Sophomore runner Dave Jurgens tried to put the conditions of the meet into perspective: "besides the heat and the altitude, the men's team was given the wrong maps, so that was confusing. It seemed as though the course route was changed twice, which didn't help matters. But overall, both teams look better than last year, and most of us are experienced runners." The men's team is led by seniors Mark Farmer, Jim Andrews, and Nick Peters, while the women rely on veterans Louise Foti and Heather Pieraldi (TheFoghorn).
The cross country team competed two weeks ago in the West Coast Conference Championships at Crystal Springs in Belmont, where the women had their best finishing of their existence, placing fourth. The men placed seventh out of eight conference teams. "They did outstanding," said Head Coach John Drocco. "The women's Assistant Coach Heather Pieraldi had them fine tuned to knock off St. Mary's." Even though this did not happen, the Gaels were second overall in the conference, right behind team champion Gonzaga, the women's finishing makes USF proud. Last year's champion team Portland placed third.
Drocco is confident that when the West Coast Conference Tournament rolls around on October 28, his runners will definitely be among the top finishers. "They have to be completely out of the norm. A true cross country runner is one that doesn't mind being alone, likes to run, and does not need a team behind them to push them," said Drocco. Assistant Coach Heather Pieraldi, in her third year, was a two-time MVP at USF in 1986 and 1987. According to Drocco, she told him that "this is the first time there is some sense of a semblance of a team who work together as one (TheFoghorn)."
