WAYNESBURG, Pa. (Aug. 23) – After spending the 2009 season as its assistant coach, Chris Hardie takes over as the headman of both the men’s and women’s cross country teams at Waynesburg University. He replaces former headman, Blair Zimmerman.
The Waynesburg men are coming off of a fifth-place finish at the 2009 Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Cross Country Championships. The squad is expecting a much higher finish at the 2010 championships, which it will host at the Greene County Airport on Oct. 30. This confidence is due in large part to the return of nearly every major contributor to last year’s squad.
Leading the way for the Yellow Jackets are seniors Bill Moder and Adam Swingle, who combined for four top team finishes in 2009.
Expectations are also high for sophomore Kyle Edwards, who crossed the finish line first amongst his teammates in two meets. He was also the only Waynesburg runner to earn PAC Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week laurels last season.
Junior Kam Schaefer also returns for Waynesburg after leading them with the team’s top finish at the 2009 NCAA Division III Mideast Regional. Senior Ben Fortna and sophomore Matt Crawford complete this year’s group of returning runners. Senior Sean Dougherty, who has been a member of the Waynesburg track & field team for the past three years, will also join the men’s long distance runners this fall.
The Waynesburg men’s roster will also be bolstered by a small, but talented, group of freshmen looking to make a difference on the course.
Waynesburg opens the 2010 season on Wednesday, Sept. 1, when it competes in a tri-meet with Geneva and Thiel. The Yellow Jackets will also host their annual home invitational on Sept. 11.