2008 Women's Cross Country Season Preview

Senior Danielle Sgro returns for her final season of cross country. The first All-CAC cross country runner in program history, she repeated this honor in the 10,000 meters on the track last spring. She is a threat to medal almost everywhere she races and approached 70 miles per week of running this summer.

Talented newcomers include Maria Moss, Sarah Morris and Sam Smith. Moss is a proven runner out of Brunswick High School. Morris, a freshman from Georgia, has shown promise. Smith, who played in the Hood soccer program last season, has surprising early season strength.

The women’s team lacks the depth it has had in previous seasons and will be counting on returning veterans Kelly Keyser and Amanda Kwiatkowski to continue to show improvement.

The women’s squad finished fourth in the CAC last fall. The top two teams in the conference dominated and everything from third to last was in play.

“We were fortunate because at one time or another each of the teams that finished behind us had beaten us,” said head coach Brent Ayer. “It will take some luck and everyone staying healthy to repeat that performance.

“I am not too concerned about our races in August and September,” said Ayer. “We hope to gain experience from these, but we will be focusing on our training and on gaining racing experience. The last four meets are the ones we really care about, beginning with the Hood College Open Meet at Heritage Farm Park in Walkersville on October 18. Fifteen colleges and universities have already signed up and it promises to be a strong, competitive meet. The meet will also serve as a rehearsal for the 2009 Capital Athletic Conference Championships, hosted by Hood College.

“The following week we will host four colleges at a smaller, on-campus event. Then, it is on to the conference meet at the University of Mary Washington and the NCAA Mid-East Regionals, hosted by Waynesburg College.”

The Hood women’s Cross Country program has been awarded the national coaches All-Academic team award in each of its five years of existence. “It is always our goal to earn this distinction on both sides,” said Ayer.