Fresno State Athletics
Bulldogs Gear Up for 2008
8/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Cross Country
Aug. 28, 2008
FRESNO, Calif. - A new coach. A new perspective. A new determination.
The Fresno State cross country team has a whole new face and the 2008 season hasn't even begun.
Summer brought change to the Bulldog cross country team, change in the form of a new coach in Sean McManus.
Barely two weeks before the cross country season began, McManus arrived in Fresno and hit the ground running. McManus met with the team after only two days in town and started working on a plan to better the Bulldog's times.
"We have some real talent here and I am really looking forward to tapping into it," said McManus. "Our goal, every season, is compete to win the WAC and that's what we're working to do."
Men
The men's team returns a strong contingent of runners including the team's two leaders from 2007, Erick Garcia and Frank Sanders.
Garcia, a sophomore, led the Bulldogs in every meet last season, will be called upon to take the lead again.
"Erick showed some promising results last year," said McManus. "I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of progress we can make this season."
He also found his footing on the track, taking third in the 5,000-meter at the WAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships this past spring.
Sanders had a stellar sophomore campaign, finishing second among Fresno State runners in all seven races. The junior put in a solid summer of training and is looking to put himself among the elite distance runners in the WAC.
"Frank is going to step in and be a leader for us right away" said McManus. "He's such a hard worker; he really pushes himself in training because he wants to get better."
Proving the depth of his training, Sanders won the 1,500 at the 2008 WAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships, advancing to the NCAA West Regionals.
Garcia and Sanders will again provide a depth of experience to an otherwise green team.
"Frank and Erick are going to be a solid one-two punch," said McManus. "But we have a some wildcards after that."
Last season, Elijah Carillo and Brandon Geis each found their way into the team's top five consistently. Both had strong summers of training and will contend for places within the top five once again.
Max Hernandez sat out of the cross country season in 2007 with an injury, but had a break-out freshman campaign on the track. At the WAC Championships in May, Hernandez took second in the 10,000.
"With his injury, Max didn't get out of himself what he wanted to," said McManus. "But he came around once he got that consistent training block in. He's had a really good summer. If he can stay healthy, then he will definitely be in our top five."
Also joining the team this season is Eric Battles from Clovis. Battles was a stand-out high school runner and spent his summer training with Hernandez. The two put in serious time in the off-season and will only improve under McManus's direction.
Women
McManus sees the 2008 season as a chance for the women's team to make a name for themselves.
"This is the year the women's team is going to turn the corner," he said. "We have a little bit of work to do, but we have the core nucleus back from last year with Marissa, Briana and Jennifer, who all finishing in the top 40 at the WAC. Now we'll try to improve upon that."
 Marissa McPhail will be called on to lead the women's team this year.  | |
Junior Marissa McPhail will be called upon to lead the team from the get-go. In her sophomore campaign, McPhail was the team's No. 2 finisher in five meets and won the Sacrameno State Hornet Jamboree's individual title. She seemed to peak at the right time in 2007, putting in her best 5K time at the WAC Championships.
"Marissa was a top competitor at the WAC and her summer training has gone really well," said McManus. "I'm looking forward to seeing what this season will bring."
Cleary, a senior who consistently finished among the Bulldog's top three, looks to step up her race this season.
"She's been training for long distance, but not trusting herself to run those distances," said McManus. "Once we get her confidence up so she knows she can run the longer distances, she'll see vast improvement."
Despite battling injury throughout the 2007 season, Jennifer Hernandez found a way to finish among Fresno State's top five all season.
"Jennifer can be at the front of the pack," said McManus. "I'm looking forward to what she can do with some serious training and no injuries."
Also returning to the sqad is junior Joceylin Oviedo. Oviedo showed improvement throughout 2007, making her another possible threat for Fresno State.
"If we can get her consistent, where we can depend on her for every meet, she will be a contender," said McManus.
The remaining competition spots are still up for grabs.
"We have a few new women that will be competing for the remaining spots," said McManus. "I'm looking forward to see how that pans out."
Schedule
Just days after arriving on campus, McManus began putting together a schedule to develop the Bulldogs into a tough cross country program.
"I wanted to create a schedule to increase our competition level to push ourselves," he said. "It was a new experience for me to build a schedule exclusively on the west coast. I really had to search around for the best opportunities for our team."
The Bulldogs open the season with the Nevada Twilight on Aug. 29. Rather than the normal 6K for women and 8K for men, the Nevada Twilight will feature a shortened race of 4 and 6K.
"The Nevada meet is a low-key evening race that allows us to see where we are without showing all of our cards," said McManus.
The following week, the team travels to Irvine for the Asics/UCI Invitational.
"This is a meet the team wanted to keep on the schedule because they enjoyed it in the past," explained McManus. "I wanted to give them an opportunity to race somewhere they're more comfortable.
After back-to-back meets, the Bulldogs will take two weeks off to train. The time off gives the team a chance to assess before competition for the Stanford Invitational on Sept. 27.
"Stanford serves two purposes for us," said McManus. "It's a very competitive meet with a lot of talent. It's also the site of regionals this year so it gives us an opportunity to preview the course before regionals. Most of the team has run there before, but I want them to begin visualizing running at the regional."
The Pepperdine Invitational on Oct. 4 is another meet the Bulldogs will be familiar with from last season. The team will take two weeks off after Stanford and Pepperdine, and return to competition on Oct. 18 for the Bronco Invitational hosted by Santa Clara.
"The meet at Santa Clara draws a lot of good teams from the west coast," said McManus. "It will be our last chance to compete before we head into the WAC Championships."
On Nov. 1, the teams will travel to the WAC Championships in Las Cruces, N.M. The Bulldogs will then return to Palo Alto, Calif., for the NCAA Regional.
"It's going to be a busy season," said McManus.
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