by Steven Fernandez
Daily Lobo
Heading into the Mountain West Conference Championships this weekend, the UNM cross country teams aren't scaring anybody.
That's just the way head coach Matt Henry wants it to be.
"We're in a very good situation," he said. "Nobody is looking at us as a threat. Truthfully, though, if everything is right with both teams, we can have a very good meet this week."
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There are reasons why other teams in the MWC may not be taking the Lobos seriously.
On the women's team, top runner Jacquelyne Gallegos had to drop out of the Auburn Invitational with a hamstring injury. Gallegos will race Saturday, but not at full health.
"Right now she's probably about 75 percent," Henry said. "She can run, but it still hurts her."
Henry said despite Gallegos' injury he is enthusiastic about his women's squad because of how some of the other runners have been performing.
"Even though Jackie got hurt, everyone else had a pretty good meet," he said about the Auburn Invitational.
Henry said junior Timmie Murphy, who finished seventh overall at Auburn, has been especially impressive. He said the other women have been impressive in practice, and he is also happy about the return of junior Riann Lucy, who missed most of this season due to illness.
"We're definitely stronger on the women's side than we have been in any race this year," Henry said. "Again, Jackie's not at full speed, but other than that, we're coming with the very best people we got."
On the men's side, the expectations were not high after losing All-Americans Matt Gonzales and Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott, as well as seniors Ben Ortega, Nick Martinez and Sean Flaherty.
While the men were not impressive for most of the 2005 season, Henry said the way they performed at the Auburn meet can help carry some momentum in the conference championships.
"I think their confidence is really high right now," he said. "Doing what they did at Auburn, I think, really helped them a lot. That's a good place to be right now."
At the Auburn Invitational, the team finished second out of 25 teams, beating the likes of LSU, Mississippi State and Georgia State.
Henry said the performance was the best meet of the season for the men, and he hopes they continue to run like that Saturday.
"Our pack time was better at that meet," he said. "They just felt good, and they raced good. So if they can duplicate that, I think really we can have a pretty special meet on the men's side."
Senior Cameron Clarke has been the best runner for UNM this year. Henry said Clarke has the potential to be conference champion.
"I don't think that anybody else believes that, but I do," he said. "You better never look past him, because that guy can run like no one's business. If Cameron can stay in it, I guarantee you there's nobody that can out-kick him."
