NCAA XC Regionals 2022 Discussion Thread

Why is Gary Martin running 10k as a freshman? To be UVA's 7th man? Come on, Vin.

If they are doing a tempo run they should get the distance correct

is Corinne Robitaille of Dartmouth related to former Kings stalwart Luc Robitaille?

Is a sub 4 miler really not able to handle racing 10k once a year?

Wikipedia suggests no

"Robitaille is married to Stacia (née Toten, formerly McQueen). They have two sons, Steven (born July 13, 1988, from his wife's first marriage)[34] and Jesse (born June 2, 1995).[35] Robitaille's stepson, Steven, is grandson of actor Steve McQueen and is an actor in the TV series The Vampire Diaries.[36]"

Agreed, I hate seeing this. Why not just let him start out racing on the track and gain some confidence competing at the collegiate level before you throw a mid-d guy like him (I know he has good strength but he was racing 800-1600 all of last spring) to the wolves of NCAA XC when he’s not even scoring for you? He improved a lot from his ACC race but I would hate to see the guy finish 175th at nationals to start his collegiate career. For some guys that’s tough to shake

Great performance by Cornell, with two individual qualifiers and third place team.

You guys act like he's made of glass. If there's one thing we learned about him this spring, it's that he's a competitor and loves to race. If he's keen to race xc, and he's top 7 for VA, is it fair and/or helpful to stop him from running? He's getting a ton of strength that will help him on the track next year.

I think Martin is as tough and competitive as they come.

I also think this could be the wrong move for his long-term development. Why not just let him be a stud next year once he’s got the training in and it’s more of a fair fight

“Gary’s a middle distance guy,” Lananna said, “but he’s fully prepared and determined, and I learned very early in my coaching career to never doubt when someone tells you they’re doing to do something. I look at their goals through their eyes, and he fully expects to make an impact [in cross country]/ So therefore, I fully expect for him to make an impact.”

virginiasports.com

Cross Country Programs Picking Up the Pace

Next year's NCAA Cross Country Championships will be held at Panorama Farms, and UVA wants to be more than a good host for the meets.

Link:virginiasports.com/news/2022/09/13/cro...

It's almost like Vin only cares about squeezing points out of his athletes, and not developing them.

Vin deciding not to be a leader and letting 18 year old boys make decisions. Nice one.

I don’t get it. Why can Colin Sahlman run XC - not only run, but be chastised on this board for not doing “well enough” - but Gary Martin can’t? May I remind you who was deemed to have more speed last year?

So does the West Region get 5? (CBU and Oregon State in on womens side?) Have not been paying attention this season but can someone confirm or deny?

It’s a fair point, but Colin did score at his conference meet and could be a difference-maker on a team that has a shot to win nationals. Can you say the same for Gary?

I think you need a good reason to justify stuff like this; whether you guys believe it or not, racing a generational talent in the first XC season he/she’s eligible for carries some risk. But hey, it’s Vin’s team and he made the call

Maybe Gary Martin enjoys xc and racing with the team. He's a great mile talent, but he's also a kid with a life who should enjoy himself. He ran most of the race up with his teammates near the front. And that opinion is not even taking into account armchair coaching, which will run the gamut from "he should only be doing speedwork" to "he's building great strength."

Rooks and Bons are not from Utah. They may live within 30 miles of BYU now, but not before they were recruited.

Bingo.

I'm coaching a freshman in HS. I let him do a lot of stuff I don't think is optimal because he and his dad are having fun and want to travel to these extra meets.

It seems like he wants to be out there. It could be the right move to have him in the lineup. Maybe my knee-jerk reaction to seeing him finish 58th at ACCs is influencing my opinion too much…just want to see the guy have a good collegiate career