The month of August has consistenly seen a group of students running in and out of the Emmaus campus, and those runners have endured the time trials and hills of preseason, marking the beginning of the 2024 cross country season!
The cross country team begins its fourth year of competition in 2024, and the two teams are shaping up to produce the best season yet. "We'll be focused on honoring and glorifying God through our running, running PRs and bettering ourselves in every regard this season," said head coach Jeremiah Gerardy, who also enters his fourth year with the Eagles. "Our goal will be on qualifying our teams to the NCCAA national meet and running our best race on that day."
The Emmaus men's team will be fielding a full men's roster for the first time in program history. "We are very excited about the men's team this year, having a full team and within that team, we will have a lot of talent. The team is progressing from 2 runners last year to 6 guys this year. Even more exciting, we believe that each runner on our men's team will have the ability to individually qualify for the NCCAA DII national meet," shared Coach Gerardy.
"I'm excited to see the continued improvement of our returners, Caleb Ness and Cristian VanderKrol, and the leadership they will bring to the team. It will be especially exciting to see how they thrive with a full team around them."
The men's team welcomes newcomers, Matthew Hanselman, Benjamin Driscoll, William Koranda, and Samuel Stapley. In regard to the newcomers Coach Gerardy continued, "This will be a super exciting class to work with this year and in the future. In getting to know each of these young men it has been so fun and encouraging to see their intentionality, grit, and most importantly their love for the Lord. I look forward to seeing the relationships they are able to build with each other and their growth on and off the cross country course."
On the women's side the Eagles will again be bringing a solid team to compete on race days. Coach Gerardy exclamed, "We aim to, and I am confident in our ability to bring the entire women's team to the national meet again this season. They were super intentional in their summer training, and I look forward to that becoming visible on race day."
Key returners will include two All-Region athletes in Kate Janzen and Anna Coniglio, along with Abby Mast. "In Anna, we will be returning the current school record holder, and in Kate, the Eagle Impact Award winner. Abby brings the truest form of grit and determination as she balances marriage, a full-time job, being a full-time student, and athlete while coming to practice each day with a smile on her face. Our women's team is in such a good place under the leadership of these ladies," expressed Coach Gerardy.
The women's team welcomes newcomers, Bria Tuttle, Riley Rath, Auggie Christensen, and Alice Hanselman. In regard to the newcomers Coach Gerardy shared, "I am very excited to have each of these new faces on the team this year. They each bring their own strengths to the team and seeing them mesh has been so encouraging."
The Eagles men and women will open their season with the Bob Schultz Invitational in Dubuque, IA on Friday, August 30 at the Dubuque Soccer Complex.