UA cross country poised for 'competitive' Pac-10 meet

Wildcat File Photo Arizona Daily Wildcat Senior distance runner Abdi Abdirahman runs in a track meet last spring at Roy P. Drachman Stadium. Abdirahman will compete Saturday in the Pacific 10 Conference Cross Country Championships in Eugene, Ore.

Arguably the toughest division in the nation, three men's teams from the Pac-10 are currently ranked in the top five, including No. 1 Stanford, No. 3 Oregon, and No. 5 Arizona. The women's race will be competitive as well, fielding six teams in the top 25 including No. 2 Stanford and No. 6 Arizona.

"The Pac-10 is the finest cross country conference in the country," UA head coach Dave Murray said. "It will definitely be a competitive race."

The UA men's squad will feature senior Abdi Abdirahman and sophomore David Lopez. Both have run impressively all year long and look to continue their success in Eugene.

"The men's race is going to be a good race," said Murray. "Right in there will be our own Abdi Abdirahman."

Also poised for strong performances are junior Jeremy Lyons, freshman Steve Smith and junior Micheil Jones.

"Micheil is running great right now and he should come on strong in the Pac-10 meet," Lyons said.

Asked about running against two of the top three teams in the nation, Jones said he felt confident the Wildcats could compete with Stanford and Oregon.

"I think as a team we're not coming in as the favorite with Stanford and Oregon ranked ahead of us," Jones said. "But this is a good chance to see who we are going to stack up with for the rest of the year. We have a good team and we can definitely run with both of them."

Noticeably absent from the roster is senior Jeff McLarty, who remains sidelined because of an ankle injury he suffered weeks ago. He will travel with the team but is not slated to compete.

The sixth-ranked UA women's team will send a deep and talented squad to Oregon this weekend, highlighted by junior Kristen Parrish, freshmen Tara Chaplin and three-time defending Pac-10 champion, senior Amy Skieresz. The Wildcats look to bring home their first Pac-10 title behind the running of the impressive trio.

"Amy Skieresz is the premier distance runner in the country," Murray said. "No man or woman has ever won four straight conference titles in the Pac-10, but she can if she wins this one."

Skieresz was her usual humble self, preferring to focus on the team and not herself.

"We faced both these teams (Oregon and Stanford) at Pre-Nationals," said Skieresz. "We definitely have the talent to do well this weekend, we just have to put it all together."

Parrish remains a consistent and formidable presence in the Wildcats' lineup and looks to run her best race of the year this weekend.

"I believe in myself that I can finish in the top 10," Parrish said. "Nationals is what you want to be looking at but (the) Pac-10 is good to see where you're at."

Murray is confident that both the men's and women's squads will be a competitive force in the strong Pac-10 field.

"If you look at the rankings, on the women's side, we are looking at second place behind Stanford. On the men's side, we are third behind Stanford and Oregon," Murray said. "But in both of these cases, I think that we are going to be right up there."

The men's 8,000-meter race will begin at 11:00 a.m. and the women's 5,000m will follow at 11:30.

Brian Wahlund can be reached via e-mail at Brian.Wahlund@wildcat.arizona.edu.