Men’s Golf

Recently —

Oct. 6-7 Nestle Purina Classic 873 (seventh)

Oct. 13-14 SMU Stonebridge Invitational 913 (13th)

Oct. 20 Big Four Championship

Cedar Rapids, Iowa 579 (third)

Coming up —

Feb. 23-24 Beau Chene Collegiate Classic New Orleans, La.

Q. How did you feel the fall season went?

A.I think we were disappointed as a whole. We had so many guys on the team that had really played well throughout the summertime and expectations were really high out of all of us coming in … We still have a lot of depth, but for whatever reason we couldn’t put it all together with five guys throughout the season. We are definitely not happy with how things went, but it isn’t the end of the world — we can definitely improve.

Q. You changed the lineup around a couple of times — was that an attempt to get some younger players experience?

A. I was really just searching all year long. We had Tyler [Swanson] and Jeremy [Lyons] playing really well throughout the whole year. They were consistently placing in the top 25 in every tournament and leading the team … Really, with the juggling I was looking for a third, fourth and fifth player to really step up and assume a leadership role.

Q. What have been some highlights of the fall?

A.It would have to be our team winning in Nebraska and watching [Swanson] in the John Deere Classic. Our season started out real positive and on a great note.

Q.What do you expect in the spring?

A. I want us to get better … We need to quit making some of the mental mistakes. At times, we played too aggressively and we need to learn how to back off some at times. We need to improve our short games. Last year we were one of the best teams in the country in chipping and putting, but for some reason, that little white ball hasn’t gone in the hole this year.

— Nate Frandsen

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Women’s Golf

Recently —

Oct. 6-7 Battle of the Lake Invitational Tulsa, Okla. 918 (fifth)

Oct. 19-21 Adidas Fall Classic 929 Palm Harbor, Fla. (eighth)

Coming up —

Feb. 23-24 Central District Invitational

Parrish, Fla.

Q.How do you feel the team performed overall this fall?

A.Overall, I think we had a pretty nice season, at least in the first half. We had a lot of adversity to overcome with Lisa Meshke getting injured. That really hindered our ability to make a run because we are not nearly as competitive without [Meshke].

Q.How major of a part did injuries play for the team this fall?

A.It really hurt us bad this fall. Lisa got hurt, and even in the tournament that she did play in, she was playing hurt and you could tell. Not only injuries, but we also had Louise [Kenney] playing in Scotland and it really discombobulated the team. They did compete hard all fall long though.

Q. What were the highest points of this fall?

A. We really started out well. The team won the Big 3 and Christi Athas won it [individually]. We really had a lot of bright spots in the early part of the season. Without Lisa [Meshke] though, everyone felt a little more pressure to compete in her place. Some good spots were the consistency of Kenney and the senior leadership of Leanne Owens.

Q.How was play from underclassmen affected this season?

A. Really, the only underclassman that got any playing time and a chance to compete was Christi Athas. But anytime anyone gets an opportunity to compete it can help.

Q.What do you expect for this spring?

A. I think it will take a tournament or two to get it going again. We have some players who need to feel their way through and figure out where they fit in. There are many players that will vie for that first position on the team.

— Ben Bramsen

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Men’s Cross Country

Recently —

Oct. 3 ISU Memorial

Ames

Oct. 18 NCAA Pre-Meet

Waterloo

Oct. 31 Big 12 Championships (11th place of 12)

Coming up —

Nov. 15 NCAA Regionals meet at Stillwater, Okla.

Nov. 24 NCAA Championships meet at Waterloo

Q. Who has a chance to get to nationals [NCAA Championships]?

A. I am not going to take the whole team to regionals — just some individuals. I will take Dan Taylor and Chris Francois for sure — and possibly a few more [runners]. [Taylor] and Francois have a chance to run well and get to nationals.

Q.What and who have you been most satisfied with this year?

A. Dan Taylor ran pretty solid all year. Chris Francois has been up and down. Other than that, we really struggled. A lot of that has to do with preparation. [Taylor] did the most work in the offseason, and it showed.

Q. What is the team mainly working on now?

A.After a disappointing conference meet, they need to come back and reassess their commitment to the team. I don’t know if we have a full commitment from all of the guys. We are at a crossroads and will see who will step it up.

Q. How would you classify the season so far?

A. Very disappointing. We had high expectations and failed.

Q. What do you hope to see in next year’s cross country season?

A. We have to have guys commit to work in the offseason and to commit hard in the tournament season.

We have two to three guys committed to this program. [The team] needs some other guys to step it up.

— Jess Jochims

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Women’s Cross Country

Recently — Oct. 3 ISU Memorial

Ames

Oct. 18 NCAA Pre-Meet

Waterloo

Oct. 31 Big 12 Championships (11th place of 12)

Coming up —

Nov. 15 NCAA Regionals meet at Stillwater, Okla.

Nov. 24 NCAA Championships meet atWaterloo

Q. How has the season gone so far?

A. This season was nothing that we would have expected. Anything that could happen has happened to us. It has been illnesses, not injuries, that have kept us from being at full speed. We haven’t had what we consider to be our top five kids compete in a race together at all this season. We have had more illnesses and non-injury things happen to us as a team than I can think of in over 20 years of coaching.

Q. What can the team do to prepare for the regional meet?

A. We don’t change things dramatically [from meet to meet], we change things based on the health of our runners. This will be a more relaxed week in order to get our health back as close to 100 percent as possible. We come in [at the beginning of the year] with a season plan, and we’ll maintain that.

Q. What does the team have to work on during the offseason to reach that next level?

A. With young kids, just one year does not get you to a high level — there are no big jumps in performance [from one year to the next]. To get to a higher level, you need to keep getting stronger and stronger … we’re taking small steps and trying to keep building a solid base.

Q.With Jessica Huff graduating after this year, who are you looking at to step up and take a leadership roll on this team?

A. Running-wise, we’re always looking to bring in new people to step in and take responsibility on the team. It could be senior or a sophomore. We will miss her, but every year you have people leaving and coming.

— Grant Wall