Like most freshmen athletes, cross country runners' first year at the University requires effort in all areas of life, from school to schedules to athletics. Few are expected to make an immediate impact on their team's overall performance. After making that adjustment last year, sophomore runner Emily Harrison returned to Charlottesville ready to compete and prove there is no such phenomenon as the "sophomore slump."
"Last year, when she came in as a freshman, she was very new to the game," Virginia coach Jason Dunn said. "Since then, she has really grown."
Just under a year ago, Harrison competed in her first collegiate cross country race at home and led the Cavaliers to a title at the Lou Onesty Invitational with a second place finish time of 18:11.5 in the 5-kilometer run. From that point on, she did not look back.
"She was an individual qualifier for Nationals last year for cross country," Dunn said. "So throughout the season, she made great progress."
Harrison finished first among all Virginia women runners for the rest of the season. In her most notable performance during the ACC Cross Country Championships, Harrison finished ninth overall to earn her first All-ACC recognition. In addition to her conference success, Harrison finished sixth in her first NCAA Regional meet to qualify for a chance to compete at Nationals. At Nationals in Indiana, she took 109th place in the 6-kilometer run. As the only women's runner to represent Virginia in postseason competition, she proved that even a freshman runner can make a difference.
The All-ACC and All-Regional runner from Front Royal, Virginia later turned to even more outlets to test her skill. In February of this year, she finished eighth at the U.S.A. Junior Women's National Championships in Vancouver, Washington. With that finish, she was named to the Junior National team that competed in the 2005 World Championships in France.
In addition to that competition, Harrison competed at the North America, Central America and Caribbean Cross Country Championships held in Clermont, Fla. March 6. Her 15:10.0 time in the 4000-meter race earned her third place and the necessary points to help the U.S. take the meet over second-place Puerto Rico.
With an offseason filled with success and competition, Harrison returned to face her second season in even better condition to win.
"It is clear to me now she has made progress," Dunn said. "She is more fit, she is stronger and she is more ready to continue to raise her level up as we work through this season."
Not only is her coach pleased with her success, her teammates also are counting on her to help Virginia regain its 2001 and 2002 form when Virginia qualified for the NCAA Championships.
"We have Emily Harrison, who was our No. 1 runner last year," senior Shannon Hawrylo said. "She was all-ACC and was awesome. She had a really good summer and is ready to contribute."
With Harrison currently ranked in the top 10 in the ACC in the 3000-meter run, Virginia hopes to rely on the power of a rising sophomore.
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