2015 William Penn Cross Country Preview
William Penn University Athletics
2015 William Penn Men’s Cross Country Preview
2014 MCC Finish: 3rd out of 6
Letterwinners returning/lost: 8/4
Notable returners:
Ochaung Akway Sr. St. Paul, Minn.
(First-team all-conference, season-best 8K 26:40)
Zach Johnson So. Decatur, Ill.
(Letterwinner, season-best 8K 29:34)
Tyler Connelly So. Trenton, Texas
(Letterwinner, season-best 8K 29:21)
Garrett Heckman So. New Virginia, Iowa
(Letterwinner, season-best 8K 29:53)
Notable losses:
Yonas Desta
(Letterwinner)
Saromo Mugisha
(Honorable-mention all-MCC)
Nick Thomas
(Four-time letterwinner)
Notable newcomers:
Cody Miller Fr. Boulder, Colo.
Logan Hoschek Fr. Burlington, Iowa
Cameron Shade Fr. Riverdale, Ga.
Tian Siggins Jr. Atlantic, Iowa
The William Penn men’s cross country team will look to roll recent success into its new conference as the 2015 season is just around the corner.
Coach Sean Gosewisch guided the Statesmen to a bronze at last year’s Midwest Collegiate Conference Championships, and talented returners will be joined by a solid recruiting class to make the navy and gold a real threat in the new Heart of America Athletic Conference.
Ochaung Akway (Sr., St. Paul, Minn., Physical Education) will head the returning pack after qualifying for nationals in 2014. The senior had a top time of 26:40 on an 8K course. Sophomores Garrett Heckman (New Virginia, Iowa, Mechanical Engineering), Zach Johnson (Decatur, Ill., Mechanical Engineering), and Tyler Connelly (Trenton, Texas, Software Engineering) will also don the school colors again and expect to improve with a year of experience at their disposal. All three are expected to continue to lower their times after easily breaking the 30-minute barrier as freshmen.
Carlos Lizama (Jr., Victorville, Calif., Physical Education) and Jeremy Mooney (Jr., Clinton, Iowa, Physical Education) return as well to provide upperclassmen leadership.
The newbie quartet of Cody Miller (Fr., Boulder, Colo., History/Government), Logan Hoschek (Fr., Burlington, Iowa, Undecided), Cameron Shade (Fr., Riverdale, Ga., Sociology), and Tian Siggins (Jr., Atlantic, Iowa, Physical Education) are all highly touted and should step right in and compete well for WPU.
Schedule/Conference
The 2015 schedule begins with a trip to South Dakota for the Augustana Twilight on September 4. A conservative racing schedule will include four more competitions before William Penn hosts the Heart Championships on November 7 out at the Lacey Complex. Baker slipped past Central Methodist for last year’s Heart crown.
2015 William Penn Women’s Cross Country Preview
2014 MCC Finish: 6th out of 6
Letterwinners returning/lost: 4/7
Notable returners:
Deja Lewis Jr. Spring, Texas
(Letterwinner, season-best 5K 21:03)
Addison Kepner Sr. Cincinnati, Iowa
(Letterwinner, season-best 5K 20:34)
Guadalupe Gonzalez So. Houston, Texas
(Letterwinner, season-best 5K 22:26)
Cindy Walker Sr. New Sharon, Iowa
(Letterwinner, season-best 5K 26:00)
Notable losses:
Lilly Walters
(Two-time letterwinner)
Notable newcomers:
Alexys Devlin Jr. Davenport, Iowa
Destiny Galvin Fr. Galesburg, Ill.
Lauren Lehman Fr. Norwalk, Iowa
Kirstin Rankin Fr. Knoxville, Iowa
Depth will assist the William Penn women’s cross country team in becoming a contender as it opens competition in a new league this fall.
While the Statesmen were at the bottom of the standings in the 2014 Midwest Collegiate Conference Championships, Coach Sean Gosewisch returns his top talent from last autumn and has brought in a handful of new harriers to hopefully round out a successful squad.
Back in the navy and gold are WPU’s top three runners: Deja Lewis (Jr., Spring, Texas, Psychology), Addison Kepner (Sr., Cincinnati, Iowa, Biology), and Guadalupe Gonzalez (So., Houston, Texas). All three finished in the top 30 at last year’s MCC meet and with a year under their belts, many more high finishes are projected in their future. Kepner came up with the best 5K time of the group at 20:34, while Lewis’ best was 21:03 and Gonzalez’s was 22:26.
Like Kepner, Cindy Walker (Sr., New Sharon, Iowa, Public Accounting) also looks to improve and impress in her final collegiate campaign.
Four newcomers join the fold with Alexys Devlin (Jr., Davenport, Iowa, Physical Education) holding the edge based on prior experience at the intercollegiate level (competed at Scott CC). Destiny Galvin (Fr., Galesburg, Ill.), Lauren Lehman (Fr., Norwalk, Iowa, Undecided), and Kirsti Rankin (Fr., Knoxville, Iowa, Exercise Science) will also improve as they pile on the mileage every week.
Schedule/Conference
The 2015 schedule begins with a trip to South Dakota for the Augustana Twilight on September 4. A conservative racing schedule will include four more competitions before William Penn hosts the Heart of America Athletic Conference Championships on November 7 out at the Lacey Complex. Benedictine (Kan.) looks to defend its crown after rolling to the 2014 title.
