Northern Tier Sports Report

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NTL CROSS-COUNTRY: CANTON LOOKING TO BE IMPROVED IN 2022 (2022-08-26)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
Canton cross-country has two very different teams early this season. The girls are a veteran group as all six runners are seniors, while the boys have seen a bump in their numbers, with a few new faces joining them.

The girls started off promising a year ago, but things went downhill due to injuries. They return Camille McRoberts, a runner, who, if she wasn’t hurt would have been a state qualifier a year ago.

“This summer we kind of switched our workouts,” explained coach Casey Aylesworth. “She just had a good summer of running where we didn’t really hammer her too much with mileage, it’s more quality, and she looks great in the preseason. With her doing both soccer and cross-country we’ve got to make sure we don’t overwork her, and just take advantage of her natural talents in the end.”

The veteran coach likes the fact that he’ll have a strong group of seniors to work with this season, though it leaves his girls’ program in limbo going forward.

“It’s definitely nice for the fact that we’re running workouts, and just expectations of course, and they kind of have a general understanding of what we’re doing, and how we do it,” Aylesworth said. “It’s definitely nice not having to explain every single thing to them. However, we are missing the newcomers they’re going to be the future of the program, and, right now, we currently don’t have any.”

Kali Wesneski and Laci Niemczyk are two of those veteran runners who hope their final season is their best season.

“I’m really excited because I trained all summer,” Wesneski said. “I’m just getting more faster in my workouts.”

Niemczyk uses cross-country to get in shape for her other sports, and hopes to get into the low 20’s this year.

“It’s sentimental,” she said about having her final season. “I’m obviously going to miss a lot of these girls. I made a lot of memories with this team. I mean, I started my junior year, and I’ve already made so many memories.”

Aylesworth knows it’ll be a tall order to compete with what some of the top teams will be putting out there - particularly NEB and Wyalusing in Small School - but he hopes his team can be competitive nonetheless.

“I think there’s going to be a strong couple of favorites in the NTL, but after that there’s going to be a pack in the middle that’s definitely going to be competitive,” he said. “And cross-country’s weird, one injury takes away from the whole team. We’re going to have six quality runners when they’re all healthy, so I just want them to be competitive each dual meet.”

The boys’ side have seen their numbers jump up a little - they’ll be able to field a full team this year - with some new blood mixed in.

“The boys are kind of a mix,” Aylesworth said. “We have a senior that’s a first year out, but he’s good kid - Hunter Brackman - and then we have Brayden Vroman and Hunter Huffman, who have been part of the program for a couple years, so they know what expectations are, but they’re still developing.”

He’s interested in seeing what they can on the course.

“I have a couple kids who definitely have potential, but they just have to get in better shape,” remarked Aylesworth.

Vroman is looking to get down into the 17’s this year, and for them to get five under 22 minutes.

“I’m pretty excited for it, I have high hopes for the season,” he said. “We’re just building up endurance, slowly getting in shape.”

It’ll be a big jump to get into the 17’s for Vroman, but he knows if he’s going to make states those are the times he has to run.

“That’s why I’m aiming for that,” he remarked. “And then for my senior year I’m hoping to get 16 or 15.”

ROSTER

BOYS

Hunter Huffman

Hunter Brackman

Brayden Vroman

Simon Wile