Boston College Athletics
2001 Women's Cross Country Outlook
August 01, 2001 | Women's Track & Field
Aug. 1, 2001
What can the Boston College women's cross country team do for an encore following its magical 2000 campaign? Following a season where head coach Randy Thomas' squad won the BIG EAST and NCAA District I Championships and finished fourth in the country, he returns his top five finishers from the conference championship team.
All the achievements the Eagles earned last season added up to the best national finish for a Boston College women's athletic program. So by taking all the honors from last season, the perfect encore would be to win a national championship in 2001.
"Our first objective is to repeat at BIG EAST champions, then try to repeat as regional champions, which is followed by hopefully winning a national championship," Thomas said.
Leading the way for Thomas' 2001 squad are co-captains Katie Ryan and Maggie Guiney. All-America recipients Ryan and Guiney enter the season with impressive resumes from last season. Guiney returns as the conference favorite after finishing runner-up in 2000 and having last year's champion Ann McGranahan graduate from Villanova. To add to her accomplishments, she was crowned champion at the NCAA District I Qualifier and finished 13th at the NCAA Championship in Ames, Iowa.
Ryan's accolades in 2000 were just as impressive as she earned sixth-place plaudits at both the BIG EAST Championship and NCAA District I Qualifier. Her All-America honors were achieved by finishing 24th at the NCAA Championship, which was the second-best finish on last year's team.
Junior Cate Guiney and sophomores Laura Smith and Jennifer Kramer are expected to play major roles this season. Guiney is coming off an eighth-place finish at the conference championship, seventh-place mark at the NCAA District I Qualifier and 34th-place honor at the NCAA Championship. As just a freshman Smith had an impressive showing at the BIG EAST Championship as she placed fifth. The BIG EAST first-team member placed fourth at the NCAA District I Qualifier, but unfortunately developed an injury the week prior to the NCAA Championship, which prevented her from having a strong showing. Kramer was a nice surprise from Thomas' team as she placed 15th at the conference championship ran well at the NCAA Championship.
"In order for us to win an NCAA championship, we will need to get four runners in the top 25 and our fifth runner in the top 40, which I definitely believe we can do," Thomas said.
Besides having an incredible returning class, Thomas added freshman Maria Cicero to the mix. The Illinois native was a high school All-American and finished 13th at the national high school cross country championship. To go along with her cross country honors, Cicero was a state champion in both th one- and two-mile and held the fastest indoor two-mile time in the country last year.
Iona Meet of Champions, New England Championship and the NCAA Pre-Championship meet, which is held at Furman University in Greenville, S.C., highlight this year's regular-season schedule. The meet at Furman gives the women, along with schools from around the country, an opportunity to run on the course where the NCAA Championship takes place on November 19. Thomas' team begins its mission toward a national title when it competes in the BIG EAST Championship on October 26 at Van Cortlandt Park in Bronx, N.Y. The Eagles look to defend their NCAA District I Qualifier championship on November 10 at Franklin Park in Boston.
With everything in place for the 2001 season, Thomas realizes what needs to be done if his team is going to have another successful season.
"If we stay healthy and focused, it can anoth wonderful season," Thomas said. "It is going to be tough to repeat last year's success, but the team is ready for the challenge."
