Q & A With Behrend Cross Country Coach Dave Cooper

1. WHAT IS YOUR GENERAL THOUGHT ON HOW THE SEASON HAS STARTED AND WHERE YOUR TEAM STANDS RIGHT NOW?

We started the season with seven men and seven women and almost immediately had 2 serious injuries. Meet performances went well, but additional injuries have made our progress slightly slower than we would like. The injuries are easing up a bit now and we have our most important meets ahead. Both the men and women have picked it up a notch in their training. I think we will see lots of improvement from this point on.

2. WHO IS PERFORMING WELL FOR THE TEAM?

Brad Ruffo is performing well as he did last year. Junior Andy Marshall is setting the pace for a pack of three freshmen, Kevin Gorny, Andy Iams and Rob Shrawder.

For the women, Jenny Bailey is setting the standard, with Leisl Soergel and Willa Paterson not far behind. Newcomers Lisa Brozewicz and Jenna Zeyfang are making a huge impact as they move closer to the leaders.

3. AS OF NOW, WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO HAPPEN IN CONFERENCE PLAY?

We will run into Frostburg State and Penn State Altoona at the Dickinson Invitational on October 7. That should be a good predictor of who holds the edge going into the AMCC Championships.

4. HAS ANYBODY REALLY SURPRISED YOU?

Not really.

5. WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE HEADING INTO THE REMAINING PART OF THE SEASON?

Keeping a small team healthy is a big challenge at this point. We have three key runners who are hurt now but are still able to train and race.

6. WHAT IS YOUR EXPECTATION FOR THE END OF THE SEASON AND POSTSEASON?

We would like to be in a position to win both the men’s and women’s AMCC titles. We will know better after the Dickinson invite if that is a realistic goal. Then comes regionals where we hope to get  some individual honors and NCAA Qualifiers.