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Cross Country 2007 Season Outlook

The Wildcat Men’s and Women’s cross-country squads have both reaped the bounty of an incredible off season recruiting effort, and have firmly positioned themselves as contenders for the conference title on both sides.

Coming off a solid third place team effort last season, where the men’s squad had three runners earn All-Conference status, the 2007 team is poised to make a run at the conference crown with the return of conference runner up, CACC Rookie of the Year, and Academic All-American Joe Debus. With Debus’ superb pace control and mastery of the cross country course, he is unquestionably a favorite to win the individual conference title in October.

Joining Debus will be returning All-CACC runner Danny Segars, who is yearning for the chance to improve upon his 12th place finish at last year’s conference meet. After a year of getting to know the 8k distance, Danny will be a formidable opponent come September, and should help to keep the team scores very low. Team veteran Joey Boggs may well be the pivotal person in determining the success of the team, as he will be counted on for his enthusiasm, while junior Dave Creppon is looking for a breakthrough season, which could well pave the way to a team trophy.

These returning student-athletes will be supported by a stellar trio of freshmen, starting with Brad Davenport (Pennsville HS/Pennsville, NJ) who boasts mid-16 minute 5k times with closing speed. Paul Riggio (Gaithersburg HS/Gaithersburg, MD) has excellent credentials as well, and will be relied upon to keep the front pack locked together. Rounding out the freshmen, distance ace Kevin McLaughlin (Middletown HS/Bear, DE) will look to put his strong summer of running to work quickly by securing a scoring spot from the outset. Head Coach Keith Jones says of the men’s chances this fall, “The quality we have in this program is as good as we have ever had. We have an excellent opportunity to challenge for the conference title!”

The Lady Wildcats are likewise in an enviable position, loaded with talent from top to bottom. The 2007 women are in a unique position, having the potential for their top five runners to earn All-Conference honors. Sophomores Mary Kate McCaffery, the team’s number one runner from last year, and Danielle Burcham, the 2006 CACC Rookie of the Year, anchor a women’s team that must be considered a front runner to win the conference title.

The addition of freshmen standouts Rory and Sophie Kauffman (A.I. DuPont HS/Wilmington, DE) raises the bar for the rest of the conference. Their past success and passion for running will instantly place them among favorites to win the individual title.

“Rory and Sophie are extremely talented runners who genuinely love to run and want to improve. I truly feel they are poised to have a spectacular freshman year, and should have unparalleled success in our conference and beyond”, Coach Jones enthusiastically stated.

Freshman LaurenJean Slaughter (Middletown HS/Middletown, DE) brings an excellent combination of speed and endurance, and completes the top five. LJ will most likely challenge for a top 15 slot come late October, while freshman Brittany Anthony (Concord HS/Wilmington, DE) looks to regain her form and contend for a top five position.

With such an exceptional group of men and women, the future of cross-country at Wilmington College has never looked brighter! So come out and support the Wildcats in their 2007 campaign, and be part of a program that looks to bring home top honors at the CACC Conference Championship on October 20th in Fairmount Park, PA.