Thirty one years ago, University of Guelph runner Paul Williams captured the CIS Men’s Cross Country Championship. Williams became the second Gryphon to accomplish the feat, following in the footsteps of fellow Olympian Grant McLaren. Since that race the Gryphons have enjoyed a great deal of success including an incredible six national team championships and four runner-up finishes in the past ten seasons, and have positioned themselves as the strongest cross country program in the country. Head Coach Dave Scott-Thomas’ teams have accomplished almost everything imaginable in CIS competition; however, one thing, the individual title, has alluded the Gryphon men.
There have been close calls: multiple All-Canadians Reid Coolsaet and Steve Bendo both finished third; and last fall Matt Brunsting (Stirling, Ontario) made a bold move at the 8 kilometer mark of the 10 kilometer championship race in an attempt to capture the title, only to be reeled in over the last kilometer and finish fourth.
Many believe this fall could bring an end to the streak for the Gryphons. Defending OUA champion and Centennial grad Kyle Boorsma is coming off an incredible summer season which saw him place fifth in the 1500 meters at the Olympic Trials behind Olympians Taylor Milne, Nate Brannen and Kevin Sullivan. Teammate Matt Brunsting is fully healthy after battling injuries this summer and is looking to finish what he started last fall. Both are among a handful of individuals who can legitimately say they are contenders for the title.
In addition to Boorsma and Brunsting the Gryphons are blessed with several other athletes who could contend for All-Canadian honours and will hope to lead the squad to their third consecutive national title. Brunsting’s twin brother Joe was tenth at last year’s championships and with at least three athletes in front of him graduating he will be targeting first team All-Canadian honors. Fifth year men Derek Snider (Lindsay, Ontario) and Josh Roundell (Ottawa, Ontario) are both gearing up for their final seasons and look to finish their careers with their first All-Canadian honours in cross country.
With the loss of All-Canadian Andre-Paul Baillargeon-Smith and team stalwart Angus Macaulay, Scott-Thomas has added three recruits who are expected to make a substantial impact. Leading the class is Villanova transfer Allan Brett (Ottawa, Ontario). Two years ago Brett was one of the most widely recruited athletes in North America, after recording the equivalent of a 4:05 mile in high school. After spending one season at Villanova he moved to Guelph last fall and spent the past year training with the team before becoming eligible this season.
Joining Brett will be local high school star Rob Jackson. Widely regarded as the preseason favourite for CIS Rookie of The Year honours, the Centennial grad comes in with the strongest track credentials of any first year male athlete in Gryphon history. Jackson who has represented Canada internationally on multiple occasions, will need to adjust to the longer distance of university cross country but if he is capable of doing that All-Canadian honours are definite possibility.
Rounding out an outstanding class is Andrew Cliff (Vancouver, British Columbia), younger brother of women’s star Rachel Cliff. Andy comes to the Gryphons having played a wide variety of sports in high school while still excelling at cross country, placing fourth and fifth at the past two BC High School Championships. With this year being his first dedicated complete towards running, Cliff's growth as an athlete could be exciting to watch over the coming years.
The feel good story of the year on the men’s team could be third year runner Cody Murray (Sydenham, Ontario). Last summer, Murray was involved in a horrific car accident which left him with a broken back. Last fall Murray was able to assist Scott-Thomas in a managerial capacity and has slowly build his way back into running a full volume and is now in the best shape of his life. Murray along with John Parrot (Newmarket, Ontario), Adam Lewandowski (Ottawa, Ontario), Rob Koziarski (Mississauga, Ontario) and Jordan Cote (Sarnia, Ontario) all provide much needed depth on this strong and experienced squad.
"Our men are a really balanced team," Scott-Thomas says, "We've got a great blend of rookies and vets; guys who've been there and who will teach our next generation. If we keep everyone healthy we've got firepower up front and a strong support cast to cover our 4-5 scorers and 6-7 displacers. The guys have done their work over the summer and are exactly where we'd like them to be at this time of the year - healthy and focused with a great capacity to ramp it up."
The Gryphons will open their season Saturday in their only home meet of the season, the New Balance Gryphon Open in the University of Guelph Arboretum. They will then head to Western for the annual Western International, an important measuring stick against OUA and CIS competitors. Following an off week, the Gryphons will wrap up their regular season with two competitions
against top NCAA teams first at Lehigh on October 4th and then at Penn State on October 17th. The OUA Championships will be held October 24th at Fort Henry in Kingston where the Gryphon men will be looking for their fourth consecutive OUA title, while the CIS Championships will be held two weeks later November 9th at the Plaines D'abraham in Quebec City, with the team shooting
for their third National title in a row.
Stay tuned tomorrow for a preview of the women's cross country team who are seeking their record fourth consecutive National title this fall.
Kyle Boorsma
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