LINCOLN MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY

CROSS COUNTRY 2009

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JEREMY DONAHUE -- Head Coach (2nd Season) Following a stellar collegiate career for Lincoln Memorial University in which he was All-Gulf South Confer-ence in 2005 and All-South Atlantic Conference in 2006 and 2007, Sevierville, Tennessee, native Jeremy Donahue begins his second season as head coach of the Railsplitter and Lady Railsplitter cross country teams.

In his final season with Lincoln Memorial University, Donahue won the Lee Invitational and ran a personal best time of 26:20 for an 8k race which ranks him as one of the top-10 LMU cross country runners of all-time. In addition, Donahue was named team Most Valuable Runner and All-South Atlantic Conference honors that same season.

A 2000 graduate of Gatlinburg-Pittman High School and member of a state championship qualifying team in 1999, Donahue’s knowledge of the sport of cross country and of Lincoln Memorial University made him the logical choice as the successor to former Railsplitter Head Coach Brandon Gibbs.

As Donahue begins his second season as head coach, his biggest challenge has been locating and recruiting talent for the programs. The success of the two squads will be dictated by how quickly these individuals can adapt to the sport of collegiate level and how well they respond to its faster pace.

2009 SEASON PREVIEWNaturally, the concern for both teams is the lack of collegiate experience. We are a very young team with 12 freshmen and sophomores. However, the potential for the team to grow and progress together this year, as well as the next three to four years, makes this an exciting time for the LMU Cross Country program. We return All-Conference runner Derrick Lindsay and All-Freshmen Team runner Sofia Lopez Mimendi to lead each squad.

The strength on our women’s side will be our depth and the ability to pack-up well in races. I believe we have eight girls who will run very close to each other in races throughout the season, and the order in which they finish may change each race. I am anxious to see how Sofia and Fiona (our two returning runners) progress from last season. While only sophomores I know they will be great leaders and set the right tone in practice for this young team to be successful. After a tough 2008 season that did not see a full women’s team, this young team should pick up where a senior-laden team left off the 2007 season and compete with the top half of the conference.

The men’s side will see just two athletes who competed last year and will have to stay healthy as the lack of depth will be a concern. I look to Der-rick Lindsay to fill the number one spot and for him to be challenged by Reid Ailey, Shane Curtsinger, Andras Pauko, Aaron Morris, John Bolton and some anticipated walk-ons who will hopefully give us more depth. We expect each race to be a learning process for the men and, if patient, they should be running their best around conference meet time and rival the success experienced last season.

REID AILEY FreshmanJefferson City, Tennessee

SHANE CURTSINGER FreshmanWilmington, Ohio

JOHN BOLTON FreshmanLaFollette, Tennessee

DERRICK LINDSAY SophomoreTalbott, Tennessee

2008 South Atlantic Conference All-Freshman Team

ASHLEY THOMAS FreshmanSpeedwell, Tennessee

FIONA REINECKE SophomoreKnoxville, Tennessee

ALYSSA MALONEY FreshmanSneedville, Tennessee

CASEY POORE FreshmanJonesborough, Tennessee

ASHLEY ROBBINS FreshmanMiddlesboro, Kentucky

AMBER STOERP SophomoreMurfreesboro, Tennessee

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SOFIA LOPEZ MIMENDI SophomoreMexico City, Mexico

2008 South Atlantic Conference All-Freshman Team

KELSEY CLASBY FreshmanBig Stone Gap, Virginia

AARON MORRIS FreshmanNewport, Tennessee

ANDRAS PAUKO SeniorBudapest, Hungary

2009LINCOLN MEMORIAL UNIVERSITY

CROSS COUNTRY SCHEDULE

DATE MEET LOCATIONSept. 5 Sewanee Invitational Sewanee, TNSept. 12 Fleet Feet/Earl Jacoby Invitational Huntsville, ALSept. 19 Berea Invitational Berea, KYOct. 3 Louisville Classic Louisville, KYOct. 17 Trailblazer Invitational Gray, TNOct. 24 South Atlantic Conference Championship Hickory, NCNov. 7 NCAA Southeast Regional Wingate, NC