The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1013591
70 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER L egendary NC State men's cross country head coach Rollie Geiger is a fixture at the NCAA Champi- onships. The 37-year leader of the Pack's men's program has been to every NCAA Championships since 2006 and has only missed the meet once since 1995. But last fall was a close call. "We may have been the last team in the NCAA to make it to the tournament last year," Geiger noted. "They only take 31." A fourth-place finish at the NCAA Southeast Regional put NC State squarely on the bubble, but the Pack salvaged its op- portunity by finishing a respectable 17th at the NCAA Championships — the school's highest placement since coming in 10th in 2011. Geiger's experience and knowledge lead him to believe that it should not be nearly as nerve-wracking this year. He returns six of the seven runners that competed at the NCAA Championships, and it's a deep lineup that features three all-conference performers and a fourth who did not make All-ACC but was an all-region choice and is the team's top returning runner from the final meet. That said, the one that needs to be re- placed is a major loss. Aubrey Myjer was the team's top finisher at the NCAA Cham- pionships (74th) and an excellent leader according to Geiger. "Aubrey was an exceptional young man," the coach noted. "I think as a whole we'll have leadership from the group. I'm look- ing for more than one actually." Returning for NC State from the team that competed at the NCAA Champion- Sophomore Ian Shanklin emerged in the postseason to be NC State's top finisher at the NCAA Southeast Regional (19th) and is the top returning runner from the NCAA Championships (75th, one place behind team leader Aubrey Myjer). PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS M E N ' S CROSS COUNTRY PREVIEW ■ Key Meets • Nuttycombe University of Wisconsin XC Invita- tional, Sept. 28 — The annual meet is the best indica- tor for Geiger of where his teams stand before the postseason races begin. The Zimmer Championship Course that it is run on is also host to this year's NCAA Championships. • ACC Championships, Oct. 26 — Syracuse is a pow- erhouse that finished last season ranked third nationally in the United States Track & Field and Cross County Coaches Association poll. Virginia Tech (ninth) was also ranked. This year's meet is in Boston. • NCAA Championships, Nov. 17 — Provided NC State advances out of the NCAA Southeast Regional Meet held Nov. 9 in Rock Hill, S.C., the Pack will return to Madison for the third time this fall. It will also run in the Pre-NCAA Meet there Oct. 13. THE NEXT STEP After Barely Making The NCAA Championships A Year Ago, The Wolfpack Aims For More Significant Accomplishments