GARRETT WAIT
Sports Editor
Turnover seems to be a theme for both cross country teams this season. The men lost nearly half the team from last year, and the women followed suit. But head coach Dick Kampmann said he thinks this women’s team can easily surpass the feats of the past season.
One main difference this season is the addition of the new women’s track program, which will allow runners to maintain top physical form throughout the year. Kampmann said he has witnessed results from the team’s cardiovascular workouts to prepare for the upcoming season.
“I’ve seen (the benefits) already,” Kampmann said. “We ran (track) as a club last year, but we only had six girls and we lost three of them due to graduation or transfers. But the ones I’ve got, they’ve gotten to the point that they’re making a commitment.”
Kampmann’s team looks completely different from the past season thanks to the departure of last year’s outstanding freshman and number-one runner Taylor Carroll who transferred to Arizona State University. Kampmann also lost leadership when team captain and junior-to-be Karen Porter decided to further pursue her education at Yale University.
“She felt that the environment (at Yale) would be more conducive to be more involved in government,” Kampmann said. “I’m sorry for myself that I lost her but happy for her that she made a decision educationally, not just for running.”
Despite all the losses, Kampmann said he feels the team is making headway because they’ve been working together so well. The emphasis on experiences as a team this year has the Waves ready to take on the West Coast Conference.
“They’re going to be much better this year because they are so close right now,” Kampmann said. “I told them how proud I was of them because they’re now running as one. They help each other, at the end of a race they’ll wait for everybody to finish rather than just walking away when they’re done running.”
Last season was more of a struggle because the personalities were so different, according to Kampmann. This season the women want to be involved with the team aspect of college sports.
“That’s one thing we’ve talked about,” Kampmann said. “We didn’t have it last year. It has to do with personalities. I can’t make them have that feeling of wanting to be a member of a team.”
Kampmann’s new team has a lot of youth out front, but he says that won’t be a problem as the freshman class has stepped up even without two of his best recruits.
“I’ve got a great group of freshmen,” Kampmann said. “My top two freshmen have not been able to run yet because of medical problems, but the rest of them have already gone on the next level.”
Kampmann said he thinks this team can make some noise in the conference because of the way the women have been preparing already this season.
Pepperdine begins its schedule Saturday at the Cal State Fullerton Invitational.
08-29-2005
