X-country looks to fresh talent

With a core of seasoned upperclassmen runners and a large pool of young talent, the men's cross country team is eager to show its depth and drive on the course this season.

In the wake of an enormous recruiting effort last year, the team is one of the youngest in its history, with 15 of the 19 members on the squad being freshmen and sophomores.

"This is the youngest team I've ever been on; however, it is also the largest and the most talented," captain Alexis Surovov, SM '02, said. "Their future is a bright one, and it's already begun. I wouldn't have it any other way."

COURTESY SPORTS PUBLICITY With their season getting into high gear, the Elis hope to put their young talent to the test.

Head coach Dan Ireland points to tough seasons in the past as the motivation behind the focus on heavy recruitment. "We had little depth in talent last year, as seen by the fact that there are only a few juniors and seniors on this year's squad," he said. "And the only team we've beaten consistently in the last four years is Harvard, which doesn't say much."

Another relatively new addition to the team is the coach himself. This is the first full year Ireland is completely in charge of the Elis, and the runners have started to admire and respect his handling of the squad.

"Coach Ireland's close attention to detail and experience as a distance runner is as admirable and accomplished as his coaching is effective," Surovov said. "We are fortunate to have him."

Ireland feels confident of his team's ability to place well in upcoming meets this fall. The first meet was scheduled for last Saturday but was cancelled in light of last week's attack. So, after some time off, the Bulldogs will travel to Charlotte, N.C. this weekend for their first race at the Great American X-Country Festival, where they will compete against teams from all over the nation.

The upcoming meets should provide the freshmen with an opportunity to step up and prove their running ability. Josh Yelsey, TD '05, said, "We have a deep freshman class of runners, and we're confident we will have some of the top freshmen in the Ivy League on our team. I don't know if we'll be able to make it to the NCAA championships, but we're definitely going to try. That's the ultimate goal."

Ireland feels it is his responsibility to let the freshmen know that they can contribute as much as any of the elder runners on the team. "Some of these freshmen could be the best in the conference with some motivation," he said.

"The team is continually and pleasantly surprised by our new freshmen athletically, personally and even academically," Surovov said. "We don't expect any more or less of the new class than of the rest of us. Their numbers and enthusiasm will add not only points, times, and depth to our score, but also character and dimension to the team's dynamics, which will help us focus on our goal: to race and to win."

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