The Illinois State cross country team, under new head coach Jeff Pigg, opens its season Friday evening at the Bradley Open.
Its exciting for me in my first meet at ISU, Pigg said. The level of competition is good for us to see where were at and what we need to work on. The kids are excited and it will be good for them to get the first meet under their belts.
The mens team will be without sophomore Christian Goy, who sprained his ankle last week. Pigg said that Goy could be available to run by Friday, but he saw no reason to risk his top returner.
Not having Christian may effect the way we run this meet, Pigg said. For me, the big goal is to prepare the kids to be their best at every meet, but primarily at the Missouri Valley Conference and the NCAA Midwest Regional.
Leading the way for the mens team will be seniors Lars Juhl, Peter Madsen and Mark Reed who have impressed Pigg in the preseason and have experienced success in the past. Juniors Kevin Bailey and Robert Breit will also be very solid runners for Piggs squad.
The womens team will be without Stacia Beste, who will redshirt this season.
We feel that its a good strategic move for protecting her best interests and the best interest of the team, too, Pigg added.
With Beste not competing this year, senior Carrie Wojcik and freshmen Egle Kregzdyte and Allison Dietrich will guide the Birds through a year of transition.
This is very much a transitional year, Pigg said. We have three sprinters on our team with no cross country experience (Andrea Black, Jene Klostermann and Lauren Ritt). Its nice to have them step up and help out. Theyll gain alot by running this fall, and I appreciate their work ethics and attitudes.
Friday evenings Bradley Open at Detweiller Park in Peoria features Valley foes Indiana State, Southern Illinois and Bradley. Also competing will be Greenville College, Illinois-Chicago, Knox College, Marquette, Monmouth College, Saint Ambrose and Western Illinois. The womens race starts at 5:30 p.m. and the mens race follows at 6:15.
