Bruins Cross Country 2022 Season Preview
New head coach, Tom Shaw starts his tenure with plenty of KCC history in his back pocket. Shaw recently retired after 15 years as the KCC Athletic Director. "I am excited to get back into coaching," says Shaw. "I started as a coach and will finish as a coach. Full circle is a fresh way to end my career." Shaw has several returners on the men's and women's teams for this fall.
Leading returner for the men's team is sophomore, Reece Ratliff (Battle Creek/Lakeview HS). He holds the 4th fastest time in KCC history and qualified for the NJCCA DII National Championship last year before sickness kept him home from the race. Shaw said, "Reece has the times to compete at the national championship and some unfinished business this season."
Another strong returner on the men's team is sophomore, Brayden Zambroni (Springfield/Gull Lake HS). Zambroni has been working hard this summer to lead into success in season. He holds the 10th best time in KCC history, and Shaw said, "We are looking for big things from Brayden this season."
Other returning runners on the men's side are sophomores Colin McDowell (Marshall/Marshall HS) and Carter Spring (Battle Creek/Lakeview HS).
On the women's team, sophomore Shayla Mejia (Battle Creek/Lakeview HS) is the only season-long runner coming back. Shaw is excited for Mejia to be back this season stating, "We are counting on Shayla to offer her experience and leadership to the new runners this year."
Also returning on the women's team is sophomore, Natalia Egnatuk (Marshall/Marshall HS). Egnatuk ran one race for the Bruins last fall while playing soccer for KCC too. She has the talent and drive to move up from her 8th ranked in KCC history, to become one of the fastest runners in school history. Shaw said, "We look forward to Natalia running in more races this fall while being a beast on the soccer pitch as well."
"The nice thing about the sport of cross country is that it is both an individual and team sport," says Shaw who is looking forward to helping his athletes meet their athletic and academic goals this year. He says, "Even if we cannot get the numbers for a team, our runners can still reach their individual goals this season."
To compete as a team in cross country, you need five (5) runners for both the men's and the women's divisions. Shaw is working hard to continue to build his team rosters. "This year is definitely a rebuilding year," says Shaw. "I will be looking for runners to patriciate until the cutoff in mid-September. This will help strengthen our brand to springboard into very heathy team numbers in future years."
Individuals interested in learning more about what it takes to be on the KCC Cross Country team should contact Coach Shaw at crosscountrycoach@kellogg.edu.
Click HERE to view the 2022 Men's Cross Country Schedule.
Click HERE to view the 2022 Women's Cross Country Schedule.
Click HERE to view the 2022 Men's Cross Country Roster.
Click HERE to view the 2022 Women's Cross Country Roster.
Click HERE to view the 2022 Cross Country Coaches.