"Cutler could be a top-five guy for us," Dunham said. He finished in 27:55 at the league meet despite limited training. He really kind of epitomizes what we look for in our distance runners at Central."Ī fifth-year student, Cutler Owens (Runnells, Southeast Polk HS), is a three-time letterwinner, who missed much of 2021. We've been seeing him continue to progress as he's gone through his Central career and he's setting himself up for a great season. "He put in a great summer and is very committed to the sport. "Jacob will play a huge role," Dunham said. The 2020 team's most improved performer has prepared diligently for his senior season. He was in the team's top seven twice last year. Sanders will be among those pushing for a varsity spot as well. His improvement last year was astronomical and he's coming into this season with big goals." "He was a guy I recruited because I really believed in him and what he could do. "We finally got a season where Adam was able to train without any injuries and we saw what he is capable of doing," Dunham said.
He later earned all-America distinction by leading off the eighth-place unit in the distance medley relay at the NCAA indoor track and field meet in March. Similarly, Sylvia dropped 29 seconds from his time at the at the conference meet, where he placed 43rd, to take 76th at the regional in 26:25. He's got great range from the 800 all the way up to the (8,000-meter) cross country race and has high expectations this year." "He's kind of established as one of the better middle distance runners in the country but he's also developed as a distance runner.
"Noah took a huge step as a distance runner," Dunham said. He was a national indoor meet qualifier in the 800 meters. The time ranks him 14th on Central's all-time top performers list. Jorgenson won the Central Dutch Invitational, slid to 40th at the conference meet after placing 18th in the league the previous year, then surged to 28th at the NCAA regional in 25:05, 1:41 faster than his conference meet performance and good enough for all-region honors. Jorgenson and Sylvia shared the team's Most Improved Performer Award. The goal is to get back to the national meet." It has a lot to do with his work ethic and his desire to be a great runner. "He's a confident runner and if you look at the development that he's made since his freshman year, it's quite remarkable. "Caleb is coming off his best cross country season ever," Dunham said. That ranks him fifth on Central's all-time top performers list. He pushed that mark lower to 24:44 with an 89th-place finish at the national finals in Louisville, Kentucky. Silver, last year's team MVP, gained all-conference distinction with a 13th-place finish at the league meet, then rocketed to 12th at the regional meet in a career 8,000-meter best of 24:45. "I'm excited about our leadership," Dunham said, pointing to captains Jacob Sanders (senior, Nevada), Sylvia and Silver. The team's more immediate focus is on the regular season and Dunham expects a well-prepared squad when it hosts the season-opening Central Dutch Invitational on the campus cross country course Sept. We beat two of the teams that had beaten us at the conference." "It just didn't go the way that we wanted it to, but we responded really well at the regional meet. "Conference was very disappointing last year," Dunham said. "We've got a lot of depth this year, a lot of guys who can play a role."īut Dunham doesn't want his runners to lose sight of the American Rivers Championships where Central struggled to fifth place last year before rebounding with a strong showing at the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional, placing sixth in a 30-team field. "I'm looking at our roster and we've got guys that can run with them," he said. The potential for that is there, Dunham said.
But you've got to have other guys that are bringing it. I believe all three of those guys have a good shot at qualifying individually this fall, and if you've got three going, you've got a pretty good team. "Noah was just a few seconds from qualifying and if Adam runs where he was all season our team is in a much better position at those regional championships. "Caleb obviously did it last year and Noah was not far away," Dunham said. Dunham thinks Noah Jorgenson (junior, Sidney) and Adam Sylvia (senior, Boston, Mass., Old Rochester HS) could also reach the Nov.
PELLA- Coach Joe Dunham is counting on some newcomers to enhance the depth his Central College men's cross country lineup needs to complement a trio of potential national meet qualifiers.Ĭaleb Silver (senior, Conrad, BCLUW HS) was among Central's first two runners to reach the NCAA Division III Championships since 2017 and headlines a group of four returnees from last year's seven varsity runners.
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