diii SOUTH/southeast region 2006 (part 2)

yeah with justin kirk a second faster than i was at salisbury (and it looked like he coulda ran a few seconds faster) he definitely has a shot at nationals. and if frank devar is that close to justin again at regionals both have good shots at being in the top 10 and going to nationals. as far as the team i dunno, i have no idea how those 3 - 5 are gonna stack up to other teams. but we'll find out in a few days. good luck to everyone.

On top of Kirk and DeVar being underranked, the first poster completely left out Wash's third man, Matt Downs, as well as George Winslow, who has stepped up into the top-5 at the end of the season. I think UMW's top 2 have the potential to be top 10, with the Downs probably in the 15-25 range, and the 4-5 around 25-30. I'm also gonna go ahead and predict that Rhodes beats Emory.

any one notice that coach stoper has a striking resemblance to James Taylor?

anywho, the course is 8k, but its like running on a track.

figment wrote:

any one notice that coach stoper has a striking resemblance to James Taylor?

anywho, the course is 8k, but its like running on a track.

yess the course is a legit fast 8k

and yess Stan Soper resembles the love-child of James Taylor and Mr. Burns (The Simpsons)

We can all agree that last year's region course was pretty quick and possibly short, so I think it may be safe to assume that what one runs on Salisbury's course would be pretty close to what they would put up at Hendrix. That being said, if you took UMW's CAC times and inserted them into last year's region race, you get: (6,9,36,38,44) or 133 for a team score. To be honest, I don't think that will cut it. Interestingly enough, UMW had a similar make up two years ago when they got 3rd at regionals with (9,12,33,35,38). If the 3-5 can get down to finishing around 20-30, then there may be a chance. Honestly, the talent level in the region is rapidly increasing, maybe too much for a UMW squad that is still probably a year away from being a true contender. Looking at the classes of these individuals, they looks pretty good for the future, the question is if they take advantage of their youth now, and if it will be enough to get up to the level of Centre, Rhodes, and Emory.

(Year/Eligibilty)

Kirk (SR/JR)

DeVar (FR/FR)

Downs (JR/JR)

Cash (FR/FR)

Winslow (SR/SR)

Badolato (JR/JR)

Pattyson (FR/FR)

Injured but consistent top-7 guys:

Wolverton (JR/JR)

Rock (JR/SO)

And don't forget the wildcard Jason Driscoll, who was an all-state VA HS runner last year with PRs of 4:22, 9:37, and 15:53(XC). He redshirted this year, but should be a top-7 guy next year barring some unforeseen incident. What does it mean? basically I am skeptical concerning UMW's status as a serious contender for a national bid this year, though it's not absurd to mention it. But I do feel like a strong showing by a pretty banged up squad at this year's meet should really set the stage for big things next year.

Hey, I seem to remember there being a second conference meet (Mason Dixon?) where UMW raced against CNU or maybe someone else. Wasn't that where the fateful injury to our hero occurred? Is that coming up again this weekend? I agree Mary Wash is surprisingly good this year, here's my predictions for teams:

1. Centre

2. Rhodes

3. UMW

4. Emory

5. W&L

Hendrix is 7900 meters, despite what you may hear otherwise.

kartelite wrote:

Hendrix is 7900 meters, despite what you may hear otherwise.

and the missing 100 meters means SO MUCH!

Is kirk planning on returning to umw next year b/c if he does they would be a legit contender in the south?

Has there ever been a case such as Methodist? I mean, their spread is usually around what? 6-7 minutes? Hell, the gap from 1-2 is like 3-4 minutes. At USA South he ran 26:57, winning by over 50 seconds so definitely not being pushed, and he beat his team's 5th guy by 8:38! that's over a mile and a half. i honestly don't know what to say to that, except that the team got 2nd, so I guess it ain't all bad.

Centre, Rhodes, Emory in the mix for top spots. That CAC stuff is BS. Kirk and Devar may be studs but come on...

The Mason-Dixon meet of 2004 is where Kronenberg put up the 25:33. It was at CACs where he broke the leg. At the time, and honestly up until I heard the official results on Saturday that time just seemed untouchable to me. That year we were all pretty sure Todd would be at least 3rd at regionals. The fact that we virtually now have two kronenbergs chills me to the bone, but in a good way. The mason-dixon meet seems to be fading away recently. Last year CNU and Salisbury opted not to run it, so it was pretty pointless. This year I don't know if anyone ran it.

For the typical 8k runner in the south/southeast region a difference of 100m would take off 20-25 seconds.

That's great if the regional championship was run so everybody could go for a PR, but its not. The regional championship is run so people can win a race and qualify for nationals. As long as everybody has the same start and finish line then it doesn't maky any difference. If you say that the extra 100 meters could make a difference at the end of the race, that is just stupid. Everybody knows the course and should race accordingly. That 20-25 doesn't mean shit. Its all about who gets to the finish line first whether its 7900 meters from the start or 8000 meters.

TJones wrote:

The Mason-Dixon meet of 2004 is where Kronenberg put up the 25:33. It was at CACs where he broke the leg. At the time, and honestly up until I heard the official results on Saturday that time just seemed untouchable to me. That year we were all pretty sure Todd would be at least 3rd at regionals. The fact that we virtually now have two kronenbergs chills me to the bone, but in a good way. The mason-dixon meet seems to be fading away recently. Last year CNU and Salisbury opted not to run it, so it was pretty pointless. This year I don't know if anyone ran it.

no mason dixon meet this year cause it was pretty much getting weak and a distraction from the big time meets

word on the street is Kirk will return next year and Mary Wash will be pretty strong with Kirk, Devar, and that redshirting freshmen who Soper said was at the same level as those 2 guys

as for this year, kirk looked really strong and devar keeps improving every race, it will depend on their 3-5 to step up for them to challenge the top

I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss Mary Wash. After seeing the results from Saturday, I honestly think this team is better than the 2004, which finished third at regionals without our #1 and #4 runner. Kirk and Devar offer a better one-two combination and I think the rest of the team will be ready to step it up. Almost all of the guys have been to Atlanta before and are familiar with the course.

I was just saying I wouldn't be surprised to see Mary Wash sneak into the 2nd spot if one team has an off day. I do agree that using earlier results from this year puts Centre, Emory, and Rhodes in the top tier.

It should be a great race. I wish I could make the road-trip this year, but I have a team in the VA state meet to coach.

Good luck to everyone!

salu wrote:

word on the street is Kirk will return next year

Says who?

he says he might. thats who.

Is he going to grad school? Or how does he get to come back for another year?

I never understood D3 redshirts.... i dont think he's gonna be a pro runner. I'd rather get on with my real life.