Youth doesn’t translate to inexperience for the 2010 ASU cross-country team.
The majority of the 44 Sun Devils on the 2010 roster are underclassmen, a characteristic Coach Louie Quintana says won’t hinder his squad.
“The underclassmen have a lot of experience, so it doesn’t really change much at all for us,” Quintana said. “The approach is really the same.”
Quintana also stressed the importance of his veteran runners’ continuous improvement.
“We have a lot of women on our team who are in a similar spot,” Quintana said, “There’s going to be some competition within the group, which is good.”
On the men’s side, Quintana is looking to the usual suspects to carry the load during competitions.
“For the guys, it’s more about our front runners,” Quintana said. “Guys from last year who are older, more mature, and who will really help us up front”.
ASU redshirt junior Dylan Hatcher, who figures to be a major contributor this season, noted the significance of setting a positive example on such a young team.
“The important thing is to be consistent on a day to day basis,” Hatcher said. “Not just talking about eating right, and sleeping, and staying calm on your runs, but actually doing it.”
Women on the rise
The ASU women’s cross-country team is looking to continue building its growing reputation as a national powerhouse. The ASU women placed 24th at last year’s nationals and have qualified for the NCAA Championships 12 years in a row, the eighth-longest active streak in the nation.
ASU senior Anna Sperry expects the success to continue this year, and has high hopes to end up on the podium.
“That’s what we’re working for, and that’s what we expect to do,” Sperry said. “We really want to be a top ten team.”
Pinetop Camp
ASU returned from its annual team camp in Pinetop on Tuesday, a four day retreat packed with high-altitude trail running, and perhaps more importantly, down time for a large group to get to know one another on a more personal level.
“Its one of those things the kids really look forward to now,” Quintana says of the relaxed, unstructured pre-season getaway that ASU has been doing for five years now.
The camp was also Quintana’s first chance to evaluate his team in its entirety.
In addition to various team meetings, Quintana met with every runner individually to go over expectations and goals for the upcoming season.
“Part of going up there is to preach accountability and responsibility to one another. Everybody is doing work that’s going to help the team run well,” Quintana said. “It really just kind of sets the tone for the year.”
Looking Ahead
The Sun Devils are set to open the season on Sept. 4th in Flagstaff at the George Kyte Invitational.
For the first two meets, Quintana expects to be shuffling his roster around quite a bit, and he said he plans to use the Kyte Invitational as a workout run.
“We have a great foundation. Our summer was fantastic. We definitely have some work to do,” Quintana said. “In another month, I think I’ll feel really good about where we’re at.”
Reach the reporter at kyle.j.newman@asu.edu
