Justin Gerber

2001 Season Outlook

The Cedarville University men's cross country team is coming off of one of its finest seasons in the history of the program. The Yellow Jackets are pre-season ranked No. 5 in the NAIA thanks to a 2000 campaign in which they won two meets and finished second in four others. While the Jackets have plans to keep up the momentum following a best-ever fifth-place showing at the NAIA Nationals, they will need their returning experienced athletes to rise to the occasion.

"A number of questions remain to be answered," head coach Elvin King explained. "We're missing our #1 runner from last year and nagging injuries have been a problem. By the end of the season we should have a solid team."

The top returning runner is senior Jody Fox. He is a two-time NCCAA All-American and was an All-AMC performer last fall. Seniors Justin Gerber and All-America Scholar-Athlete Ken Loescher as well as junior Alan Bruder all ran in the top seven on the 2000 team.

Dan Plaatje

Seniors Jason Gray and Dan Plaatje as well as juniors Josh Mark and Justin Whitaker all have varsity experience and will be asked to make key contributions. Five newcomers, three of which are freshmen, join the program.

One of the key stories of the 2001 squad is who isn't running. Sergio Reyes, last year's top runner who has just one year of eligibility remaining and at least two years of schooling left, decided to sit this season out. He transferred to CU and promptly won four invitationals including the AMC title, was the NCCAA runner-up, and placed 6th at the NAIA Nationals for All-America honors. He was a NAIA Indoor All-American and a two-time Outdoor All-American. Reyes will run track this spring and cross country in 2002.

The 11th Annual Friendship Invitational and the NCCAA Championships highlight the season on the home course. Both meets will be run at John Bryan State Park near Yellow Springs, Ohio. The Jackets will compete in seven other meets including the Midwest Collegiate Championship in Kenosha, WI and the Ohio Collegiate Championship.