Defending champion Lady Tiger cross country team to have a new look

The target will be a big one. The target on the back of the Cowley College women's cross country team that is. One year removed from winning the NJCAA Division I National Championship, the Lady Tigers will have their work cut out for them in order to repeat as champs.

Cowley returns only two runners from a season ago. Returners are, Karissa Glover and Karstyn Nolan. Glover earned Honorable Mention All-American honors as a freshman, while Nolan rounded out Cowley's top-six runners at the national meet.

"We graduated a stellar class of runners, so we will need individuals like Karissa (Glover) to step up and be a leader," Cowley head coach Cameron Rieth said.

The Lady Tigers' top four runners will likely be made up of Karissa Glover, Kristen Wilson, Delicia Boothe, and Ashley Goforth.

"We will need that fifth girl to step up," Rieth said. "We have a lot of potential, but fitness wise we are still figuring out how to do things."

Kristen Wilson, a freshman from Giddings, TX, and Layla Ingalls, a transfer from Embry-Riddle College, highlight the list of new additions to the team.

"We are excited about the newcomers, they just need some coaching," Rieth said. "If they make running a lifestyle and not just a hobby, they have a chance to be good. This young crew will need to focus on development."

Other freshmen on the team are, Asaris Dandicourt-Goire, Andrea Garcia-Gonzalez, Abigail Pinncock, and Yazmin Reyes.

"This is a different team than last year," Rieth said. "Our goal is to win a title every year, but we need to take it week-to-week and then see what happens."

The quest to repeat as champions begins Friday, September 3 when the Lady Tigers take part in the Terry Masterson Invite in Hutchinson, KS.