Valmon, Gearhart Talk 2019 Season at Media Day
8/29/2019 12:49:00 PM | Women's Cross Country
COLLEGE PARK, Md. — The University of Maryland's cross country team attended the annual Fall Sports Media Day Tuesday, where Head Coach Andrew Valmon and senior Kathryn Gearhart spoke about the upcoming season.
Valmon highlighted five things he's looking forward to this season: developing a championship mindset, improving from last year, becoming a family, focusing on academics and creating a great experience for the team.
Coach Valmon was also asked about some of the things he's seen from his team in preseason.
"They're excited, we've got a new coach. It's one of the few programs in the country with two females leading the program, two women who run with the team and have the athleticism to be role models for the team." Valmon said. "I think it's exciting for us to sit back and see the growth that they've had in this one eight-day span of preseason."
Senior Kathryn Gearhart has spent her last four years running for the Terps. Gearhart began her Maryland career with a solid freshman campaign, where she was a top-three finisher for the Terps in all six meets. Throughout her past few years, she proved herself to be a strong runner and leader for the team by qualifying for the NCAA regional meet every year.
Here's more from Kathryn Gearhart on media day:
Q: What are you looking forward to most this season?
A: "This year im looking forward to seeing how the team comes together and how we can compete as a whole and stack up against the teams that we go up against. I know this year I think we will have a strong team and we will all be much closer to each other, so we should be able to beat teams that we have never beaten before. I'm looking forward to seeing how that can progress. I'm also looking forward to just the comradery with my teammates. It's a good group of people and I'm ready to have fun, work hard and get it done."
Q: How will you prepare for a possible fourth NCAA regional appearance?
A: "I know for me regionals is at a different course than last year. It's at Leigh High course, and I really like running on that course. I think it will give me an advantage to hopefully run a good time there during regionals. There will be really good competition there and the top runners from that meet get to qualify for nationals. That's my goal and I want to represent Maryland in the best way possible."
Q: What goes through your head while running?
A: "On the start line it could definitely be a little nerve wracking. You don't know what you're getting yourself into sometimes. You know, it's hard work to get out there on the course and fight, run super fast. But you just have to keep reminding yourself to keep going and keep pushing towards the finish. You'll get there eventually."
Both Valmon and Gearhart have high hopes for NCAA Nationals this year, setting their goals around the event.
"I want to qualify for nationals. That's a huge accomplishment, and I'm really hoping to accomplish that this year," Gearhart said. "I want to be a good leader for my teammates and help guide them to be successful."
Even though Coach Valmon is looking forward to the success his team will pursue this year, he is also ready to for the team's first debut tomorrow at the Mount Saint Mary's 5K Duals in Emmitsburg, Md.
"Mount Saint Mary's 5K Duals is going to be a good test. We're going up against good schools; Georgetown, George Washington, American and others will be there. We're just looking forward to how the body of our team's work is going to pay off."
--TERPS--
