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Eric MacKnight: Keene State's Leader of the Pack
KEENE, N.H., 10/7/10 – A few years back, Keene State cross country coach Peter Thomas made several attempts to get Sarah MacKnight to join his running program. Although the Newtown, Conn., native attended a few practices, she was unable to commit the time and energy needed to compete on the team.
But she knew someone who could – her brother Eric.
“Sarah came into my office one day and started to tell me about her brother,” Thomas said. “She said he was going to be a senior at Newtown High and wanted me to recruit him.”
Sarah MacKnight never ran a step for Keene State, but she certainly left an unmistakable mark on the program by bringing Eric MacKnight to Thomas’ attention. Now a senior at KSC, MacKnight has forged his way to the top of an Owls cross country team that is currently ranked 15th in Division III and third in New England.
Getting set for Saturday’s New England Championship, MacKnight has hit the ground running this season. Warming up with a strong showing at the Keene State alumni race, MacKnight won his first collegiate individual championship two weeks later at the UMass-Dartmouth Invitational. He followed that up with an impressive fifth-place finish at the Williams College’ Purple Valley Classic.
“That was a huge early season race for us,” said MacKnight about the Classic, which included four nationally ranked teams and took place on the NCAA New England Regional course. “If we continue to work hard, I see no reason why we won’t be back there running for a NCAA berth.”
MacKnight caught the running bug from his family. His dad Kevin has been a lifelong runner, while his mother Karen picked up the sport 12 years ago. Older sisters Katie, Erin, and Sarah both competed in high school and are still recreational runners. Both Kevin and Karen have run the New York Marathon multiple times, and it’s a MacKnight family tradition to run in the Manchester Road Race on Thanksgiving Day.
A strong, reliable runner at Newtown High, MacKnight, as a junior, helped lead his Nighthawk squad to the program’s first State Open Championship. Earning All-State honors, he improved his finish by 30 places.
Kevin Hoyt, a former Newtown High teammate and current Owl runner, said MacKnight was very driven and team oriented. “Eric was always wondering how you were feeling or how your race went that day,” he said. “He was someone you always looked to for advice and moral support.”
Following a solid senior season, MacKnight laced up his running shoes and headed to Keene State. MacKnight, who liked KSC’s small campus atmosphere, had little trouble adjusting to the 8K college distance. “Eric had some great times in high school, so I knew as long as he trained well in college, he’d run well,” said Thomas.
A dedicated MacKnight gradually moved up the Keene State cross country ladder. Curtailed by a few nagging injuries as a sophomore, MacKnight turned the corner last year. After racing to top-10 finishes at the RPI, KSC, and UMass-Dartmouth Invitationals, Keene State’s trail terminator turned on the afterburners, earning All-Little East and All-Region honors.
His 22nd place performance at the NCAA Regional race helped lead Keene State to a surprising third-place finish and its first national championship berth since 2005. “Everyone was in the zone that day and ran a great race,” said MacKnight.
Although Keene State sputtered at the NCAA championships, MacKnight and the Owls came into the 2010 season with something to prove.
A great summer training regimen and different mindset propelled MacKnight to front-runner status for the Owls. Shifting gears from a conservative to an aggressive runner, MacKnight suddenly found himself in a position to win races.
“Following my win at UMass-Dartmouth, I knew I could be the top guy,” he said.
MacKnight, a two-time LEC Runner of the Week, knows there’s a lot of ground that needs to be covered, before the team returns to Williamstown, Mass., for the NCAA Regionals.
“Eric is going after it this season,” said Thomas. “If the team doesn’t make it to the NCAA, he has a good chance of earning an at-large spot.”
MacKnight will be the first to tell you that running is at much mental as it is physical. He heeds the advice of his father, who tells him “to go into a race with a clear mind” and follows his own creed when he’s out on the course – don’t settle. “Anytime I get comfortable in a race, I know I’m not running hard enough,” said MacKnight. “The faster I run, the better it’s going to be afterwards. You should always finish a race with no excuses.”
