Head Coach:

Joe Franklin (8th Year)

 

Last Year:

1st Mountain West

2nd Mountain Region

10th NCAA 

 

Probable Top Five:

SR Sammy Silva (4:19 1500m; 16:34 5k; 12th NCAA XC '13)

SO Calli Thackery (4:21 1500m; 9:28 3k; 16:18 5k; 67th NCAA XC '13)

JR Heleene Tambet (16:53 5k; 35:06 10k; 146th NCAA XC '13)

SR Tamara Armoush (4:24 1500m; 9:51 3k; 149th NCAA XC '13) 

SR Amber Zimmerman (4:23 1500m; 9:47 3k)

 

Impact Freshman/Recruits:

None at press time

Analysis:

If you struggle at all understanding British accents you would have a tough time on this Lady Lobo team. Four of Coach Joe Franklin’s top runners are from England and one is from Scotland. Throw in Estonian, Heleene Tambet, and you might qualify for a minor in linguistics if you are there for the entire four years. Coach Franklin has done a marvelous job recruiting overseas, as he had previously done in his tenure at Butler (miler Scott Overall comes to mind).

But for all of his foreign strength, his number one runner is a Harvard transfer and California girl, Sammy Silva. She ran wonderfully last year with a 12th place finish, and while her track resume is not as glossy on the cross country course, she is powerful. She will be leading Brit Calli Thackery, who ran a 16:18 5k on the track and  junior Heleene Tambet, who practically dead heated with her teammate Tamara Armoush in last year’s NCAA champs at 146th and 149th, respectively. The only thing that might keep Franklin awake at night will be his depth. It seems pretty shallow at this point, with no new outstanding recruits that we are aware of.

Sammy Silva is the real deal and she could challenge for a top 5 spot this year. This team is so dominant in the Mountain West that it isn't a contest anymore. However, the Mountain Region meet, where they were second last year, is a little tougher. But with the meet being held in Albuquerque this November, the Lobos will have a home-field advantage.

Count on the Lady Lobos to challenge in every race they are in this year. Their experience, and a great front runner in Silva, should be enough to make them a team to watch this fall.

#19 Providence Men
#20 West Virginia Women