Owl Harriers to race for NCAA berths on Saturday

KEENE, N.H.  11/10/10 – Some say familiarity breeds contempt, but Keene State cross country coach Peter Thomas knows it can instead breed NCAA championship berths for his Owl teams.

Keene State men’s and women’s squads will be racing for a berth in the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships at the New England regional race at Mount Greylock High School in Williamstown, Mass., on Saturday. The men’s 8K race begins at 11 a.m. followed by the women’s 6K race at noon.

The Owls are well acquainted with the challenging Mount Greylock course, having run a couple of races and a practice there earlier this season. “It helps so much knowing the course,” said senior Eric MacKnight (Newtown, Conn.). “We know every single turn and where we are in the race at certain points.”

Regardless of their comfort level on the course, both Keene State teams must be running on all cylinders if they hope to earn trips to the NCAA championships, which will take place Sat., Nov. 20, in Waverly, Iowa.

The Keene State men will be looking for their second straight NCAA berth. Last year, the Owls, who earned consecutive berths from 1997-2005, ended a three-year NCAA sabbatical by finishing third at the New England regional championship. The KSC women’s team, which captured the program’s only NCAA berth in 2006, placed eighth.

Currently ranked 27th nationally and fifth in New England, the Keene State men feel good about their chances on Saturday. “We’re in better shape going into the race than we were last year," said senior Tim Pipp (Keene, N.H.). “I think we have the top three guys in the region.”

MacKnight and Pipp will lead a KSC pack that also includes juniors Kevin Hoyt (Newtown, Conn.) and Corey Loonan (Sandwich, Mass.) and sophomore Andrew Sears (Derry, N.H.). Senior Jeff Trethewey (Merrimack, N.H.) could be the wildcard for the Owls. Returning from an injury, Trethewey finished sixth at last weekend’s ECAC meet and hopes to be a factor in Saturday’s race.

“We’ve produced each time we’ve had to this year, so hopefully we can do it again,” said Thomas, who believes four teams from the region will get the coveted NCAA berths.

Thomas says the parity in the region could make for a very interesting race. Ranked 11th in the country and first in New England, Middlebury College leads the list of teams in the running for NCAA berths along with Williams, Brandeis, Tufts, Bowdoin, and MIT. “The competition is real tough,” he said. “We could finish anywhere from first to ninth.”

The Owl women, ranked eighth in the region, have their work cut out for themselves if they hope to gain a NCAA berth. Unlike the men, the women’s field in New England is top heavy with Middlebury (1st), Williams (3rd), and MIT (7th) ranked among the top 10 teams in Division III. “Those three teams are locks,” said Thomas. “If we run well, we could sneak into the top four or five, but it’s all going to depend on who’s having the better day.”

“We all have to be on and we all have to be focused,” said junior Paige Mills (Keene, N.H.), who will lead the Owls’ along with senior Amy Knoblock (Plymouth, Mass.), juniors Andrea Walsh (Bolton, Conn.) and Haley Lydstone (Bedford, N.H.), and sophomore Maggie Fitter (Branford, Conn.). “We’re Division III runners, but who says we can’t race like Division I runners.”

Thomas is looking for a top-five finish and an at-large berth for Mills, who placed sixth at last year’s race but was hampered by an injury at the NCAA championships.  “She chomping at the bit and ready to get after it,” said Thomas.