Sandy Johnson (girls), both of whom have a chance to go to State as individuals, but Cheyenne hasn't sent a team to State since Coach Dixon moved to Foothill three years ago. That streak will likely stay intact.
Mojave--D+. The Rattlers are another track power that has been a dud when it comes to cross country. The boys have been able-- sometimes--to field a full team of five runners this fall. The girls have not, so far at least. The boys did manage to beat Sierra Vista, Desert Pines, and Western in a triangular meet, but have had little success otherwise. The one front runner who runs for Mojave is sophomore Magali Hernandez.
Small Schools Cross Country Mid Term Report (October 2, 2001)
Cross country in the small schools of southern Nevada so far can be summed up as follows: Boulder City and Faith Lutheran are doing just fine, the rest are not. In fact the situation is so bad that it’s likely that Boulder City will be the only 3A school to qualify a full team of boys and girls to go to State. And in 2A, Faith Lutheran’s girls will likely run unopposed at the regional qualifier. One can only hope that things are better up north. Quite a contrast from 4A in the south where as many as 23 teams will battle at Regionals for 6 spots in the state meet.
Boulder City--A-. Coaches Momsen and Welch have done an excellent job. The boys have been a bit inconsistent, especially since Aaron Ross their #2 runner has been injured, but they still manage to hold their own against 4A competition and are far superior to any other small school team in southern Nevada. Justin Barrow, the Eagles #1, is one of the top five runners in southern Nevada and with Ross due back soon the Eagles should be ready to defend their State 3A title. Boulder City’s girls have been a top-10 team in the weekly coaches poll throughout the first five weeks, knocking off Silverado and Durango among others. The team has a nice blend of experience and newcomers. Seniors Kristie McRae and Heather Morales look to lead this team to State.
Faith Lutheran--A-. The Crusader girls are among the top four or five teams in southern Nevada, led by arguably the top threesome of any team in the State: Nikki Peterson, Chaz LaHodny, and Deleyna Jensen. The team’s only losses came against Foothill and Green Valley. The team is nine deep with a solid, albeit not always consistent, 4-5-6 behind their three stars. The boys team is nowhere as good as their “better half” but they are deep in numbers and have several promising runners who should get better as the season progresses. Coach Scobell has done a great job with this program.
Meadows--D. Sadly, the Mustangs have two excellent individual runners and little else. Coach Chapman can at least sometimes find four warm bodies to go to the starting line with his son, Alec Chapman, but Diana Sitar is one of only two representatives of her gender on the squad. Both Chapman and Sitar have finished no worse than 5th in any duel/tri meet they’ve run in so far this year, and they finished 2nd and 3rd respectively in the small-school division of the Sierra Vista Invitational.
Beatty--D-. The Hornets from Beatty have one shining star: Greg Sullivan, the runner-up at last year’s 2A state meet. When Greg runs he usually wins or comes close. He ventured south for several meets this past month and was the winner of the small-school division race at the Sierra Vista Invitational. Beatty has, as yet, been unable to field a full boys team and has no girls team.
Virgin Valley--D-. The Bulldogs from Mesquite have lost their bite this season. The boys usually have enough runners to field a team, but they have finished last in every meet except for a win over Moapa Valley in a meet in which they lost to Boulder City 16-56. The girls team is nonexistent.
Moapa Valley--D-. Like their rivals up the I-15, this proud program from Overton has fallen on hard times this year. The entire harrier squad consists of five boys and two girls (neither of whom showed up last week at Jaycee Park). With no front runners, the boys have yet to beat any full team they have competed against. will get better but not this year.
Laughlin--Incomplete. Not much to go on. Laughlin has only ventured into the local area twice in September, once for the Lake Mead Invitational, where no runners finished among the top five in any races, and once for a meet in Boulder City. Their boys and girls teams both finished last among the Nevada teams in that meet.
Indian Springs--Incomplete. It appears that Coach Dailey got out of town and moved to Sierra Vista when the getting’ was good. Let’s just say the Thunderbirds are rebuilding, a work in progress. This is a proud program. The boys, at least, will likely field a team at the 2A Regional Meet.
Pahranagat Valley--Incomplete. In the last two weeks The Panthers showed up at Indian Springs and at Hemenway Park in Boulder City but left no mark either time. Their boys outscored Indian Springs 93-95, losing badly to Green Valley and Boulder City, in one meet (no girls team), and in the meet at Indian Springs they did not field either a full boys or girls team. They appear to have no front runners.
Trinity--Incomplete. The Thunder haven’t been doing much thundering this fall. To the best of my knowledge, they have not shown up as a team at any meets or invitationals this year since the first two weeks of the season when they ran a few individuals at the Lake Mead Invitational and the LVI.
Lincoln County--Incomplete. No sightings yet. The Lynx of Panaca may be lying in waiting getting ready to ambush the rest of 2A at Region but somehow I doubt it.
Pahrump Valley--F. The 3A Trojans from the west dropped the sport for this year when they couldn’t find a coach. Sad.
Phil Lawton - CoachPhil@nvtrackstats.com
Northern Region Cross Country Midterm Report Card October 2, 2001
Carson--A+
This year the Senators have really improved from last year, especially the Lady Senators led by three-time state champion Shanna Sparks. They proved their ability at the Great Race of the Great Bay by defeating Centennial girls, and then at the Stanford Invitational, defeating top ranked California teams: Buchanan, Woodland, Milpitas and Fountain Valley in placing second in Division I. Cassia Roth, Sheena Bonaldi, Ali Marson, Emily Johnson and Lindsay Dorio have been impressive in every race. And making this team even more impressive are three other runners close behind them. Depth-wise they are by far the strongest team in the North. The Carson boys team will not be vying for a championship title this year, but their team is looking stronger every race. They are young, but they are hungry. The boys are led by Josh Corder who has clocked a 17:09 5K this year. Jeffrey Martin and Andrew Pederson are also running very strong this season. These three boys will have no problem qualifying for state on their own, but their team also has a good shot at qualifying. So far they appear to be number three in Northern Nevada.
Douglas--B-
The Tigers have lacked the depth they once had to field a competitive team, but the girls led by Taryn Joyce-Mendive beat South Lake Tahoe at the Stanford Invitational time-wise. They could end up making it a three-way competition between South Tahoe, McQueen and themselves for the third slot at Regionals. Their boy's team has been a little inconsistent, but they have the potential to send several individuals to state.
Elko--C-
This cross-country program seems to be struggling these last few years. Mike Mills, A.J. Coleman, and Pat Sanders are reputable runners, but Elko's boys lack depth. Madison Aquirre and Tejal Bhakta are the Indians' top female runners, but the girls also have little team strength.
Fallon--C-
Neither the boys or girls team has made a splash this season. This is a relatively small 4A school competing with much larger schools.
Galena--A
Top-notch program. Coach Domingo Tibaduiza is producing some really tough and fast varsity boys. They soundly trumped Reno at the Stanford Invitational. They had two runners race in the 16's: Tim Koepsell at 16:41 and Steve Pottey at 16:54. Their third runner, first year cross-country athlete Micah Parker, ran 17:12. I definitely see this team not only going to state, but they could also pull off the championship if they keep running and improving as they have thus far. The Galena girls team is led by freshman Chantel Williams. The team is young and inexperienced, but they are improving every race. However, I don't see them going to state as a team this year.
Hug--C-
Hug lost a quite a few students to the one of the new schools in the Reno area. However, Jim Cobos and David Hernandez have been running fairly strong this season. The Lady Hawks do not have a top female runner, perhaps because of students being pulled to the other new school.
McQueen--B-
The Lancer's girl team is lead by senior Karen Brigman. They defeated South Tahoe at the Reed Invitational at the beginning of the year, but have not competed in any really tough races since. They will be one of three teams vying for the third spot for state. The boy's team has not been competitive so far this year.
North Valley--Incomplete
North Valley is a new school in the Reno area, and they have yet to have an impact on the cross-country scene.
Reed--B-
Coach Lynn Mentzer has also had to deal with rebuilding after losing students to new schools. The boys team is led by Kyle Barker who finished 8th at the Reed Invitational. Teammates Max McLaughlin and Jacob Cook are running strong, but they still don't have much of a chance at qualifying for state as a team. The girls team is led by Erin Sparks who finished 30th at the Reed Invitational but the team as a whole is not very strong.
Reno--A+
The boys team was state champion last year, but Reno lost several seniors. Nevertheless, they remain one of the dominant Northern Nevada teams in both the boys and girls. The boys team is young and not very deep, but they make up for that in talent, guts and determination. Jonathan Cardenas is by far the strongest cross-country runner in the north, if not the state. He placed 5th at Stanford Invitational in 16:23. If he keeps running as he has been he will be one of the favorites for winning state. Chris Concha, David Shackelton, and Matt Dodd make the Huskies a formidable team. Their weakness is the lack of a really strong 5th runner. The Region championship this year should be a duel between Reno and Galena. Reno's girls team is stronger than they have been in years. They have been led all season by sophomore Collier Lawrence who has soundly won every Nevada race she has been in all season and posted a faster time than Carson's Shanna Sparks at the Stanford Invitational. As a team they placed second defeating top-ranked Woodbridge and Foothill (CA). Karen DeMartini has been on and off this season due to injuries and illness, but she is showing signs of returning to top form. At the Stanford Invitational she closed in considerably on teammate Collier. Katie McGrath and Michelle Glenn are solid finishers in every race. Freshman Lisa DeMartini has improved with every race and is running 5th for the Huskies. Like the boys, the girls team lacks depth. They have five strong runners, but after that they lose strength. They will undoubtedly qualify for state, and they will be one of the teams to beat at the Regional and State Championships.
South Tahoe--B+
A top-notch program, but Coach Dominque Westlake has had to deal with rebuilding, injuries, and illness. At the Stanford Invite the varsity boys ran stronger than they have all season. Hudson Wilvers has proven he is one of the best in the North with his sixth-place finish at Stanford in 16:57 in the Division III race. Top 2000 State finisher Chris Cosmi seems to be returning back to form judging from his Stanford Invite performance. South Tahoe's girls team is led by Amber Ramos, who is running in the top five in the North this season, but her team is not nearly as powerful as they were last year. The Lady Vikings have a chance to qualify as a team for the third slot, but they will have to fight it out with Douglas and McQueen to make it.
Spanish Springs--Incomplete
New school - no impact on Northern Nevada cross country.
Sparks--C-
The boy's team is led by Junior Jason Martinez and Michael Marcuerauialga, but after these two they have no other top runners to field a competitive team. Marisa Coffey, Jennifer O'Brien, and Gloria Day are the lone runners for Sparks, and three does not make a team.
Wooster--Incomplete
Boya and Chris Clauson are the only Wooster runners to make any noise this season.
The Carson Invitational this Friday will be a good indicator of where the Northern Nevada teams stand. For the first time this season, the Reno and Carson girls will meet head-to-head. This meeting is a much anticipated event, especially after the Stanford Invitational where both teams defeated top ranked teams. And to make an even more exciting girls race, the Lowry Buckaroos, 3A State Champions who outran every team last year at State, will participate. Individually, 2000 state cross country champions Shanna Sparks and Kelsey Engstrom of Lowry will square off, and joining these two top runners will most probably be Collier Lawrence. Then of course you can always have surprises.
The boys race will also be exciting as Reno and Galena go at it. Both teams have phenomenal strength and talent, and have remained relatively even team-wise. Galena prevailed over Reno last weekend, but Reno runner Matt Dodd did not compete. If both teams compete with all their top runners it will be a very tight race. Jonathan Cardenas, Tim Koepsell, Steve Pottey, Hudson Wilvers and most probably a few others will make this one tough race. If it weren't for the course being so slow and tough we would probably see some really fast times this Friday. The question of who is the third strongest team: Carson or South Tahoe may possibly be answered Friday. The Carson Invite could end up being one of the toughest and most exciting races this year.
October 22, 2001 For teams and individuals that have hopes of making it to the state cross country championships this is nervous time. Except for coaches brave enough to take their kids to Mt. SAC, with the Region meet less than a week away, it's the calm before the storm. The division meets are history. The teams have gone head-to-head on the regional course at Boulder City and the pecking orders have pretty much been established. All that's left is to run the race. But there are still questions to be answered, whether you're a coach or an athlete:
"Will I/my team be ready?"
"How can I assure myself that I/they haven't peaked too early? Or if I/they have, what can I do about it?"
"How can I best be prepared for that big race next Friday?"
The subject is peaking. What is the best way to prepare for that big race? For some the big race is the race at San Rafael Park in Reno on the 3rd of November, for a select few the big race is the Footlocker Western Regional at Mt. SAC on December 1st, but that's the exception. For most of us the big race is the Regional Championships at Boulder City on Nevada Day, November 26th. For runners up north, bear with me. Your regional meet is elsewhere; just substitute San Rafael Park, or wherever, as appropriate.
Most coaches and athletes have already started tapering down. For some teams or individual athletes who may be a "lock" to make it to the next level, the Mt. SAC Invitational was the place to be this past weekend. But for teams and individuals that were "on the bubble" a race less than a week before regionals was not such a good idea. (For you athletes out there who were disappointed when you didn't get to go to Mt. SAC, your coach wasn't just "blowing smoke" when he told you what I just did.)
Coaches generally agree that the week before a big race is not a week to experiment. It's a time to build up your strength and focus on what you've done right up to now. Staying healthy is critical. Get enough sleep and eat right. The running workouts should be pretty much as per usual, with maybe a 20% cutback on total mileage and more emphasis on speed work. Lots of "strides” before, during, and after workouts--and maybe a combination of 400 and 200 meter repeats at race pace or a little faster at least one day during the week. If you haven't run the race course before, it's critical to do that. Even if you have run the course, it's a good idea to try to get "on" the course this week if it's feasible. There's no substitute for "knowing the course." The question of whether or not to run the day before the big race is still up to the individual coach or athlete. Most coaches feel that athletes are better off doing at least an easy workout the day before the big race, but it's not unanimous. If the day before is a travel day, sometimes it's impossible to do much at all. But whatever workout you do, make it an easy, medium run or a relatively short workout that includes some strides and a cool down. If you find you can't sleep the night before the big race, don't worry. Getting a good night's sleep Wednesday night with a race on Friday--is more important anyway.
The day of the race should be as "normal" as possible. This is not the time to try something new or different: no new shoes, exotic breakfast, or "magic" pre-race ritual. If you normally start your warm up 45 minutes before your race, do it today. Try to stay mentally focused on the task at hand. That's why nothing frustrates a coach more than seeing someone throwing a football around on race day. Focus on the race at hand; leave the football or soccer ball at home. If it's a hot day, be sure you're hydrated and stay cool. If it's a cold day, ditto, and stay warm. And don't forget to cheer your male/female teammates on if they're running their race before or after yours. And finally, don't worry. You've paid your dues; you've worked hard to get to where you are. You'll be fine. Good luck.
coachphil@aol.com
Southern Regionals: Behind the Headlines There were no real upsets and few surprises at Veterans Memorial Park on Friday. All the team favorites won: Chaparral and Green Valley in Sunrise; Clark and Centennial in Sunset; and some with little or no opposition, Boulder City and Faith Lutheran. Even the selections for Coach of the Year were predictable--and well deserved: Coach Zwintscher and Coach Doyle in 4A, Coaches Momsen and Welch in 3A, and Coach Scobell in 2A. The only real team surprise was Coronado's boys winning a trip to State over Green Valley and Silverado. Kudos go to Coach Steve Behn for the outstanding job he did with this first-year team. The Coronado quintet of Alex Wilcox, Garron Combs, Sean Stafford, Brandon Delobel, and Chris Johnson all seemed to peak at the right time.
The one common factor among the 12 teams in 4A that qualified for state was that they all have a top-five finisher, a front runner. Much is often made of the depth factor and the importance of the fifth runner on a cross country team, but this year it was the teams that had a front runner that prevailed. Of the four teams that finished 4th--just out of the money--none of them had a runner who placed in the top five in his/her race. Interesting. Another interesting outcome of the meet was the fact that based on composite times the outstanding girls team was not Green Valley or Centennial, but Faith Lutheran! Admittedly, the 2A races were held in the cooler hours of the morning when the course was not as chewed up; nevertheless, Faith's outstanding trio of Nikki Peterson, Chaz LaHodny, and Deleyna Jensen were ably backed up by Christine Barrett and Sarah Day, both of whom broke 23 minutes. So much for Faith Lutheran not having quality 4/5 runners. Too bad that Faith (and Lowry out of the North) can't go head-to-head with the 4A girls teams on Saturday.
Looking at the Sunrise races on Friday, there were several easily overlooked, yet outstanding, performances. In the boys race Alex Wilcox of Coronado, Josh Sillitoe of Basic, and Oscar Nevarez of Eldorado all finished in the top 10. Sillitoe, a freshman, was a key factor in Basic's runner-up team finish. For Wilcox this will be a return trip to state. He made it last year running for Foothill. On the girls side in Sunrise, senior Karen LaHodny of Silverado and sophomore Heather Bennett of Chaparral both finished in the top-15 and earned a trip to state as individual qualifiers. Two frosh performances also stood out. Sophia Espinoza of Basic and Holly Walker of Green Valley were not the number one runners on their respective teams, but their 6th/7th overall finishes were the highest among 9th graders in the 4A races.
There were no upsets in Sunset. Centennial and Palo Verde both qualified two teams and Clark's boys--led by Jamalo Adem--not only won, they compiled the best top-5 composite time of the day. Cimarron-Memorial grabbed the third team spot in the girls race, thanks largely to the winning performance of Natasha Wicks. But it was the 8th place finish by Shoshanna Yadegar and the 17th place of Tricia Bollinger that assured the lady Spartan's seven-point margin over 4th place Clark.
Individually in Sunset, several efforts stood out. The battle for the girls race came down, as expected, between Wicks and Christa Avena of Bishop Gorman, with Natasha pulling away in the final 400 meters. All of the top four girls in Sunset--Wicks, Avena, and Meghan Mathews and Allison Carney of Centennial--ran faster times than the Sunrise winner, Emily Eskin of Green Valley. However, Eskin ran pretty much unopposed in her race (as did Patrick Swick of Chaparral is his). Still, Wicks will likely be the South's best hope to unseat defending state champ Shanna Sparks of Carson and upset Reno's Collier Lawrence, who has beaten Sparks the last two times those two ran head-to-head. Youth largely prevailed in Sunset. The five girls who earned a trip to state as individuals were all 9th/10th graders: sophomores Avena of Bishop Gorman, Amanda Gramley of Clark, and Tammy Wynne of Sierra Vista; freshmen Katie Fine of Gorman and Tasha Larson of Durango. On the boys side, three sophomores earned a trip to state as individuals: Trevor Peterson of Bonanza, Chris Thompson of Cimarron-Memorial, and Stepfon Davis of Cheyenne. Several coaching efforts deserve special mention. Coach Larry Burgess had taken his boys teams to the State Meet 17 years consecutively, but the general consensus among the coaches at the beginning of the season was that this year Coach Burgess was vulnerable. And early in the season Basic's boys did not look like winners. The Wolves had one front runner in senior Kole Krahenbuhl but little else: Paul Hafen, a lightly-regarded senior; junior Bryan Stice, who had not run cross country since his freshman year; sophomore Kayden Campbell, who finished 33rd in the 2000 Region Meet; and a couple of unknown freshmen. But voila! Championships aren't won in September. Basic qualifies second behind Chaparral and then to top it off, Coach Burgess also qualifies his girls team, making Basic the only double-team qualifier from Sunrise. He gets my vote for Coach of the Year.
On the Sunset side, how about the efforts of Coach Mike O'Dea? Last year Palo Verde qualified only one team--barely. Palo Verde's girls qualified a distant third and the boys only beat out Bonanza for fourth based on a sixth-man tie breaker. This year both teams qualified easily. They don't call him the Pied Piper for nothing. No coach does a better of job of recruiting than Coach O'Dea. Also earning kudos for their coaching efforts are the duo of Sam Richardson and Bill Miller of Centennial. Centennial's boys finished only three points behind Sunset Champion, Clark, while Centennial's girls won their second straight region championship with ease. Well done guys.
There were no surprises in the 3A events, as the Lowry Buckaroos dominated the boys and girls races. Kelsey Engstrom, defending state champion, easily won her race, followed by teammate Whitney Mentaberry.
The Lowry girls team was not as overpowering as they were last year at Regionals, but they were also running under the handicap of their number two and three runners racing sick. I expect them to be stronger by state both physically and mentally. I have watched these young ladies compete for the past several years, and they always seem to race at a higher level at key races.
Heather Sandeman, of North Tahoe and state champion in her freshman and sophomore years, ran an impressive race to finish third reminding everyone of her earlier dominance. It is difficult for teenage girls to maintain their dominance as they grow and must adjust to running with their new bodies, and this often provides an advantage for freshmen and sophomores who have yet to experience a growth spurt. I am happy to say Heather seems to be adjusting, and is coming on strong once again.
Jose Ramirez from North Tahoe destroyed the rest of the field. It is a shame he is not able to compete with the 4A boys, as he would give any of them a run for their money
The Lowry boys team may not be as dominant as their girls team, but in spite of losing their number one runner to graduation, Bret Ferrier, they won Regionals against a strong field. Their team is young, lead by freshmen Lupe Cabada. As this team matures and grows in strength they will be able to hold there own in the near future with the 4A schools as the girls do. T he only surprise in the 4A northern region boys event was that Jonathan Cardenas, a Reno High sophomore who has been the dominant runner all season, placed fourth in a very strong field. Unfortunately, Jonathan has run into bad luck once again leading into state. He is currently nursing an injury, and how serious is unknown. For his teams sake, I hope Jonathan will be recovered in time for the state meet, as the Reno team lacks the depth to absorb the loss of a key team member.
Sophomore Chris Clauson from Wooster took the lead from the start and never relinquished it, running a fast and furious race. He dominated the race in spite of veering off the course a short distance. Tim Koespell, a senior from Galena, was the only runner in contention.
The Galena boys team lacked the strength they have previously shown. However, they have come back to beat Reno before. I still believe either team can win any given day. However for Galena to beat Reno, they will need to be at their best. Reno's first through fourth runners are absolutely awesome. Jonathan Cardenas, Chris Concha, David Shackleton and Matt Dodd are very, very impressive.
The Carson boys team got in by the skin of their teeth. They have been soundly beating South Tahoe all season. But as usual South Tahoe was ready to challenge Carson. If it were not for Carson's first and fourth runners, Carson would not be going to state. As a whole the Carson boys ran sub par, and the South Tahoe boys ran better than they had all season.
The top five finishers, Chris Clauson, Tim Koespell, Jonathan Cardenas, Chris Concha and Josh Corder, are all strong and very competitive. Any one of them is going to be tough to beat. The Reno and Galena boys teams are going to be tough to beat.
Shanna Sparks and Collier Lawrence had the most competitive race of the day in the girls 4A event. Collier and Shanna took turns leading the race. Collier led at the start and then was overtaken by Shanna. Collier regained the lead in the last 70 yards. Shanna and Collier are definitely the two to beat from the North.
Chantel Williams, a freshmen from Galena who finished third, is the next new kid on the block. She has shown tremendous ability and toughness this whole season.
The Carson girls team seems to be peaking just right. They not only ran strong which is evident by their first place finish, but they looked strong and fresh throughout the whole race. They are a young team that will be competitive for several years, God willing. The Reno girls will be right in there in the fight for first at state. Both teams have much respect for each other's ability.
The South Tahoe girls did not surprise anyone in their strong third-place finish. Amber Ramos led a very talented group of girls in the best race they have had all season. As usual the South Tahoe coaches know how to peak their runners at exactly the right time.
It should be a very exciting day individually and team wise with Carson and Reno from the North, and Green Valley and Centennial from the South. Unfortunately, two of Nevada's top girls teams, Lowry and Faith Lutheran, will not be involved in the show down on Saturday as Faith Lutheran is in 2A and Lowry is in 3A.
Good luck to all the fine runners and teams that qualified for state. It will be a very exciting day for all. (Penny Sparks)
Nevada State Cross Country: a Southern Slant
Maybe it was poetic justice. By the time the teams representing CCSD had finished that long bus ride back to Las Vegas, the only winners representing the South--Faith Lutheran's girls and Bishop Gorman's Christa Avena--had long since flown home. But that's unfair. There were lots of winners on Saturday; it was just that none of the others finished first. The day started out fine, with Faith's girls, led by their magnificent trio of Nikki Peterson, Delenya Jensen, and Chaz LaHodny, going 1-2-3 and winning the 2A girls championship as expected. Two-time state champ Peterson, who by her own admission "didn't have it today", ran 20:03 for the 5K. It would turn out to be the second fastest time-of-the-day. Also running well in 2A for the boys were Greg Sullivan of Beatty and Alec Chapman of The Meadows, finishing 2-3. Faith Lutheran's boys, led by Brian Nestor who placed 7th, ran well enough to take home the runner-up team trophy behind Wells. For the south, there wasn't much to feel good about in the boys 3A race. Defending champs, Boulder City, finished a distant fourth and only Justin Barrow (4th) and Aaron Ross (12th) made All State (top 15). Boulder City's girls fared better, getting the runner-up trophy behind an outstanding Lowry team. Kristie McRae (3rd), Heather Moralez (8th), and Reasha Smith (15th) made All State. In the boys 4A team competition, the south left their "A game" back in Las Vegas--or on the bus. The competition was close but when the scores were added up, the top of the standings showed Centennial and Palo Verde third and fourth, behind Galena and Reno. Individually in boys 4A, the day belonged to a couple of sophomores: Chris Clauson of Wooster and Patrick Swick of Chaparral. Clauson lead wire-to-wire but the race was still in doubt until the very end. Swick finished with a furious kick but Clauson hung on to win by a couple of seconds--17:09 to 17:11, both times breaking Clauson's course record set last week. Other runners from the south who ran well included Sunset champ Jamalo Adem of Clark (5th); Mike Ceparano of Silverado (7th); Jason Halpin (10th) and Casey Lee (13th) of Palo Verde; Preston Mathews (11th) and Jorge Martinez (12th) of Centennial; and Stepfon Davis of Cheyenne (15th). The girls 4A team competition mirrored the boys. Carson and Reno finished 1-2, with Green Valley and Centennial 3-4. And it wasn't that close. Both Centennial and Green Valley have superb teams but on this day their girls didn't run superbly. Centennial's Allison Carney, who was 6th, was the only girl from either Centennial or Green Valley to finish in the top 15. It was left to Gorman's Christa Avena to salvage some pride for the south. That last race turned out to be the best race of the day. And, again, it was a pair of sophomores who made it so. Collier Lawrence of Reno, the North Region champ and a pre-race favorite, lead from the start before Avena came out of the pack at about the 1K mark and broke away, followed closely by a foursome that included Lawrence; Chantel Williams of Galena, third at regionals; and Sunset champ Natasha Wicks of Cimarron-Memorial, who had beaten Avena twice earlier this season. At 2K Avena's lead was 10 seconds with only Lawrence seriously challenging. The Reno sophomore then closed the gap gradually, finally overtaking the diminutive 10th grader from Gorman with around 1500 meters to go. But Avena was not to be denied. She took the lead back with less than 1000 meters remaining and hung on from there. The two girls were less than 15 meters apart for the rest of the race until just before the finish when Avena surged to win by six seconds: 19:58 to 20:04. Avena's time was two seconds off the course record, set by Lawrence the week prior at the North regional. It was a sweet victory for Avena, who was third at State as a freshman but overshadowed this year by Nikki Peterson, Natasha Wicks, and the girls from the north. Williams placed third and Wicks, who had trouble breathing the entire race, finished a gutsy fourth. Other girls from southern Nevada who finished in the top 15, besides Centennial's Carney, were Melissa Voss of Palo Verde (9th), Deann Bradshaw of Foothill (14th), and Sam Serrano of Basic (15th). Nevada Cross Country: a Northern Slant & A Special Message to Young Women
There were no real surprises at the NIAA State Cross Country Championships, held in Reno on Saturday, November 3, 2001. In the first four races of the day, 1A/2A & 3A, the Faith Lutheran and Lowry High girls teams were expected to easily win their divisions, and for Nikki Peterson of Faith Lutheran, and Kelsey Engstrom of Lowry to dominate their races for the second year in a row. Both teams and both girls did not disappoint, even though Nikki or Kelsey are capable of faster times.
The boys 2A race was won by Drew Casselberry of Incline, and Jose Ramirez of North Tahoe took the 3A race. The only surprise was in the 3A boys team race: Lowry and Boulder City were the expected favorites, but Spring Creek made a very strong showing. It seemed Spring Creek might pull off an upset, but Lowry prevailed and won a second state championship after a six-year drought. However, I don't think it will be their last, as neither of Lowry's teams will graduate any of their top five runners.
Congratulations to Coaches Jim Billingsley and Dr. Robbie Grant, my awesome sister, for the only school in Nevada to win both girls and boys Regional and State team championships. I vote you both Coaches of the Year! It was a crazy kind of day for many runners in the 4A races. The Reno boy's team was easily handled by Galena. Galena's win was no surprise to me, as I predicted that they would be the team to beat after the first race of the season. What was surprising was how the Reno boys finished individually. Jonathan Cardenas, the North's dominant runner all season, placed 14th and was Reno's number two runner. Chris Concha who ran fabulously well a week ago at the Northern Region championships placed 16th, and David Shackleton, who was sixth last week in 17:46, finished 52nd in 19:16. All three boys were way below their peak performance level. Matt Dodd, Reno's fourth runner all season, was the first Reno runner across the finish line. However, Matt was the highest returning finisher from last year's state championship team, so for him it was return to form.
I have had the privilege of watching these young boys from Reno High race for many years, and yesterday's race is definitely not an indication of their true athletic ability. They are absolutely much better than they performed Saturday.
Chris Clauson of Wooster was also no surprise to any of the Northern coaches after his dominant win last week, finishing first. He is a reminder to watch out for those sleepers. They slowly move throughout the season, and then: boom--they explode to the front at the end and win the races! It was also not a surprise to see that Patrick Swick of Chaparral, after his stellar freshmen track season last spring, would be the one to challenge Chris Clauson. It may have been a surprise to some coaches that Josh Corder of Carson finished third--even though he has finished in the top five all season--but it was no surprise to his coaches. Josh Corder was one of Idaho's best runners as a sophomore before he moved to Carson City. Josh and the Carson City coaches knew he had yet to race to his true ability. Josh's performance was no fluke; he will remain one of the dominant runners in Nevada. This track season should be very exciting in the distance events with all these awesome young men.
In the girls races it was not surprising that Christa Avena of Bishop Gorman captured her first state championship. After all she placed 2nd in both the 3200 and 1600 at the state championships her freshman year. Phil Lawton predicted that Christa Avena and Natasha Wicks were the girls to beat from the South, and they were the South's top two finishers. Nor was it surprising that Collier Lawrence, Reno, would be one of the top girls to beat. She had a fabulous season and came into the state championship race undefeated in Northern Nevada. Collier has run tough and aggressively in every race, and she did so again Saturday. Collier goes out to win and anyone that beats her better have the same mentality. Both girls, Christa and Collier, deserve much credit for their determination. I know Collier was disappointed after her race, but she had nothing to be ashamed of, as she gave it everything she had, and that makes her a winner in every sense of the word. Congratulations to both girls for not only racing well, but also making the race exciting up to the very end.
The only big surprise in the girls 4A race came from the performance of defending state champion Shanna Sparks. Shanna ran one minute and 13 seconds slower then the previous week. Her time alone gives a clear picture on how far she was off mentally and physically Saturday. As every runner and coach who has been around for a while knows, even the best of runners will bomb occasionally, or even in for a full season or year. However, most of the time they come back, and when they do watch out. I know my daughter well. Shanna will be back, and when she is it will be with a vengeance! She may be down, but she most definitely is not out.
Team wise there was really no surprises in the girls 4A race, at least for me. I predicted that the Carson girls team would win state before the racing season began. What impresses me the most is that Carson won state in spite of four of their top five running slower than last week. Shanna's one minute and 13 second difference really hurt their overall time. However, to win state while not running their best shows the strength and depth of this team. I also predicted that Reno would finish second, followed by Green Valley and then Centennial. Reno girls overall ran well. Collier Lawrence raced up to her usual awesome ability, and Karen DeMartini did what she always does - pull out her best race of the season for the most important race. Michelle Glenn and Lisa DeMartini also ran well. However, Reno lacks numbers, and that hurt them. Katie McGrath who has been their second runner all season had her worse day of the season. In spite of that they hung in there for second place. This also proves the strength of their team. Penny Burke, their sixth runner really stepped it up Saturday for her team. Overall, none of the top four teams ran to their best ability. Reno came the closest with only one of their runners out.
These four teams, along with Faith Lutheran and Lowry, have brought Nevada girls into the national ranks. It is wonderful to see Nevada join the elite teams in high school performances.
However, in spite of predictions being fulfilled there were numerous upsets and surprises individually among the top teams. I will hit on these in the order the teams placed as not to appear favoring the North over the South. As I mentioned earlier Shanna Sparks, Junior, Carson's three time state champion in track and cross country was not only not in the hunt for defending her state championship, but did not even finish as Carson's number one runner. Katie McGrath, Junior, who has consistently been Reno's number two runner all season ended up not finishing the race. Emily Eskin, Junior, Green Valley's number one runner and two-time Sunrise Champion was also never in contention with the top girls. Meghan Mathews, sophomore, Centennial's number one runner and 2000 state runner up in cross country finished 28th. What happened to these girls? I heard that question asked many times Saturday. Well, what did happen? It is impossible to know what exactly happened to all these girls on this day, because there are many reasons and many things that can cause any athlete to have an off day on any given day. The Reno's boy's team is proof of that. However, there is a big difference in the physical development between what happens to an adolescent male verses the adolescent female, especially when it comes to the endurance and strength sports, such as cross country running.
I would like to take the time to address this very important issue. I am going to try to explain and hopefully help other young women in understanding the sometimes-difficult part of a changing body. I am only going to use Shanna as an example since I am not the coach or mother of those other young women I mentioned. I do not feel it is my right to comment on what may or may not have been factors for them Saturday, as I am not personally involved with any of them. However, I do believe that some of the factors I will mention in regards to Shanna will hit home for not only them, but others as well. In writing this section my only desire is to give light and hope to young ladies and their parents who do not understand what happened to their pre-young women superstar.
Shanna had run undefeated in cross country in Nevada for five years, sixth through tenth grade. Her one and only loss was to Abby Miller, Nevada's most winning runner ever, her freshmen year. That alone is tremendous pressure for a young athlete to handle. Every time she stepped on the starting line everyone expected her to win. She could never have a bad day or even a sub-par day. She was always expected to win, win, win! Getting to the top is fun, exciting and challenging. Staying at the top is stressful, challenging, and not always a whole lot of fun, especially for young athletes. We expect more out of them than we do ourselves sometimes, if not most of the time. Once an athlete has made a name for himself/herself high expectations come from their coaches, teammates, friends, family, and most of all themselves. That is not a bad thing for the most part. In fact, it can be a very good thing if it is handled properly. The coach and parents must always make sure that the athlete feels valued not for his or her wins, but for his or her effort. And if they see you value less gifted runners, who work equally as hard as the more successful athlete, they will know that it is them you cherish, not their success. Everyone feels bad for the hard working, less gifted athlete who gets no recognition, but we forget about the pressure the successful young elite runner has to deal with. Both ends of the spectrum have psychological issues, and neither one should be ignored. I realize that not all athletes will have to deal with the above situation that Shanna has dealt with for the past five years, but to some degree every top athlete has had to deal with those same issues - the pressure of staying at the top, whether in their team, their region, whatever. Being king of the mountain is exhausting at best. Just ask any kid who has ever played that game. Everybody is always after you. There is no rest for number one, and much is always expected of them. Let's not forget to be sympathetic and understanding to the pressures the top runners face. It is human nature to delight in someone being taken down from the top, but let us remember if you or if one of your athletes is so lucky to be at the top at sometime in their athletic career it is a difficult and lonely place at times.
I am now going to address an issue that has and will effect 90% of most female athletes. The changing body - entering into womanhood. Shanna has grown almost five inches and has gained 20 pounds in a year and a half. This is a tremendous burden for a young female athlete to deal with. It not only affects them physically, but psychologically as well. Entering into womanhood is a wonderful thing unless you are an endurance runner. At least that is what most uneducated coaches, parents and, worst of all, young female athletes think. That is why eating disorders are out of hand in young female athletes. They come under the assumption that if they stay super skinny, like they were in childhood, they will stay at their peak performance level. However, that mentality has sometimes deadly consequences. And at best it will shorten an athlete's running career. All of us have examples of that in our own community. Eating disorders to stay childlike in body will not only hurt the athlete's performance in the long run; it can end it for them. We as coaches must be educated in this very important matter, and then be on top of it at all times.
The fact is that distance running is purely an aerobic sport, and young pre-pubertal girls are purely aerobic animals at a pre-adolescent age. Their bodies, those of runners, are made for long distance running at this age. They are lean, long legged, and small hipped; their heart and lungs are the biggest part of them, physically speaking. In other words, their organs are adult size, but they are not. That gives young females a big advantage over their older counterparts. This gives young female athletes the turbo in their engines. Not only do young women lose that advantage, you also have to add in the estrogen factor, the hormone that makes a woman soft, instead of physically stronger like the male athlete. It can sometimes take up to three years before a young women will reach her physical maturity - fill out completely. That means a two to three year development period for her physically. At that point you are no longer an aerobic animal that once beat a lot of boys, you now have a struggling young women who doesn't understand or know what has happened to her. She gets discouraged and loses heart and confidence at a rapid rate, which leads many to dropping out of this wonderful sport before they truly realize their full potential. However, there is light at the end of the tunnel for those who persevere and have the patience to not give up during the couple of years it may take to adjust to their new body. If an elite young female athlete's body does not change too drastically she will return to top form. She may no longer have the advantages she had as a young girl, but she gains different advantages she did not have at an early age. She gains anaerobic strength, the ability to run strong without oxygen. She gains muscular strength, she gains speed endurance, and most of all she who perseveres gains mental strength. These new found strengths enable the young adult female athlete to train at a higher level, and this all leads to a higher level of success. The keys are perseverance and patience. Don't lose heart because you have a few seasons where nothing seems to go right, and running no longer comes as easy to you as it once did. There will be a time again in your life if you don't give up on yourself where running will once again bring joy into your life instead of frustration and heartache.
I pray this article reaches and helps young women to understand that there is light at the end of the tunnel to those who have the patience and wisdom to hold on through the tough times.
I coach boy's and girl's cross country at Silver Creek High School in Sellersburg, Indiana. (about 10 miles north of Louisville, Kentucky) I have seen what you have described happen to many girls over the years. It has happened to girls on our team. I would like to copy your article and give it to parents of girls on my teams with your permission. Next year I will be getting a very talented 8th grade girl that just went through an undefeated season. She is about 4'10 and weighs about 75 pounds. She ran the 3K in 11:19 in cross country and she can ran a 5:35 mile last season. I especially want to make sure her mother reads this story. Coaching cross country has been a fantastic experience for me. But the lows of not meeting expectation can really be frustrating and depressing. We just went through a season with our boys team where we just never ran to our expectations. It has me looking for answers and questioning everything that I do. Thanks again for posting the wonderful article and I would love to know of any other resources you could provide or guide me towards. Thanks Al Eckert Silver Creek High School Varsity Boys and Girls Cross Country Coach
Ms. Sparks, I am usually one who remains silent when it comes to posting messages online or reacting to something I've read, but upon reading your article on dyestat.com, I felt compelled to thank you for spreading your knowledge on the phenomenon that commonly affects young female distance runners; that of physical maturation. When reading your words, I felt as though you were rehashing my high school running career which, like your daughter's, took a major hit my senior year after enduring a growth spurt. As a 5-foot 5, 100 pound junior I handily won the Maryland State Championship in 1996, only to turn around the next fall and--facing scrutiny unparalleled to any kind of attention I've ever dealt with in my life--suffered terrible mental and physical anguish after performing at sub-par levels my senior year. Blaming myself for what I deemed "horrific" performances, my self esteem nose-dived, I became depressed, and I developed a stress-induced kidney infection which caused me to black out at my county and regional meets. I insisted on running my state championship despite pleads from my doctor, coach, and parents, only to plummet to 55th place (after leading the first half of the race) due to my weakened physical and mental state. While many--myself included--contributed my plunge to burnout, what wasn't realized was the fact that from my freshman year to my senior year, I had grown nearly 7 inches (believe it or not) and gained at least 20 pounds. In the year between my junior and senior year alone, I boosted three inches. Still a twig at 17, I had not yet adjusted to my "new" body and upon reading your article, I know for sure that it was the obstacle of just that which kept me away not only from back-to-back titles, but from true peace-of-mind my senior year. Now 22 and fresh out of college (where I did continue running at a division one level), I hardly think about that rough time in my life, but your article was almost chilling in regards to how much it related to me. I only wish I had read your wise words back in November of '98. Best of luck to your daughter, and please tell her to hang in there. Based on her past performances, I'm sure she will again enjoy running success. Thanks again, Sarah thank you, thank you, thank you. I am the mother of a female athlete who was 4-1, 90 lbs her freshman year. Needless to say, she is now a 5-8 118 pound senior. She went from being a state champion her sophomore to not qualifiying for the state meet her junior year. The expectations and pressures were horrendous!!! thankfully (after some injuries) she seems to have grown into her body and just had a huge (41 second) PR in cross country and is signing a letter of intent this week to attend a university that has a nationally ranked track and cross country program. Tell your daughter to hang in there, there is light at the end of the tunnel. This letter addressed to John Dye of DyeStat... John, This article had been crying tears of joy. My daughter too, had a horrible SR. year, 2000, the year she was supposed to lead her team to a New England title in cross country. She too grew 5-6 inches, gained weight and lost confidence. A rush to succeed brought on stress fractures and bulimia. 2000-2001 scholastic year was the toughest of our lives, but we are surviving. She is now at school in Boston, and has begun running for the track team. As w/ Amber Trotter, there have been setbacks, but she is happy for the first time in many months. This was a BRAVE and well written article! I would love to send Penny an email thank you. Do you have her address or could you fwd an email for me?
Hugh Walker
Groton, CT. Fitch High School 3 time defending State Open XC champions Thank you for the thoughtful article. I don't think there is any question that most young ladies have the perseverance to stay with their sport if the adults would have the compassion to let them. Best wishes and keep up the good work, Marty Hill Brebeuf Jesuit Prep Indianapolis, Indiana
Dear Penny; The article you wrote regarding your daughter Shanna was outstanding. I'm sure it took a great deal of courage to write this article regarding a subject infrequently discussed at cross country team meeting across the country. Further, discussing this subject when your own daughter is the main character must have been difficult. I give you a great deal of credit. Our girls cross country team at Columbia High School (NY) will be taking your lead by implementing a discussion and/or awareness session with the girls during the upcoming off-season ( if you want to call running indoor track the off-season) during team meetings and strategy sessions. The girls on this team are mostly young (1-7th, 3-8th, 2-9th, 1-12th grader) and talented (currently ranked #17US in the Harrier Poll). Further, this will give the girls a chance to become more aware of the highest highs and the lowest lows that can occur during the course of a female runners career. Hopefully, the girls will become more aware of the changes they may encounter and develop ways to cope with these potential changes. We will be distributing your article to the girls. Thanks for your insights. Good luck to you daughter Shanna from the girls and coaches at Columbia HS and the parents. Thanks, Jeffry Hines Columbia HS (NY) Girls Cross Country-Parent
Phil's Interview With Larry Burgess
Coach Larry Burgess is arguably the dean of cross country and track coaches in Nevada, certainly in southern Nevada. He has been the Head Cross Country Coach at Basic H.S. since 1979 and in that time has led the Wolves to five state championships and five runner-up on finishes. His teams have won 14 Regional (Zone) Championships since 1984. Equally impressive, his boys have qualified for state as a team for 19 consecutive years while the Basic girls teams have made 16 trips to state in those same 19 years. To put that in perspective, this past fall he was the only Sunrise coach to qualify both of his teams for state. Coach Burgess was one of the founders of the Southern Nevada Track and Cross Country Coaches Association and has been President (including being current president) three times. I have known Coach Burgess for over 20 years and consider him a friend, a colleague, and a terrific coach. No one is more dedicated to his sport. What follows is a remarkably insightful interview filled with wisdom and sound advice.
Background nvtrackstats: Tell us a little bit about your coaching background.
This past fall was the beginning of my 37th year as a high school coach. I was a teacher and coach in Illinois for 12 years before moving to Nevada in the fall of 1977. My wife and I moved to the Las Vegas area to escape from the cold Midwest winters. We just wanted a change. Upon arriving in Las Vegas, I spent one year teaching at Jim Bridger Junior High School. I spent my first year helping coach cross country and track at Valley High School. Richard Greene was the cross country coach and Overton Curtis was the head track coach. Both were strong coaches. In the fall of 1978 I moved to Basic High School to coach track; the following fall, I took the cross country job. I've been there ever since. I've had opportunities to leave, to coach at other schools, but for one reason or another, I've stayed at Basic. My guess is that I truly "bleed silver & blue."
nvtrackstats: What about your previous experience coaching in Illinois?
I wouldn't trade my Illinois roots for anything. The twelve years I spent coaching in Illinois shaped me as a teacher and coach. I grew up there. I have relatives and friends back there and I still follow very closely what goes on in the Prairie State. I've always considered Illinois one of the top three or four track/cross country states.
nvtrackstats: Is it true that you left Illinois to get away from Joe Newton and his York High School program!?
Joe would get a "kick" out of that question! No, not really. However, when you coach cross country in Illinois, you know that because of the presence of York High School, there's less room at the top of the heap. Joe Newton has had a tremendous influence on cross country and track in Illinois. He's an amazing man. He's 73 years young and still coaching. In my opinion, his 21 state titles in cross country will never be matched by another Illinois school. He and his kids will be shooting for #22 next fall. I won't bet against them achieving it.
nvtrackstats: Can you tell us a Joe Newton story?
I have a number of Joe Newton stories, but basically, Joe's ability to motivate his kids is what all those stories are about. That's the main reason for his unbelievable success. He never misses even the smallest opportunity to get a coaching point across to one of his athletes. No one prepares his kids better than Joe. On the day of the Illinois State Meet, all that preparation is very evident.
Current Cross Country Comments
nvtrackstats: I know for a fact that you keep up with the college running scene better than most high school coaches do. Did you make it back to this year's NCAA Meet?
Yes, I did. One of the things that I do every year is travel to the NCAA Division I Cross Country Meet. This has sort of become a tradition for me and a close friend of mine. We started going to the meet some ten or twelve years ago and we enjoyed it so much that we have made it an annual pilgrimage. Coming off a long cross country season, (summer training and fall competition) the trip serves as my down time. It helps me recharge my batteries. This year's meet at Furman (Greenville S.C.) was fantastic. To see Colorado and Stanford lock horns in the men's race (Colorado won 90-91 over Stanford) and BYU put on a clinic (all five counters in the top 25) with their "pack-running" in the women's race was something I will long remember. The crowd at Furman was estimated at between 8,000 & 10,000 people. If that won't get you pumped-up, nothing will!
nvtrackstats: You've made your point! Tell us a little bit about some of the athletes you have coached who have gone on to compete at the college level:
As a coach I've been lucky. I've had a number of kids go on and run at the next level. Two of my Illinois kids ended up as NCAA Division II All-Americans. Jim Skinner and Don Sparks both ran for Eastern Illinois, and both were fortunate enough to achieve All-American status. Jim Bailey and Dave Hoover, two more of my Illinois kids, ran at Arkansas State and were also successful. Jim ran 1:49 (800) and a 4:04 (mile) and Dave was an 8:50 steeple-chaser. Dave later ran a sub 2:20 marathon at Boston. Pat Hubbard, Amy Blackwell, Kenny Harman, Billy Jefferies, Rob Oslund, and Oliver Redig have been some of my Basic runners who have gone on to run at the college level. Amy ran for the University of Portland and Oliver is currently running at Oregon. Rob ran one year at Southern Utah and is currently on a mission for his church. He plans to continue running when he returns to school next fall. Amy is now running marathons. She qualified for and ran in the 2000 Olympic Marathon Trials. She got married this past spring and most people now know her as Amy Rodriguez. She is training now with the goal of qualifying for the 2004 Olympic Marathon Trials. Knowing Amy, I wouldn't bet against her making the qualifying standard again or even making the Olympic team. She's a "tough cookie." [Amy lives locally, is a teacher in the CCSD, and most recently won the 10K at the 2001 Turkey Trot.]
nvtrackstats: Talk about the transition from high school running to college running.
First of all, only about 3% of the high school runners in the United States go on and run at the next level. I always tell my kids who plan to go on and run at the next level that they must understand a few things. To a certain extent, they are starting over. They're freshman again. At least in the beginning, they're probably going to be the low man on the totem pole on their college team. They won't get as much attention or "hands on" coaching at the college level as they received at the high school level. That's just the way it is. The work-outs will be tougher and more quantity and quality will make up their daily/weekly training program. Instead of 5K races, as in high school, they will be racing longer distances (8K & 10k for the Boys and 6k for the Girls) in college.. They must also spend more time studying than they probably ever did in high school and mother won't be there to pick-up after them. No one will be there to wipe their nose or pat them on the back. They will be faced with motivating themselves. It's a whole New World. But for those who give it a shot, it can be a very rewarding and wonderful experience.
nvtrackstats: Pat Hubbard was the last Nevada boy to qualify for the Foot Locker Nationals. That was back in 1988. What made Pat so special?
Of all the athletes that I have been lucky enough to have coached, Pat was the most talented. He was a natural and had certain qualities that a coach can not put into an athlete. It's there or it isn't. Coaching Pat, to a certain extent, was holding him back. He could literally run himself into the ground in both practice and competition. Making sure he didn't over-train and making sure he went into the major races rested was of up most importance. He also got lucky halfway through his junior year. Two teammates, Kenny Harman and Billy Jefferies, had improved enough to give Pat two good training partners. Pat's PR's of 9:07 (3200); 4:23 (1600); 4:02 (1500); 1:56 (800) 50.2 (400) and 15:07 (5K) could not have been achieved without Kenny and Billy pushing Pat in practice on a regular basis. The one regret that I have concerning Pat is that I did not put him in a quality 1600 meter race in shape and rested. He always doubled, running the 3200 or 800, in addition to the 1600. He never got a chance to run just the mile (1600) against high quality competition. I think he could have run some where between 4:10 - 4:15.
nvtrackstats: Why haven't more Nevada kids qualified for Foot Locker Nationals?
I don't think there's a quick or easy answer to that question. I believe it's a combination of things that have kept Nevada kids, particularly boys, from qualifying for FL Nationals. As you know, there have been 3-4 Nevada girls qualify for the "Big Dance." Abby Miller ran at FL Nationals three of her four year's in high school. First off, Nevada kids need to train on a year-around basis. Secondly, Nevada runners need to train with more intensity. What you achieved in training last season shouldn't be good enough for this season. Winning your Divisional or Regional meet for the more talented kids should be basically an intermediate goal. Setting long-range goals and be willing to "pay the price" is what moving to the next level is all about. I'm talking, of course, about the Nevada kids who may have the ability to qualify for FL Nationals. We need to keep in mind that most high school runners in the United States don't have the natural ability, even with the correct training, to qualify for FL Nationals. Every high school runner can, however, make his or her own "personal Foot Locker Team" in the sense that most of us seldom achieve anything close to what we're capable of achieving. Setting goals, working hard, staying healthy and becoming a true student of the sport are ways that all runners can achieve beyond their wildest dreams. I believe that most people are under-achievers. Society has programmed us that way. To achieve anything that allows one to stand above the crowd requires one to be a little different, a little driven. Many people, especially young people, don't wish to be thought of as different.
nvtrackstats: What changes would you make, if you could, about the way the high school cross country program is conducted in Nevada?
I have always felt that one of the biggest obstacles facing cross country, particularly in southern Nevada, is the heat. I would love to see the high school season extended as least one week. Two weeks would be even better. Running the NIAA State Cross Country Meet the 2nd or 3rd week in November would help a great deal. This past season, the heat did not dissipate until almost the start of the 2nd week of October. That left only about three weeks to really train the way a cross country runner needs to train. Of course, with three weeks left in the season, most coaches are starting to cut back on the training, not greatly increase it. I'm sure many of the northern Nevada schools would be against this proposal, but the change would greatly help the sport over-all. I would also be in favor of having two standard state meet courses, one in the North and one in the South. Most states have been doing this for years. Always running the state final meet on one of two courses would be great for the sport. No one would have a home course advantage, which now exists, and the concept would add a great deal of interest and tradition to the sport. Being able to compare teams and individuals from the past with teams and individuals of the present would be great.
Coaching Tips
nvtrackstats: What insights can you give readers concerning cross country that might help them as a coach or athlete?
That's a pretty tough question and the answer could be very lengthy, but I'll try to give an opinion or two while keeping it pretty short. First of all coaching is a labor of love. If you're coaching for the money, then you need to take a math class! You're lucky if you're getting paid minimum wage. You're never going to get rich. Coaching any sport, if done properly, is very demanding. To a certain extent, success in coaching is directly related to the amount of time the coach is willing to invest or the amount of time that one can invest. I don't know of any successful coach who does not put a great deal of time and effort into the sport(s) that he/she coaches. Since time is of great importance, a coach must also learn to work smart. Hard work alone will not insure success. Being organized; having a coaching/training philosophy to build upon; and having good over-all knowledge of the sport that you're coaching is very important. I've spent the last thirty plus year's reading, studying, attending clinics, and "picking-the-brain" of those coaches whom I have felt were the elite in the sports that I coach. Do I know it all? Absolutely not. I'm constantly learning new things. One must never stop learning. Of course, being knowledgeable; being organized; working hard; and working smart are only half of the equation. The other half of the equation is having the ability/knack to work with people. All the knowledge in the world is useless unless a coach can convince his athletes to "buy-in" to what he or she is teaching. Any advice I would give an athlete centers around listen to your coach; work with a passion; become a student of the sport; set goals, both intermediate and long range; stay healthy; and above all be realistic and patient. Last but not least, don't forget to have fun.
nvtrackstats: How are you able to get your athletes to train over the summer, and what kind of summer training program do you recommend?
Our summer training is almost to the point where it's a tradition. We always start our training the Monday after the 4th of July. We meet as a group; normally at 6:30 am in order to "beat the summer heat." We meet five days a week (Monday-Friday) and try to be done by 8:00 am. The kids have responded well over the years and much of our seasonal success can be traced back to the summer work. We basically run over-distance; starting with 25-30 minutes a day and working up to 60-70 minutes a session. I'm talking about the varsity kids, of course. New kids and younger kids run a scaled-down version of what the varsity does. We do no interval/speed work during the summer and the emphasis is on building a base. Any recommendation that I would make to a high school athlete would center around building a base; slowly increasing your mileage a little from week to week; and having fun while doing it. If your team does not meet as a group during the summer, and your coach is not available for advice, recruit a few of your teammates and make plans to meet three or four days a week. Work, but have fun doing it.
nvtrackstats: Peaking runners to run their best at the end of the season is as much an art as it is a science. How have you been able to get your runners to peak for the important races such as Region and State?
I'm not sure I can sum it up in a short paragraph, but I'll try. Most coaches and athletes would probably call me "extremely rigid" when it comes to running work-outs. I demand that my athletes run the daily workout exactly as I have it set-up. I don't allow much room for change. I don't allow my athletes to compete with one another in practice (NO RACING!) and I make every attempt to "coach-by-the-eye." I'm always making small changes within the workout itself and I pull athletes in and out of the workout based on "how they look and how they're moving," Most everything we do is centered on the team approach. We put a lot of emphasis upon group running and each athlete within a group is required to lead certain parts of the work-out. Also, we don'y run as many races as some schools do. The "purest form of speed work is racing." Excessive racing brings the athletes along too quickly and often leads to running too fast too soon. Our approach is a long gradual build-up that is based on staying healthy and improving from week to week. We also make every attempt to keep our people injury free. An injured athlete can not run his/her best race. If in doubt, in terms of working or resting, always rest the athlete. Physically and psychologically we point to the end of the season. We tell them that everything we do during the season is to prepare us for the last three weeks of the season.
nvtrackstats: How do you deal with the extreme heat that your runners must face during both the summer training sessions and the actual fall competitive season?
I mentioned earlier that the heat factor is our most serious problem in terms of training and racing in southern Nevada. An athlete must stay hydrated in order to recover from one training session to the next. This sounds a lot easier than it really is. Research tells us that thirst is a poor indicator of dehydration. If athletes waits until they are thirsty before they drink liquids, they have waited too long. Once an athlete becomes slightly dehydrated, it takes 24-36 hours of consist liquid intake to get the system back to normal. I constantly harp to my kids concerning their liquid intake. We take water-breaks several times during practice, and they are encouraged to drink water throughout the day at school. Most teachers allow them to carry a water bottle with them and drink as they need it. You will notice, I said water, not Gatorade or some other replacement drink. I'm convinced that the body can handle water quicker that the various replacement drinks on the market, including Gatorade. Dehydration has a way of sneaking up on a runner. They may feel just fine after today's workout but find that they're dehydrated by the time of tomorrow's workout. A few signs of dehydration are: (1) Feeling tired and not fully recovered from yesterday's workout. (2) Upset stomach and loss of appetite (3) Touch of diarrhea (4) Slight headache (5) Heavy legs; sore knees, ankles, or hips (6) Loss of focus; (7)) Not sleeping well; waking up not feeling fresh.
nvtrackstats: The subject of cross country training is a complicated one. Can you offer any insights into what training methods you have found most successful?
I truly believe that there are "many roads to Rome." Whatever training program a coach chooses to use with his/her team depends largely on his/her coaching knowledge and experience. I've changed my approach over the years. During my Illinois tenure I ran a program that stressed high mileage . Most of my kids were running 55-75 miles a week and one of my athletes consistently ran 80-90 miles a week. Now, that's a lot of miles for a high school kid. Probably too much! Were we successful? Yes, we were. Did we have some injuries? Yes we did. Part of the reason for the high mileage was the fact that most of the better programs in the state were also running high mileage. It was a case of "keeping up with the competition." Today, I stress a medium mileage program with more emphasis on quality over quantity. We do a number of things in an attempt to simulate the race itself. Most of the repetition and interval work that we do is at race pace or faster. We run a lot of step-down work such as 1600-1200-800-400 at race pace or faster. We keep the rest interval very short and as we come down the scale, we attempt to pick up the speed. In other words, we might run the 1600 at 5:10 per mile pace; the 1200 at 5:00 per mile pace; the 800 at 4:50 per mile pace; and the 400 at 4:40 per mile pace. This type of work really forces the athlete to "get on the muscle." We also run endless relays pairing up our # 1 runner with our # 8 runner; our # 2 runner with our # 7 runner; and so forth. We normally use this set-up to run a 5 or 6 mile relay on the track. If the distance chosen is 6 miles, then each partner runs 12 x 400 as an endless relay. A baton is used and the rest interval is determined by how long it takes a runner to run his 400 before handing off the baton to his partner. By timing the total relay and dividing by the number of quarters run, the average time of each quarter is determined. There are a number of other things that we do, but time and space prohibits me from talking about them.
nvtrackstats: Do you feel that there is a difference in coaching boys and girls? Do you train your male and female athletes differently?
I do think there are slight differences between coaching boys and girls, but many times the differences are based on individual differences between athletes and not gender differences. Our girls run the same work-outs as the boys. We do, however, scale the workouts down in terms of quantity and quality. The philosophy is the same. One of the things that helped Amy Blackwell move to the next level was when she started training certain days with some of the boys. It made the boys get in gear and probably helped them as much as it helped Amy.
nvtrackstats: A final question. What can be done to attract more and better coaches to our sport? And what success has SNTCCA "our local association" had in getting coaches to attend clinics, both locally and out- of- state?
There are a number of things that can be done to attract better coaches to cross country and track. The school district could help a great deal if they made a concerted effort to recruit the teacher-coach and not just a teacher who will fill a teaching and coaching slot despite the fact that they have no coaching/athletic background. The school district needs to pay their coaches better. The district needs to treat their coaches as valuable employees. The athletic budget for all sports should be increased. This would allow coaches to concentrate more on working with their athletes and less time on fund raising. Our local coaching association (SNTCCA) has not been very successful in encouraging our track and cross country coaches to attend local and out-of-state clinics. SNTCCA needs to host at least one track/cross country clinic a year in Las Vegas. We need to bring in outstanding coaches as speakers and also utilize many of our local coaches who have developed strong programs or outstanding individuals. As the current president of SNTCCA, I can tell you that the clinic concept has been discussed many times. We just need to get off our butt and do it.
Thank you for the opportunity to talk about distance running/cross country. It's a topic I never get tired of talking about!
December 10, 2001 Reno High Sophomore
Jonathan Cardenas was undefeated in Northern Nevada for most of the 2001 season. However, towards the end he developed a minor Achilles’ problem and finished his sophomore season in a disappointing fashion. Jonathan was able to come back with some impressive races, culminating in the USA Track & Field Junior Olympic Cross-Country Nationals in Lincoln, Nebraska, where he ended his cross-country season by winning the National Intermediate Boys Championship in a duel with Chaparral’s standout Patrick Swick.
Name: Jonathan Cardenas Born: Reno, Nevada Current Residence: Reno, Nevada High School: Reno High Grade: 10th Coach: Bruce Susong Events: 1600; 3200; 5000; Cross Country Career Highlights: Intermediate Boys USATF J.O. XC National Championship - 2001Parents: Eduardo & Rossy Cardenas Siblings: Jordan & Ingrid Cardenas
Your race at nationals was virtually a two-man race between you and Patrick Swick. Did you ever doubt that you would be able to hold him off and win the national championship? I knew that Patrick was a really good runner and when I realized he had a response to every move that I made in the race I did not doubt myself, but I knew that if I wanted to win I would have to run the best race of my life.
What part of the race was the toughest for you? I would have to say that the toughest part of the race was definitely the last mile because Patrick and I had been pushing the pace the whole way and by that time we were both exausted.
Did you ever doubt yourself in your race, and if so how did you push pass those doubts? Before the race I was confident that I was ready to have the race of my life; it wasn’t until during the warm-up that I realized how hard it would be to win and that is when I started to doubt myself a little bit. Once I got on the starting line I cleared all of the previous thoughts that I had and started to focus on what I would have to do to win.
What was your strategy going into the race? My strategy was pretty simple, I had told Bruce that I would take the lead early in the race and slowly start to make the pace a little faster so that I could spread the pack out. At the 3K. mark I was going through in a spurt so that I could start to separate myself from everyone else. If there was still someone with me after I had made my move then I would make one final move at the hill with 800 meters left.
The USATF Junior Olympic Nationals is of course not at the level that Foot Locker Nationals are, but I believe your race was every bit as tough competitively in the mental and physical sense as Foot Locker, and of course the Lincoln course is a much tougher course – timewise. I also do not believe Tim Moore or Bobby Lockhart put any more effort into their race then you and Patrick put into your race. How did you prepare yourself to race at the level you and Patrick raced at? I tried to prepare myself for that race in every way possible. I was doing double work-outs and I would lift weights before school. I was also doing 50 to 60 miles a week. I tried to have the healthiest diet that I could so that I was physically ready to race at my best in nationals.
How do you feel about what you have accomplished this cross-country season? I am very happy with the performance that I had at nationals, but at the same time I am disappointed that I could not perform to the best of my ability at the region and state meet because of my pulled Achilles’ tendon.
Summarize the highs and lows of this year’s cross-country season. I think that I was having a great season until the injury at the end of the high school season. Once my Achilles healed I was stronger than ever and came back faster than before. Nationals was definitely the high point of my season, but regionals and state are my low points.
I know you were disappointed and frustrated at the end of your high school cross country season this year, so how did you overcome those disappointments and frustrations to win nationals? Well there was a lot of talk that I was only a good runner during the season but that at the really big meets I would fold under pressure and that I would always be that way. So I was determined to prove everyone wrong by beating all of the competitors that I race against at state in footlocker west and nationals.
What did you learn from this past season? And will you do anything differently for track or next cross country season? I learned many valuable lessons this season, for instance I learned that I should only concentrate on running and school during the season and not be distracted by anything else. Yes, I will try to focus more on track and cross country, I will also start working out at a higher intensity.
You come from an elite running family – mother, aunts, uncles, cousins. Does that fact put added pressure on you to perform well? No, not really, it inspires me more than it put pressure on me. I like having a lot of people around me know what I’m doing, and have gone through almost anything a runner can go through support me and tell me how to become a better athlete.
Coming from not only an elite running family, you also come from a very close and supportive family – parents, siblings, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc. How important do you think family support is for competitive athletes? I think that it is very important for athletes because if it wasn’t for all the support that my family; coach; and friends gave me at nationals, I think it would been a lot harder for me to win.
Was it hard on you having your uncle – Domingo Tibaduiza coach your rivals, Galena High School? Not at all, I think it made it very interesting and fun at the same time.
What are your goals going into track season? I want to stay healthy all season and run to the best of my ability at State in the mile and two mile.
What events will you focus on this track season? I will focus on the mile and two mile this season.
What is your favorite event in track? The 2 mile because it is mixture of endurance, speed, and “a lot of guts”.
Do you plan on running after high school? Yes! I would like to go to a good college on a Scholarship.
What level would you like to take your running to? I would like to take my running to the highest level possible.
Do you have a college or a couple of colleges you are interested in? I would like to go to Colorado, Stanford or Oregon University.
What would you like to major in, in college? Physical therapy.
What do you do for fun outside of running? Play Basketball, go to movies and hang out with friends.
Have you competed in any other sports besides running? No.
If you don’t mind I would now like to ask you questions that are not related to running in order for our readers to get to know you from a more personal side.
What are your favorite hobbies? Running, listening music and SLEEPING.
What do you do for relaxation? Listen to music.
Where is your favorite place to hang out at? The Gym.
What is your favorite movie? Running Brave.
What kind of music do you like to listen to? Rap, R&B, some Hip-Hop.
Who is your favorite singer? 2-pac
Who is your favorite music group? I don’t have a preference.
What is your favorite book? Prefontaine.
What is your favorite food? Italian.
What restaurant is your favorite? Oliver Garden.
Who is your favorite movie star – female Jennifer Lopez & male? Chris Tucker
Who do you admire most in the world? Jesus, my parents, and my uncle Domingo Tibaduiza
I would like to end by telling you how much I admire your humble and gracious attitude that you continue to have in spite of all your success. I have seen so many athletes who have had a little success, and it goes right to their heads. How do you keep that from happening to you? By believing in my principals and values.
What advice would you give to other runners who have not reached your level, and even those who have? No matter what downfalls you may encounter, never give up!
Congratulations Jonathan on a fantastic cross-country season, and good luck this track season.
Interview with 4A State Champ Christa Avena
She then went on to finish second in both the 1600 and 3200 at the 2001 4A State Track Meet. This fall as a sophomore she was second at the Regional, finishing behind Cimarron-Memorial's Natasha Wicks, but she came back a week later to win her first state cross country championship. I asked Christa to talk about her past, present, and future. Past
nvtrackstats: Did your parents compete in sports? Christa: In high school my mother ran track in her freshman year. She usually placed second or third. My dad played basketball, football, and baseball as a kid. nvtrackstats: When you start competing in sports? Christa: I have competed in soccer ever since I was five years old. I ran in grade school a couple times but never seriously competed until my freshmen year. nvtrackstats: What got you started with running track and cross country? Christa: My soccer coach made us run a lot and I was always the first one on my team. Then my sister ran at a school race and placed first, so I decided that I would run for BGHS. nvtrackstats: As a state champion, you're following in the heels of Nevada's four-time state champion Abby Miller. Did you know Abby Miller before you started running at Bishop Gorman and were you aware of her success? Christa: I had heard Abby Miller's name a few times as a freshman. I learned more about her success as a runner in the beginning of this year. nvtrackstats: Tell us a little about your success on the track last spring. What kind of training did you do last year between cross country and track season? Christa: I played high school soccer and ran on my own a little.
Present
nvtrackstats: Did finishing second at State in track in the two distance races motivate you to focus more on your running over the summer to get ready for cross country? Christa: My focus over the summer was really making ODP [Olympic Development Program] for soccer. nvtrackstats: There has been a lot said, on this web site and elsewhere, about club soccer. Some coaches "both soccer and cross country coaches"have discouraged their athletes from doing both in the same season and put pressure on them to choose one sport or the other. How do you feel about it? Christa: My soccer coach supported me throughout the cross-country season. I think that it is wrong that coaches don't support their athletes that want to play more than one sport. nvtrackstats: Tell us a bit about the running camp you attended over the summer. And who or what inspired you to attend a summer running camp? Christa: The running camp was a lot of fun and hard work. My next-door-neighbor, Paula Maffey, went to the camp last summer and told me that it was a lot of fun. At first I didn't want to go because I wouldn't know anybody there. Then I had an idea to invite Nikki Peterson to go with me, and she said yes, so I went. [Comment: There's a testimonial to running camps if there ever was one! Both Nikki and Christa were individual State champions this fall.] nvtrackstats: What was your reaction at the start of the cross country season when you found out that Bishop Gorman didn't even a cross country coach? Did you even consider not running this past fall but, instead, concentrating on club soccer? Christa: I knew I was going to run, and I figured that BGHS would find someone to take over. nvtrackstats: What impact has Coach LaHodny and the other Gorman coaches had on your running as far as training this year compared to last year? Christa: I loved my coach last year, but I feel that the coaches this year had a lot more experience. nvtrackstats: How much of your success this past cross country season do you attribute to your teammates? And are there other runners in town, friendly rivals, which have helped you get where you are in terms of your success? Christa: I attribute all of my success to my teammates and all my competition, especially Nikki Peterson, Natasha Wicks, and Megan Mathews. nvtrackstats: This past season you were somewhat overshadowed by other runners like Nikki Peterson of Faith Lutheran and the runners from Green Valley and Centennial, due to success of their teams. Did you feel a measure of payback by winning the race at state and having the fastest time of the day? Christa: No, I don't run for revenge, but for the challenge. nvtrackstats: After you finished second at the regional championships, losing for the second time this year to Natasha, what was your strategy for beating Natasha and winning at State? Christa: My strategy was to try to take the lead from the start and set the pace. nvtrackstats: Let's talk about the State Meet in Reno this year. Many of the girls from southern Nevada had trouble running at altitude and on the hilly course at Rancho San Rafael Park but not you, why? Do you like running hills? Did you feel the effects of running at a higher altitude? Christa: I think that a lot of people had psyched themselves out by worrying about the altitude. I didn't even feel any effects. I think it was because I wasn't even thinking about it, all I was thinking about was the race. I had also run at Mt. Charleston for soccer, which might have given me an advantage. I hate running hills; they are the worst part of a cross-country race. nvtrackstats: In that race, at State, you took the lead with a bold breakaway at the top of the hill just before the 1K mark. Was that strategy or did it just happen? Tell us a little about the race as it unfolded for you. When did you feel you had the race won? Christa: Yes, that was my strategy. Before the race I told my coach that I was just going to take the lead from the beginning. Well I thought I had it won after the first mile because nobody was around me and I still felt great. But when [Reno's Collier] Lawrence caught up to me in the last mile I didn't know what was going to happen. nvtrackstats: Now that you're a state champ, what's next? What do you plan to do between now and track season? Christa: My plans are to place well at Footlocker and to make the varsity soccer team. nvtrackstats: Last year at Footlocker, you finished third in the freshman race. How are your plans for Footlocker this year? Christa: I am running in the seeded race so I want to try to make it in at least the top 15. nvtrackstats: How do you feel about the course at Mt. SAC. How many times have you run that course? Christa: Mt. Sac is a fun course, except when you are running uphill! I have only run that course two times. nvtrackstats: Do you have any brothers or sisters? Do they run? Christa: I have a brother and a sister. They are both very good runners. [Comment: Sister Katie enters Bishop Gorman as a 9th grader next fall.] nvtrackstats: What are your favorite academic subjects in high school? and you active in any clubs or activities at school besides sports? Christa: My favorite subjects are math and biology. I'm not active in any clubs or activities at school, but outside of school I'm active in the Assistance Ledge, [a charitable service organization]. nvtrackstats: What other activities do you like besides running and soccer, just for fun? Christa: I like to shoot some hoops in the backyard. In the summer I like to water-ski at the lake and in the winter I like to ski and snowboard. nvtrackstats: You have stayed remarkably healthy as an athlete, never getting injured and missing a race or even a practice. Is it just luck or do you make a conscious effort to eat right any train smart? Christa: It's a combination of eating right, training smart, and a lot of luck!!
Future
nvtrackstats: What are your goals for track next spring? Do you plan to focus on the two distance events, the 1600 and 3200? Christa: Yes I plan to concentrate on the 1600 and 3200, but I would also like to run the 800 and 400. nvtrackstats: Do you prefer cross country to track? Why or why not? Christa: Track, because a lot more people at my school participate and it is a lot of fun. nvtrackstats: College is a long ways away, you're only a sophomore, but have you any thoughts about where you might like to go to college? And whether or not you would like to run competitively after high school? Christa: I'm not sure what collage I want to attend or what sport I want to do. nvtrackstats: Just a couple of final questions. Who are your role models? Is there any particular athlete, celebrity, or well-known individual that you admire and try to emulate? Christa: I admire Michelle Akers (a retired US National Team soccer player.) because of her determination and her never-give-up attitude. nvtrackstats: Whether you like it or not, you have now become a role model for others too, as an athlete and a runner. How do you feel about that? What advice can you offer to other girls just starting out as runners? Christa: I think it is very cool that people would look up to me. My advice to others is to always try your hardest and push yourself to do your best. nvtrackstats: Thanks for the interview, Christa. And good luck with your "running"and everything else.
Penny's Interview with 3A State Champ Kelsey Engstrom
Kelsey Engstrom, Winnemucca NV
I think my
dad might have run track. Have you participated in other sports besides running? Yes, I did
basketball for about four years and I finally had to stop because of running. I
also did soccer for about 4 or 5 years and I really enjoyed that. They both
graduated from Lowry High School, and my dad graduated from UNR and my mom If
possible I will. I just try
to tough it out and the only thing that keeps me going is when I call on God and
He just gets me through it. I think
that it is great! We both work very hard and I think we deserved it the most.
We also have
The Lowry girls had the fastest combined time at state, but the Carson girls holds the team combined timed record. Which team do you think is best? I don't
really want to choose one because I know that both teams have great potential & Paul
Walker he is my dream guy :) uh, I
really would just want to be me.
I have followed Nikki Peterson's running exploits ever since she started winning local road races while still in middle school. By the time she entered high school it was evident that she was something special. She was, and is! After two years of running cross country at Faith Lutheran she is still, amazingly, undefeated in the state of Nevada. She has two state individual titles to show for it and has led Faith Lutheran to two 2A state team titles. Her track achievements are equally impressive. As a freshman she copped four state individual titles (400-800-1600-3200) and led Faith Lutheran to a team state championship. After the state track meet she represented Nevada by running the 1500 meter run at the Great Southwest Classic in New Mexico and finished 4th, running 4:49.30. Nikki is presently training to run the 3200 at the Adidas Midwest Indoor Classic in Lincoln, Nebraska, in February and then begin her sophomore season of track at Faith Lutheran.
Nikki recently agreed to be interviewed by nvtrackstats. She answered a number of questions about herself relating to running. Her answers show her to be mature beyond her years when it comes to knowledge of her sport and an understanding of what it takes to be a successful competitive runner.
Coach Phil
nvtrackstats : Nikki, tell us how you got started running. Was running withthe Red Rock Racers your first competitive experience running road races and track events?
Nikki: Running with the Red Rock Racers was my first experience with racing. I met them all one day while practicing with my mom at Green Valley High School for my first meet ever, the Hershey's meet. This was back near the end of 5th grade. I started going out to run with them after that and cried for the first two weeks after every practice because it hurt so bad! I continued to run but was never really serious about it because I was too busy playing other sports like soccer, basketball, and volleyball. In seventh grade, I placed third in the nation in the cross country junior Olympics which was when I decided to drop volleyball and soccer. For the rest of my years in middle school I played basketball and ran with the Racers. I trained with the Red Rock Racers until the end of last track season.
nvtrackstats: How did you happen to choose Faith Lutheran for high school?
Nikki: There were several factors that helped me and my family choose Faith for my high school years. The main reason was the fact that Silverado was so crowded. We knew that if I went to a school where the teacher student ratio was less I would get a better education. Also, we felt that it would be good to get a Christian education while in high school.
nvtrackstats: When running as a freshman at Faith Lutheran your success was immediate. Was the transition to cross country running in high school that easy for you? How different was high school training from what you were doing with the Racers?
Nikki: The transition from middle school to high school was actually very difficult for me because I was used to running about 15-20 miles a week and only racing 8-10 times a season. When I got to Faith I still only ran about 20 miles a week but suddenly I was racing 18-20 times a season which was way too much for me because I didn't have a very good base. After my freshman cross country season, I realized that if I wanted to put out the times I was hoping for I would have to get serious and train more.
nvtrackstats: After winning an individual state championship in cross country as a freshman, you went on to have an unbelievable track season: winning four individual state titles and then placing fourth in the 1500 meter run at the Great Southwest Meet in Albuquerque. Was this the first time you had ever lost a major high school race on the track?
Nikki: Actually, Arcadia was the first major high school race that I'd lost in track. I got 13th in the 1600 m and 8th in the 3200 m.
nvtrackstats: You just do not like to lose! What is it that makes you so competitive, Nikki?
Nikki: I think what makes me so competitive is the fact that I love what I'm doing. There's nothing that can beat the feeling of crossing the finish line and knowing that you gave it your all!
nvtrackstats: Reason I asked that last question is because at the state meet last spring you had little opposition; you and your teammate Chaz LaHodny went 1-2 in the 400, 800, 1600, and 3200. Yet, despite having little competition you still set two 2A state meet records in the 8 and 16. Those times would have been competitive in the 4A races. Now the question: Do you feel that those four races at state, especially the three longer races, took too much out of you for the GSW meet the next week?
Nikki: I don't think the races at state took too much out of me for the GSW. I think what happened at Albuquerque is I went out and ran somebody else's race. The runners didn't pass me until the last 100 m which is when I usually pass them . nvtrackstats: Let's move on. Freshman year is over. How much training did you do over the summer? I know you went to a running camp with Christa Avena. How did that work out?
Nikki: My summer training was very simple. I built up a solid base doing approximately 35-40 mpw. I wanted to make sure I would have a good base but at the same time I knew that I had never done more then 30 mpw so I wanted to be careful. The running camp I went to with Christa was a blast! We had a lot of fun at it and we got a chance to run together without racing. I would definitely recommend running camps to other runners because they're a lot of fun and a good training opportunity.
nvtrackstats: You started this season in tremendous shape. You won at the Las Vegas Invitational and then won again at Woodbridge the next week (September 15th) in what, at the time, was one of the fastest 3-mile times for a high school girl in the US. Tell us about that.
Nikki: I felt amazing at the beginning of the season. I would have to say that Woodbridge was definitely a breakthrough race for me. I was at 17:22 pace at the two-mile mark. I ended up going five seconds faster the last mile to run a 17:17. I think that race really showed how much my base paid off.
nvtrackstats:: During midseason last fall, you had some injury problems. Can you tell us what that was all about?
Nikki: The Monday before frosh-soph I felt a slight pain in my right achilles. I stubbornly ignored it and by frosh-soph every step hurt. I remember warming up with my two teammates, Yimin and Caitlin, and Christa Avena and having it hurt sooooo bad. I ended up taking time off until Mt. SAC, which was a bummer.
nvtrackstats: But in mid October you ran what I felt was the best race (cross country anyway) I've ever seen you run. You won the Division 5 Sweeps race at Mt. SAC by coming from behind and beating two outstanding California runners. That time (17:46) over the Mt. SAC course was one of the best times ever run by a sophomore girl. You had the 7th fastest overall time among over 7000 girls who ran that weekend. How exciting was that?
Nikki: I was very excited about that race. I was even more excited that our team won! That was probably our best race of the season as a team. At the same time however, I still felt kind of disappointed because I knew that if I hadn't had been injured I would've had a shot at running in the low 17's.
nvtrackstats: Two straight team and individual titles in cross country when you won up at San Rafael Park in Reno two weeks later. Was it as exciting the second time, after winning the year before?
Nikki: I would have to say it was even more exciting than the year before because our team did so well this year. We were fourth, I believe, in the whole state and first for Southern Nevada. I wish we would have been able to have a race with all divisions combined because it would've been interesting.
nvtrackstats: Now I'll bring up a sore subject. It was back to Mt. SAC for the Footlocker Western Regional in December. What happened in that race? Was it a case of just too many races, past a peak, or were you not 100% fit?
Nikki: Well, as you already know I had the achilles problem that started around frosh-soph. That ended up not going away until right around Coaches Roundup. After that went away, I strained my left groin because of overcompensation. Unfortunately, it never fully healed before Footlocker. The day of the race, I felt it a little bit but not very much, probably because my adrenaline was rushing. Within the first 100 m I felt a pull in my groin and that was basically the end of the race. I was disappointed but I knew that it happened for a reason. We ended up figuring out that the reason I got the achilles problem in the first place was because I had the wrong shoes. I was running in cushion shoes when I needed stability shoes.
nvtrackstats: OK, we're up to date. What kind of training have you been doing since the end of the cross country season? What's next?
Nikki: After Footlocker I took three weeks off to fully recover. I'm in the process of building a base right now so. Also, I'm getting ready to ease into speedwork. I'm not training to hard right now because I know that the important races come in May and June.
nvtrackstats: How much indoor running have you done up to now? Most Nevada high school runners never get to run indoors. How different is it from running outdoors?
Nikki: I've actually only raced indoors twice. It's a lot different running indoors because it takes a lot more laps to run events then it does outdoors on a 400 meter track.
nvtrackstats: Tell us about this indoor race you've got coming up in February.
Nikki: The race coming up February 9th will be held at the Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln, Nebraska. It's going to be one of the biggest prep meets for the indoor season. I'm planning on running the 2 mile there. There will be a lot of high caliber athletes like Megan Kaltenbach and Liza Pascuito, so it'll be a good test to see where I'm at on the national scene.
nvtrackstats: Sticking with track, what is your favorite distance on the track? You are that rare individual with both speed and endurance. I know you're considered more of a distance runner, but you also have run sub 2:20 for the 800 and sub 60 for the 400. What goals have you set for yourself--time wise--for this season?
Nikki: Honestly, my favorite race is the 800 m. I love that race so much. It seems like the perfect distance. I also like the mile. I don't enjoy the two mile all that much because its so tedious...but It's OK sometimes. This track season I hope to run a 58 for the 400 m, a sub 2:15 800 m, a sub 5 1600 m, and a sub 10:50 3200 m.
nvtrackstats: Who do you consider your toughest competitor here in Nevada, track or cross country?
Nikki: My toughest local competitor in cross country and track is Christa Avena. I love racing her though because I know that no matter what the results are we're still friends once we're off the track.
nvtrackstats: Can you share any workout secrets with us? What's the toughest workout you do on a semi-regular basis--for either track or cross country?
Nikki: I don't run too much; I eat right; I hydrate; I have support from my family, friends, and teammates; and I love what I'm doing. If you get to the point where you don't enjoy running then you need to take some time off. The toughest workouts I do are tempo runs on the track.
nvtrackstats: What about cross training. Do you do any: weights, swimming, biking, soccer?
Nikki: The only cross training I do is my weight lifting class at school.
nvtrackstats: Do you keep a log of your workouts and mileage? Approximately how many miles a week do you run during the off season, like now? How about during the regular season?
Nikki: Yes, I keep a log. I write down how many miles I run, what shoes I wear, who I run with, where I run, and how I feel. This past cross country season I ran 35-40 mpw over the summer and then 30 during the season. Last winter I did about 20-25 miles a week and kept it there during the season. This winter/track season I'm going to do a little bit more but not too much. I believe in quality over quantity.
nvtrackstats: Well done. I wonder how many of our high school runners are that methodical in keeping those kinds of records? Let's talk about the future. Have you any particular long-term running goals that you've set for yourself. What about college, any particular schools you're considering? Nikki: My goal for high school is to actually challenge for the Footlocker title by my senior year. I know it'll take a lot of work but I'm willing to dedicate myself to do it. As far as college goes, I hope to run for a D1 school like UCLA, University of Colorado, or possibly Duke (they're working on building their cross-country program right now). I'm going to make my decision based mostly on academics. I would also LOVE to be able to compete in the Olympics!
nvtrackstats: What about academics. What are your favorite subjects in school? Have you thought about career plans as an adult?
Nikki: My favorite subjects are geometry and Spanish 2. I'm Spanish "illiterate" but I like learning it anyway! I've thought about a lot of different careers but I'm not quite certain what I want to do yet. I would love for it to have something to do with running statistics but at the same time I want to have time to train for the Olympics if it works out.
nvtrackstats: How about life outside of running. What do you do for relaxation? Do you have any hobbies or activities that help you take your mind off running?
Nikki: I like to do a lot of things, like hang out with my friends and family. I'm an outdoors kind of person so I like to do active things like water-ski, hike, play basketball, or any other sport. Some of my hobbies are playing the clarinet and drawing. One of my hobbies that doesn't necessarily take my mind off running is that I like to go online to dyestat.com and prep.caltrack.com and learn statistics about other runners.
nvtrackstats: Are their any particular role models in your life? Which celebrities or non celebrities do you admire and look up to?
Nikki: I admire Regina Jacobs for all of the work she puts in.
nvtrackstats: What is the high point in your running career so far, the moment you most cherish?
Nikki: I would have to say that the high point in my running career so far would have to be the Woodbridge meet. I felt so amazing that day!
nvtrackstats: And a low point? There can't be too many! Have you ever lost a race in high school in the state of Nevada?
Nikki: My low point would definitely be this years Footlocker race. I had been training for that race since June. No, I've never lost a race in Nevada during cross-country. I've lost in the 400 to Chaz and the 1600 at frosh-soph to Christa during track.
nvtrackstats: What's your favorite running movie, or if you can't think of one, your favorite sports movie?
Nikki: My favorite running movie is Without Limits.
nvtrackstats: Last question. What advice can you offer someone starting out as a high school runner? someone who has never run competitively before but who decides to come out for track or cross country.
Nikki: There are no limits to how good you can become if you believe in yourself!
nvtrackstats: Great answer! Thanks for the interview, Nikki. Good luck in that race at the University of Nebraska and beyond.
Interview with Coach John Dixon The following interview grew out my frustration with some of the restrictions and limitations that confront athletes and coaches here in Nevada, particularly track and cross country athletes and coaches in southern Nevada. I asked Coach Dixon to see if he could shed some light on things in his capacity at a member of the NAII cross Country and Track & Field Policy Manual Committee and a confidant of Mr. Larry McKay, the CCSD Athletic Administrator.
Coach Dixon and I go back a long ways. We were both coaches at Bonanza when the Bonanza boys won their first two--and only two--track and field championships in 1984 and '85. Since those early days, Coach Dixon has gone on to even bigger and better things and become an icon in the track and cross country community here in Nevada. He is presently the head track and cross country coach at Foothill High School and the founder and webmaster of this site. I felt that his comments would be of great interest to those who regularly visit NTS.
Simply put, I was right! Rarely afraid to express an opinion, Coach Dixon pulls few punches in this exchange.
Coach Phil
NTS: Coach, give us a little background on yourself. When did your coaching career begin and where?
Coach Dixon: I've actually been involved in track since my freshman year in high school in New Jersey. In high school, I was a sprinter, high jumper and long jumper. Pretty good marks, too. I went to college at East Stroudsburg State College in Pennsylvania. There, I ran indoor and outdoor track, 400-800 meters. I also got involved with long distance running with the XC guys. I was able at college to take many courses in track coaching, athletic training, and exercise physiology. My first coaching position was with my high school alma mater, Roxbury High School. I had one assistant! I coached there for one year before heading out of state for grad school.
NTS: When did you start with the Greyhound Racers?
Coach Dixon: I started the Greyhound Track Club when I was a PE teacher at R. Guild Gray Elementary in the 80’s. It basically started in PE classes when I saw that many of the students had some track talent. We bought some uniforms and t-shirts, went to some local “TAC” meets at UNLV, and made a road trip to a Regional Championship Meet in Fullerton, CA. Out of that group a few kids went on to run track in high school. Also out of that group came Ryan Theriault, one of the best track athletes in the history of Nevada. Ryan became a many time TACO/AAU champion and national record holder in the multi-events. He was multiple Zone and State champ in the hurdles, pole vault, discus and long jump. He went on to achieve All-American status at Texas A&M in the decathlon. The Greyhound Track Club was my start as a track coach in Nevada.
While I was a Gray Elementary, I also helped out with the track program at Bonanza. I can remember helping Coach Widolff line the old cinder track on Sunday afternoons. I also coached girls basketball and JV baseball while at Bonanza. I was then hired at Rancho and worked with then Athletic Administrator Larry McKay as head cross country coach and assistant varsity basketball coach with current Green Valley coach Jim Allen. I was not on the Rancho track staff, so I was still able to get to Bonanza and be an assistant there for Kim Grytdahl, now principal at Cannon MS.
NTS: Tell us about your years at Cheyenne.
Coach Dixon: When Cheyenne opened, Dr Richard Brown, who was Rancho's principal, was reassigned to Cheyenne and “took” many of his staff with him. I was named head track and xc coach at Cheyenne. Cheyenne was a great place to coach. We had many talented athletes, sprinters as well as distance runners. We had an 8 year undefeated streak in girls track, which included the Frosh-Soph Meet. The girls were Zone Champions 5 straight years and State Champions once. The boys team won the Zone and State Championship in track two years in a row. I had great assistant coaches there. Barbara Rockwood was the girls sprint coach, Larry Johnson was the boys sprint and jump coach, Steve Scott coached the throwers, and Bill Miller was the distance coach. We were also very good in cross country. The girls won Zone 5 straight years and also won the State Championship, becoming the first Southern team to win State since 1979. The boys never won State but did win Zone Championships. It was just like it is now…we beat Basic at Zone but couldn't at State. Burgess ruled back then, too! A think there was a time at Cheyenne where there were 26 Zone and State banners hung in the gym and xc and track were responsible for 24 of them. It was a good run.
NTS: How much of challenge was it for you to leave a highly successful program at Cheyenne and begin all over at a new school, in this case, Foothill?
Coach Dixon: Many coaches there saw the writing on the wall. Dr. Brown was retiring; Pat Hayden was heading to Centennial. Bill Miller, my assistant, was also heading to Centennial as well as Steve Scott, my throws coach. I was living in Green Valley, making the “spaghetti bowl” commute every day. Pat Hayden was good friends with Foothill principal Bob Johns. The rest is history. Cheyenne was a great place to coach. The athletes were very appreciative and the administrative support was second to none. We hung many banners in the gym. Eight years at one school is long enough. My “act” was getting old.
NTS: So you got a fresh start. But it hasn't been all roses at Foothill. It seems that just when you started to develop some talented distance runners, those kids were off to a new school. Coronado's boys cross country team qualified for State last fall, thanks largely to runners you had trained. That's got to stick in the craw just a bit! How has the opening of Coronado affected the progress you've made at Foothill?
Coach Dixon: As long as the city continues to grow, new schools opening will have an impact on the “feeder” school. As long as the transfer rules stay the same, new school after new school, I have no problem. But they seem to be different with each new school. When Foothill opened, Basic students had a choice. The Campbell boys at Basic are zoned for Foothill. But they choose to stay. Foothill kids going to Coronado had no choice. So to answer your question, it did affect the progress of the program. We'll survive.
NTS: That leads to a subject that is controversial to say the least: transfers. Can you give us any insight on the “new” transfer policy that CCSD initiated at the beginning of this school year? I'm referring, of course, to the policy that allows an athlete one “free” transfer, but with the stipulation that the athlete can only participate as a “JV” athlete.
Coach Dixon: What a mess! Obviously it was done to help prevent school shopping and cheating. In track it's tough. We don't have a JV meet. So where do we run our “transfers”? In the “A” race or the “B” race. Can they run Frosh-Soph? All I know is that they cannot run varsity races, championship meets or varsity invitationals. If we're going to have a transfer rule, let's have one like Washoe County. It seems like all the northern transfers are going to Reno HS, and they compete now! Then we get into the mess of transfers from a private school to a private school. I'm in favor of “open zoning”. Go where you want, but you have to stay there. Athletics is a stepping stone to college. If a great coach can improve your chances for a college education and a career, one should be allowed to go there. If my daughter becomes a thrower, I'm going to see where Dave Jones is coaching and she's going there. If she becomes a cheerleader, I’ll home school her!!!
NTS: Since track and cross country don't have a separate JV program, what provisions are made to allow JV athletes to compete? Let's take track specifically. In a triangular or “regular” meet the first two heats of the sprints are designated as “varsity”; subsequent heats are considered JV and are non scoring. But what about the other events? Here all athletes are treated alike. One heat of the 1600 meter run, for example; one flight of the shot put or pole vault. If you win, you win! Does that mean that our s o-called JV athlete can't compete in those events?
Coach Dixon: They can compete, but not score varsity points. That's my understanding. They are “unattached” athletes.
NTS: And what about invitationals and championship meets? If a freshman posts the fastest time of the year at the Frosh-Soph Championships, does he or she get seeded for future races? Is it fair to NOT allow that athlete to compete at the next level? And what about a sanctioned event like the Great Southwest Classic which is held after the Nevada State Meet. If our technically “varsity-ineligible” athlete has a mark “wherever obtained” that meets qualifying standards for that meet, can he/she compete?
Coach Dixon: NO!! They are JV athletes until they become eligible under this new transfer rule.
NTS: Yet as things stand now, once the State Meet is over it's my understanding that an athlete is no longer bound by that rule, as with Footlocker in cross country...but maybe I'd better not go there. Still, It seems blatantly unfair to me that under this “free transfer” rule we allow an athlete to play football, soccer, basketball, etc. on a JV or freshman team but then we don’t allow the track/cross country athlete the same unfettered opportunity. It’s like we're saying to that athlete, “You can run, but don’t run so fast that you get your name in the paper.” I know you have recently spoken to Larry McKay, the CCSD Athletic Administrator. Is there a chance that this policy will be changed or modified?
Coach Dixon: This year, no. There is a chance for modification in the future. It seems like the rules change every year anyway. How about this one; does the ineligible JV athlete's road races count as one of the teams 14 meets? Told you it was a mess.
NTS: Coach, I warned you this wouldn't be a “fluff” interview! And I know you're only the messenger, but these are topics that athletes and parents want addressed. What's the latest on the subject of travel to the upcoming state track meet? Up until a couple of years ago, most teams traveling to Reno for the State Meet flew. One reason that was suggested for the change in policy had to do with September 11th and the sensitivity of airline travel following that disaster. I think most of us would agree that airline travel is safer than travel by car or bus and that September 11th is no longer an issue. With the airlines desperate for business, surely the economics of the situation favor flying, considering it involves fewer overnight stays in hotels. Are there other issues involved?
Coach Dixon: We are at the mercy of the CCSD budget and, as we all know, it is a mess right now. Seems like everyone sees Larry McKay as the villain in this, but he has his hands tied also. He is doing his best with his resources to provide the best possible arrangements for our athletes. I know bus travel, smoky motels, and lousy per diem is not the way to treat State qualifiers, but if there is no money!
I heard that the CCSD lost their :relationship” with Southwest Airline. Southwest was giving us a great rate but that is no longer in effect. Is
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