Photo by: Cheryl Treworgy

Men's XC Will Rely on Core Group of Veterans in 2017

9/11/2017 10:29:00 AM | Cross Country

@PackXC 2017 Schedule

The 2017 men's cross country roster also features a stable of young talent looking to make an impact on the lineup. With the season less than a week away, get up to speed with our men's cross country preview for 2017.

RALEIGH, N.C. -- Head coach Rollie Geiger enters his 36^th season at the helm of NC State men's cross country. Over that span, the Pack has consistently performed as one of the nation's top programs, placing inside the top-25 nationally 23 times since 1984. The 2017 roster features a young, eager group of athletes that are ready to uphold that tradition of excellence this season.

QUICK RECAP OF LAST SEASON

The NC State men posted another standout season in 2016, culminating with a 22^nd-place finish at the NCAA National Championships. NC State also captured the Southeast Region title and placed third overall at the ACC Championships.

The Wolfpack's 22^nd-place performance was the program's highest finish nationally since 2011. Senior Sam Parsons and graduate transfer Aubrey Myjer led NC State as they each placed inside the top-100 at Nationals.

NC State captured the NCAA Southeast Regional crown last year, with Parsons (4^th), Myjer (10^th), Sebastian Hanson (17^th) and Patrick Sheehan (20^th) taking home individual All-Region honors. It was the eighth regional title for the Wolfpack men since 2001.

At the ACC Championships, the Pack placed third overall behind All-ACC performances from Parsons (3^rd), Sheehan (15^th) and Ben Barrett (18^th). Philip Hall was just one spot away from being named all-conference, as he placed 22^nd individually.

2017 SCHEDULE

The Pack opens the 2017 campaign with its lone home event of the season, the adidas XC Challenge. The meet is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 15 at the WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C.

Following the home meet, both cross country squads will travel to South Bend, Ind. for the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on Friday, Sept. 29. Two weeks later, the teams will go separate ways as NC State will be represented at the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational, the Wake Forest Invitational and the ECU Pirate Invitational on Friday, Oct. 13.

The 2017 ACC Cross Country Championships will be hosted by Louisville at the E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park on Friday, Oct. 27. Following the conference meet, the Pack will travel to Charlottesville, Va. for the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships on Friday, Nov. 10.

The 2017 NCAA Cross Country National Championships are scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 18 in Louisville, Ky.

A detailed breakdown of the schedule can be viewed here.

WHO'S BACK

The Pack will rely heavily on a core group of veterans to lead the way this season. With the graduation of NC State's top athlete in Sam Parsons, it will be important for the Wolfpack to run as a tight-knit group in 2017.

Aubrey Myjer, a sixth-year senior, is back on campus after taking home All-Region honors a year ago. Patrick Sheehan, an All-ACC and All-Region performer in 2016, enters his fourth year with the program.

Ben Barrett claimed all-conference honors as a redshirt-freshman last season, while Philip Hall placed 22^nd at the conference meet. Elijah Moskowitz, a junior in his second season with the program, placed 30^th at Regionals last year and looks to build upon that performance.

Myjer and Sheehan sat down with GoPack.com to discuss aspirations for this year's squad.

"The thing about our team this year is there's less of a unanimous voice," Myjer said. "Last year, Sam Parsons was on the team, and he had kind of been the de facto leader for a while. He's a very gregarious, vocal leader. With him graduating and moving on, there are big shoes to fill.

"Rather than one person feeling the need to fill his shoes, there's kind of going to be a collaging effect of everybody playing to their strengths and creating this one 'super leader.'"

Sheehan agreed with Myjer, identifying five veterans that will step into more of a leadership role in 2017.

"With [Sam] being gone, it's like an oligarchy situation where it's more of a council leading the team," Sheehan said. "I definitely see not only myself, but guys like Aubrey, Eli, Ben and Philip.

"It's not just going to be one guy at the top, it'll be more like an oligarchy or a council if you will, leading the team together. I think that helps a lot, keeps us all in check. Having four or five guys steering the ship, it definitely gives us a lot more perspectives."

Additionally, the Wolfpack has a class of redshirt-freshmen ready to step up in their first seasons of attached racing, namely Tim Bason, Joe Bistritz, Edwin Rutto and Eric Walz. Most notably, Bason is coming off a gold medal performance in the 3,000m steeplechase at the 2017 USA Junior National Championships.

"Edwin is super fit right now, looks great," Sheehan said. "Tim's coming off being the U.S. Junior National Champion in the steeple, then he got 7^th place at the PanAm games in Peru. He's doing outstanding.

"Joe is a tremendous talent as well. Eric is currently coming off a small injury, but we're hoping to get him back in the lineup. He's really good at catching a second wind and recovering well midrace. The entire redshirt-freshman class is poised to have great success.

"At the end, towards championship season, only seven guys are allowed in that lineup, but I fully expect those guys to be a significant part of the team and help us out. They're all poised to do well, they've all had solid training for a year. Now it's the year to step up and move out of that redshirt shadow and into the limelight."

Other returners for the Wolfpack include redshirt-juniors John Hagood, Aaron Thomas and Alec Thomas, as well as redshirt-sophomores Tanis Baldwin and Kyle Christ.

WHO'S NEW

NC State welcomes three true freshmen to Raleigh for the 2017 season. Noah Graham and Will Merritt combined for 18 state championships during their respective high school careers, while Ian Shaklin took home individual All-America honors in the 5K with a fifth-place finish at the 2017 New Balance Outdoor National Championships.

The Pack also signed sophomore transfer Gavin Gaynor, a Wolfpack legacy who comes to NC State after one season with the Princeton Tigers. Gaynor's parents, Gavin and Stacy, both competed for NC State cross country/track & field from 1984-88 and totaled seven All-ACC citations during their collegiate careers.

NC State also added graduate transfer Brendan Johnson, who spent the last four years with American University. His most recent full cross country season with the Eagles came in 2015, where he wrapped up his junior campaign with a 46^th-place finish at the 2015 NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships. On the track, Johnson qualified for the 2016 NCAA East Preliminary in the 10,000m with a personal-best mark of 29:41.51.

#SQUADGOALS

With all the success this program has seen under Geiger's reign, there are undoubtedly going to be high expectations year in and year out. It all starts with performing well at the conference meet, where NC State has finished top-3 in 26 of the last 28 years.

The Pack was recently selected third in the ACC Preseason Coaches' Poll. Four-time defending conference champion Syracuse was selected first in a vote of the league's coaches.

"The goal every year is to compete for an ACC Championship," Coach Geiger said in an interview with GoPack.com. "As a program, we understand where the bar's at now, so we've got to raise our level. [Syracuse is] well-coached, they're talented athletes, so to win a conference championship, it's going to have to go through Syracuse. Our goal is not to finish second."

Following the conference meet, the Pack's focus shifts to the NCAA postseason meets. Myjer has a few goals in mind for where he'd like to see this team finish for his final cross country season.

"As far as at the end of the year, we'd like to win Regionals again, defend that title. Then beat our finish at NCAA's last year, that was 22^nd. I think we have the capability to be a top-10 team, but as far as a more moderate goal, just definitely improve on our finish from last year."

For Sheehan, there are three steps that will define a successful season for this program.

"Definitely want to do well at conference, pull that upset against Syracuse to win the conference championship, and then defend the Regional title and move into a top-10 spot at Nationals."

UP NEXT

The Wolfpack opens the 2017 campaign at home as NC State hosts the adidas XC Challenge. The meet will take place on Friday, Sept. 15 at the WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C. For the most up-to-date information on NC State cross country, follow @PackXC on Twitter.