After the men’s and women’s cross-country teams finished fourth in the Southern Conference last season, both teams have set high expectations for the 2012 season.
During the 2011 season, the men’s team won six straight conference titles before placing fourth place last season.
The fourth place finish marked the first time in ASU history the team hadn’t placed in the top three, according to soconsports.com
Seniors Alex Taylor, Will Raby and Sean Soderman are expected to be the lead the team to success this year.
Raby said there is not a top individual runner on the team.
“We have three guys who go pretty much go back and forth,” he said. “And now that Sean [Soderman] is back, we have three guys good for next season.”
Soderman was unable to run last season, due to an injury.
“I’m expecting us to do a lot better than last year,” Soderman said. “Injuries hurt us last season, but we have a healthier team and a good squad of guys that are motivated to win.”
The men’s cross-country team isn’t the only team determined to win a title.
Senior Amanda Hamiliton has run on the team for four years, and said the team has a lot of depth this particular year.
“We have a lot of girls who are very talented,” Hamilton said. “Our goal is to win conference. Our expectation is that we have the capability to do that — we just have to put it all together. We also want to be at least top 15 in the region and it’s our senior year so we just want to show people what Appalachian is made of.”
The women’s team added six freshmen to the roster this year.
Senior runner Katie Cagle said the team has bonded well.
“The team is a lot closer,” Cagle said. “It’s just interesting because we have a handful of freshmen coming in, so we’re just working on putting them into the rest of the group.”
Head Coach Michael Curcio said he has set high expectations for his teams this year. He said his goals include winning the SoCon, being ranked top 10 in the southeast and training one individual to get to the NCAA championship.
The Mountaineers will begin their regular season Aug. 31 at 5 p.m. during the annual Covered Bridge Open at the Don Kennedy Trails of State Farm Lot.
Story: JAMES ASHLEY, Intern Sports Reporter