The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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SEPTEMBER 2016 ■ 55 "It's been a long time since we had a senior group like this," Henes said. "They each led us at various times last year. We had a different lead runner in each of the last three races last year. They understand the team aspect of cross country. "They saw how close we were to being on the podium [top three in the country] last year. That's their goal, and they're going to help the younger athletes with that." Henes will surround her seniors with a talented supporting cast. Ryen Frazier and Rachel Koon were exceptional as fresh- men last fall. Frazier, a nationally heralded recruit, broke out of the chute quickly, win- ning her first two collegiate races, including a highly competitive Notre Dame Invite. She wound up earning All-ACC and All- Southeast Regional honors. Koon, a third-year sophomore for 2016, was not as hyped as Frazier entering the season, but she finished third at the adidas XC Challenge to open the year and then ran strong races at both the Notre Dame Invite and Wisconsin adidas Invitational. From there, she posted seventh-place finishes at both the ACC and NCAA South- east Regional Championships, earning all- conference and all-region honors. She was State's second runner at the NCAA Cham- pionships, finishing 59th overall, less than three seconds behind Kemp. The final returning starter, Alyssa Ru- dawsky, lined up for four varsity races as a third-year sophomore, including the ACC, regional and national championship meets. She was the Wolfpack's fourth runner at the conference meet and the fifth at the NCAA regional. The daughter of two-time Olympian and six-time NCAA champion Vicki Huber, she went on to earn second-team All-ACC hon- ors and qualified for NCAA regionals in the 5,000 meters during the outdoor track season. "Ryen led us early in the season," Henes said. "Alyssa came on late and then had huge breakthroughs in track. She's been brought along well. I believe she has a lot of running ahead of her here the next two years." The Wolfpack did lose senior Samantha George, who lined up for five of six varsity races last season and was the team's undis- puted senior leader. The 2012 ACC Rookie of the Year will be missed, but there will be stiff competition for her spot in the lineup, starting with Wesley Frazier, a fourth-year junior transfer from Duke and Ryen Fra- zier's older sister. Wesley Frazier sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules, but she has made an impact in her brief time at NC State. She set a meet record in the 5,000 meters at the 2015 Raleigh Relays, then set the school record for the indoor mile this past winter. Bianca Bishop lined up in three varsity races as a sophomore a year ago and fin- ished 35th in the ACC Championships. She did not compete in the postseason NCAA races, which only allow teams to line up seven athletes. Freshmen often play a big role for the Wolfpack, as Frazier and Koon did a year ago, but Henes might have the luxury of redshirt- ing everyone in a very strong recruiting class. Elly Henes of Cary qualified for Nike Nationals three times and was a four-time 4-A state champion runner in cross country and track at Green Hope High School. Anna Vess from Fairview, N.C., made it to Foot Locker's national cross country champion- ship meet last fall. Vess was a two-time state 3-A cross country champion and a nine-time state champion in track at AC Reynolds High School in Asheville, N.C. Dominique Clairmonte of Lexington, Ohio, is a former state champion in cross country and a four-time state champion in track. Beth Taye of Silver Springs, Md., won the two-mile national championship at the New Balance indoor nationals, was a two-time state champion in the 3,200 me- ters and was a two-time Foot Locker cross country regional qualifier. "We're deep so it's hard to know if we'll run any of our freshmen," Henes said. "Normally, with a freshman class of the level that this one is, we'd assume we would line up one or two of them, but I don't know at this point if that's going to happen. "I think all four of our top freshmen will make an impact at some point, but I don't know if that'll happen this fall. And it's nice for them and for us that there's no pressure on them as incoming freshmen that they have to step in and make a contribution right away." ■ ■ By The Numbers 4 Returning All-ACC runners from a year ago. 6 Returning athletes who have started in multiple postseason races, including the ACC Championships, NCAA Southeast Regional and NCAA Championships. 8 Top-five finishes all-time for the Wolfpack women in the NCAA Championships, including 2015. Noting The Pack • The 2016 squad will be the second NC State women's cross country team in as many years not to feature a returning All-American on the roster, the first time that has happened since 2004-05. • NC State's appearance at the 2015 NCAA Championships marked the Wolfpack's 28th show- ing in the 35-year history of the event. That is the most appearances at the national meet of any school. • Kaitlyn Kramer, a recent 4.0 graduate in chemi- cal and textile engineering, is the latest NC State cross country runner to earn a Weaver-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship from the ACC. A standout in and out of the classroom, Kramer earned All- ACC in cross country a year ago. Athletes To Watch Senior Erika Kemp A 2015 All-ACC runner and a two-time all-regional performer, Kemp was among the Pack's top three runners in four races last season. She was the team's lead runner at the NCAA Championships, missing All-America honors by a little more than seven seconds. She followed a strong cross country season by earning second-team All-America accolades in the indoor 3,000 meters. Fifth-year senior Megan Moye Moye was among NC State's top three runners in three races, and among the team's top four in two other meets. She earned all-region honors at the NCAA Southeast Regional, and then finished in the top 100 at the NCAA Championships. Moye is a two-time All-American in track, most recently in the indoor mile in 2015. Redshirt junior Wesley Frazier A transfer from Duke, Frazier has been in the program for three semesters, but had to sit out last fall because of NCAA transfer rules. She makes her cross country debut for the Pack this year. An eight-time prep national champion in cross country and track and field at Raleigh's Ravenscroft High School, Wesley already has made a mark on the track at NC State, setting the meet record in the 5,000 meters at the 2015 Raleigh Relays and breaking the school record in the indoor mile last winter. Fifth-year senior Megan Moye started all six varsity cross country races last season and earned all-region laurels before placing in the top 100 at the NCAA Championships. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS