2007 Cross Country Season Preview
Grier
Gatlin won’t call the 2007 Pacific cross country season a rebuilding year.
He prefers the term “transition year.”
“Anytime you have a long-time coach in a position, and that coach leaves, there’s going to be some fallout and transition and that’s okay,” said Gatlin, who replaces Ron Tabb after a seven-year tenure as head coach.
Much to Gatlin’s description, the Boxers will be a team in transition as they make their way through the fall. A total of eight runners will comprise the team: four men and four women. The numbers are just short of fielding complete teams.
Additionally, Gatlin will be operating without the two top runners from the 2006 team. Two-time national meetqualifier Shana Shosky, Pacific’s top female runner the last two seasons, graduated in May. Pacific’s top male runner, Kellen Peters, transferred to Willamette after two seasons in his hometown.
While the absence of Shosky and Peters is a definite loss in quality, Gatlin is not discouraged by their absence. “Things like that are going to happen in a transition year,” Gatlin said. “It’s nobody’s fault and I don’t believe it’s a negative thing. It’s a natural occurrence.”
As Gatlin and assistant coach Tim Boyce work to build numbers to put Pacific back in the team race next season, they will work on providing the best possible experience for those who are back with the program.
And improve by small steps as opposed to expecting leaps and bounds.
“Our focus is simply to get better everyday,” Gatlin said. “Although we have small numbers, we want to facilitate a good experience for these student-athletes. It’s very important with low numbers that it is a fun and fulfilling experience for those kids.”
WOMEN
Of the Boxers’ two returners on the women’s side, Caitlyn Tateishi (Sr.,
Pahoa, Hawaii) stands ready to have a breakout year in her final season
in a Pacific uniform.
After injuries ended her 2005 track and field season and caused the cross country campaign to start late, Tateishi has shown nothing but consistent improvement since then. She set a lifetime best of 24:05.91 over 6,000 meters, sixth best in school history at last year’s Northwest Conference Championships. In track, Tateishi finished just five seconds short of the school record in the steeplechase.
Even better is the fact that Tateishi enters the fall in perhaps the best shape ever. “Caitlyn is really excited to go out and do some damage on the cross country course,” Gatlin said. “I think she has the chance to be a top-20 athlete at the conference meet.”
Kelsey Owens (Jr., Tacoma, Wash.) will look to regain form after an injury cut her track season short. A transfer from Northern Arizona in 2006, Owens spent last year as the Boxers’ No. 3 runner, clocking a season best 24:44.6 at the NWC Championships.
Newcomers Whitney Nelson (Fr., Federal Way, Wash.) and Julie Overby (Fr., Scappoose, Ore.) round out the women’s ledger. Nelson clocked 21 minutes in high school over 5,000 meters, while Overby was a four-time all-league selection.
MEN
With no newcomers on the men’s roster, Gatlin will lean on four returners
to make the base improvement that will make the Boxers successful. “We’re
very experienced on the men’s side,” Gatlin said. “We just need to get
better everyday.”
Casey Nishimura (So., Hawaii Kai, Hawaii) made significant improvement as a freshman, dropping two minutes over the course of the season to finish with a time of 27:43.46 at the NWC Championships. He went on to be the Boxers’ top performing runner during track season in the 800 and 1,500-meter races, clocking 2:06.35 and 4:17.39, respectively.
Fellow Hawaii native Sean Leon-Guerrero (Jr., Hawaii Kai, Hawaii) was a steady performer in his first year, finishing 29:26.91 at the NWC Championships. Both he and Nishmura, according to Gatlin, have arrived at camp in much better physical condition.
“Sean came into camp 20 pounds lighter than he did a year ago,” Gatlin said, “and he is looking to improve quite a bit. The same thing with Casey.”
Steve Stoller (So., Wilsonville, Ore.) and David Maile (So., Kaimuki, Hawaii) will aim to make impacts on the program after seeing their freshmen seasons ended by early injuries. Stoller ran in only one meet, the season-opening Boxer Rebellion, while Maile was lost after running a best of 30:02 at the Sundodger Invitational.