Oberlin College Athletics

The Oberlin College men’s cross country team is poised to take another step forward in 2009. After finishing fifth in the league in 2008, the Yeomen look to build on that performance and compete for a spot on top of the NCAC standings.

Despite losing number one runner and All-NCAC performer Ryan King to graduation, Oberlin returns several key underclassmen and has a talented group of new faces headed to Northeast Ohio. Leading the way for the Yeomen is junior Justin Warner, who is Oberlin’s lone returning all-conference runner. Warner, originally from Kingston, Massachusetts, finished 17th at the 2008 NCAC championships. He is looking to jump into the upper echelon conference runners as his championship time of a year ago puts him among the top ten NCAC runners who will be competing again in 2009.

Also looking to help the Yeomen move up in the league is sophomore sensation Ben Schild. The Prescott, Arizona, native just barely missed All-NCAC honors in 2008, but hopes to achieve the feat this season for the crimson and gold. A former state champion, Schild is among the top five runners in his class and fifth-year head coach Ray Appenheimer believes he has the talent to be one of the top 10 runners in the North Coast. Sophomore Stephen Williams, who had a very successful outdoor track season, along with junior Albert Davila, are vital factors to the overall team success this season. Sophomore Derrick Lange, who is looking jump on the scene and cement his spot in the rotation as an important factor in the conference title chase, is also key for the Yeomen to score well at the conference meet.

Competing for the Yeomen will be a star-studded class of first-year harriers. Ryan Kavanaugh comes to Oberlin as one of the top runners from the state of Oregon. First-year Eric Line, who claimed a Delaware state championship, will also don the crimson and gold. Jake Dancy, a Merrimack, New Hampshire, native who garnered all-state honors last fall, adds to the barrage of talent. Finishing the fearsome foursome is Matt Bernstein from just outside our nation’s capital.

The Yeomen will open their 2009 season at the Wooster Invitational on September 1. Oberlin will host one meet in 2009, the Second Annual Inter-Regional Rumble, on October 17.