Schuck: Behind the Mavs 5th Place at NCAAs

We caught up with Minnesota State - Mankato coach Mark Schuck (pictured) recently to get the inside story on his team's fine 5th place finish at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships in Joplin, Missouri. Denise Mokaya, James Krajsa, and Jeff Stuckenbroker earned all-American distinction for the Mavericks.

DtB: How did the Nationals race play out? Did you guys get your position early on? Could you see how you were doing relative to Grand Valley and Chico State?

Schuck: Our race plan was to be a little conservative at the start and work our way up. We wanted Denise in the top 15 at 5k and he was and the rest around 25 to 40th. I didn’t look so much to Grand Valley or Chico but rather was more concerned with our position in the meet. My job is to let the athlete know where they are and to remind them of their goals and race plan. I try to keep it simple when the heat is on. I thought we could be in the top eight for sure with a shot at top four Dan Ristau, our number 3 man all year did not have a good race and ended up 7th man for us. As you know, that can happen sometimes. He was trying so hard.

DtB: The 5th place finish at NCAAs is the best for your team since 1999 when they were third. Did you have a lot of confidence in this year's group all season?

Schuck: I have had a lot of confidence in this team. They kept improving every week. It was fun to watch that improvement.

DtB: You had three all-Americans. If you would, tell us a bit about what made each of them successful?

Schuck: The three all-Americans of Denise, James and Jeff are all hard working guys as are the rest of the four. I felt that all 7 of our team could have been all-American. Denise has a lot of talent and works hard. He was not our number one man early in the season, because he was out of shape in the early part. James is very tough mentally as is Jeff. Jeff has had a history of injuries, so he marches to his own drummer to stay healthy. It seems to be working. James always wants more and will do what it takes to be good. He never ran high school cross country. Not bad for a soccer player.

DtB: Looking ahead, you return six runners next year. Other than Grand Valley, though, your immediate competition doesn't graduate many either. What will it take get yourselves into a top-4, trophy-earning position in 2008?

Schuck: Luck is the answer. But my definition of luck is “when preparation meets opportunity”. I hope we have the opportunity and get to the National Meet and then I hope we will be better prepared to meet the challenge. The competition is not going away. To be in the top four, we must rise above the challenge. And the National meet is in Pennsylvania next year and I hope it snows.

Photo courtesy of Minnesota State - Mankato.