The Greyhounds placed fourth at NXN Midwest last year but were granted an at-large bid to NXN, where they triumphed to place eighth overall. They return five runners from that squad, including leaders Sarah Leinheiser and Christina Geisler.
Leinheiser enjoyed a breakout fall last year, in which she won the Indiana state title, then ran to All-American honors at both NXN (7th overall) and Foot Locker Nationals (8th overall). Geisler stepped up to become Carmel's top distance runner during the track season by winning the sectional and regional titles in the 3200m; she and Leinheiser placed fourth and fifth in the event at the state meet and ran consistently in the mid-10:30s. At New Balance Nationals Outdoor, the duo placed 10th and 13th in the 5K with times of 17:08 and 17:16. This duo could be the nation's most formidable one-two punch come November.
Probable Top Five
Christina Geisler SR - 15th at Indiana state XC meet 2015, 43rd at NXN MW, 125th at NXN, 18:06.6 5K XC PB, 17:08.4 5K track PB, 10th in 5K at NBNO 2016, 10:35.38 3200m PB, 5:08.17 1600m PB
Q&A with head coach Mark Ellington
How long have you coached at Carmel?
This is my 8th season as Carmel HS head coach. I previously coached 11 years as track and cross country coach at one of our feeder middle schools.
What is your meet schedule this fall?
8/20 North Central JV Invite, 8/27 Taylor University Invitational, 9/3 Terre Haute State Bank Preview, 9/6 Hamilton County, 9/10 Eagle Classic, 9/17 Valkyrie Invitational (Louisville, KY), 9/24 Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference, 9/24 Culver Invitational, 10/8 IHSAA Sectional, 10/15 IHSAA Regional, 10/22 IHSAA Semi-State, 10/29 IHSAA State Meet
How has summer training gone for your team? What do you focus on during the summer months?
Summer training has gone quite well. We spend the overwhelming majority of our time building everyone's base with mileage runs. We try to give our track state qualifiers some time away in June. Not so much to limit their physical training, but mostly to give their brain some time off. We also have a number of athletes attend summer camp (All-Star XC Camp) in early July. We also spend time working on our routines for warm-up, strength drills, and some of our plans for the season. Our seniors put quite a bit of time into creating designs for our practice packs, additional spirit wear items, and planning team activities at team camp.
Carmel after winning the Indiana state cross country title in 2015.
Which athletes do you see as the probable top five this season?
Sarah Leinheiser (12), Christina Geisler (12), Maddie Dalton (11), Rachel Anderson (12), Phoebe Bates (9)
Who are your team captains or leaders and what stands out about them as examples for the rest of their teammates?
To be clear, we don't name captains, but generally our seniors are our leaders. Sarah Leinheiser, Christina Geisler, Rachel Anderson, Daphne Boom, and Emily Ashburn are our key leaders. This group understands the commitment that is required to be successful. It takes time, discipline, and a focus at each practice to comprehend what needs to be completed each day. They arrive, prepare, and execute at each practice. We do have quite a few freshmen and sophomores that will contribute this season, and they have done a great job of connecting with those girls. There's encouragement and sharing of knowledge that takes place; sometimes it's more effective than coaching can be.
Who are some new faces who will make an impact on your team this year? (i.e. freshmen, transfers, runners who have improved a lot)
We do have some freshmen that will make an impact: Phoebe Bates, Emily Hand, Lilly McAndrews, and Sydney Haines. Bates, Hand, and Haines have had solid running careers in our middle school feeder programs. Lilly has run with several of the girls on club teams previously. They have had a great start to the high school training and will likely gain confidence and wisdom as we compete in meets. Eva Brungard, Emma Wright, Izza Khurram, and Mea McCormack are returning sophomores that could make an impact as well.
What are some staple workouts your team does during the season?
Long run on Mondays (top group is between 9 - 11 miles)
Recovery runs on Tuesdays & Thursdays
Threshold runs on Wednesdays (variations: 2 x 10 minutes, 3 x 9 minutes, 3 x 1 mile, 2 x 2 miles)
Fridays - pre-race or aerobic build runs (4-5 miles)
Saturdays - race day
The Carmel girls cross country program poses with their IHSAA state championship plaque.
What will be the biggest reason why your team is successful this season?
When we pull everyone together as one unit, we will be successful. We have some great frontrunners, but we need some consistency to close the door behind them. We indeed may already have them in place, but we need to find out who that is going to be, and then we need to build consistency with it. I think it's too often is easy to just fall into a pecking order. We need to break that mentality and encourage everyone to be contributors.
What will be the biggest obstacle or challenge facing your team this season?
In general, our biggest obstacle very well may be complacency. There's nothing that points to it being a problem at the present time, but we must be on guard against that from creeping in. Our current group of athletes have always won a state title, always been part of NXN, and really only know success at every level. It would be easy to say, "All we have to do is show up, and we're going to win." It's key for us to remember the time, effort, and commitment it takes to be among the best. Shortcuts and excuses will not get us there. We continue to have a focused group of leaders that keep everyone moving in the right direction.
How would you describe your team's culture?
It's likely a bit trite, but we really are a family. We spend so much time together preparing, training, and competing that it naturally connects us socially when we are away from the team. The girls collaborate with school work as well. Older athletes provide advice and support for younger athletes and pass along the expectations and traditions that have been carried out over the years. It's a positive, supportive environment for everyone.
What are your top three goals for the team this fall?
We are looking to win a 7th consecutive Indiana State Title, earn an automatic bid to NXN, and have 20 athletes break 20 minutes.
Top Returnees by 5K Time from 2015 XC Season
| 5* | Carmel High School (IN) | 543 | ||
| 1) Sarah Leinheiser | 17:20.20 | 4 | ||
| 2) Maddie Dalton | 17:56.10 | 31 | ||
| 3) Christina Geisler | 18:06.60 | 58 | ||
| 4) Rachel D. Anderson | 18:45.30 | 213 | ||
| 5) Daphne Boom | 18:48.30 | 237 | ||
| Average Time: 18:11.30 Total Time: 1:30:56.50 1-5 Split: 1:28.10 | ||||
| 6) Alyssa Easton | 19:01.50 | 326 | ||
| 7) Corrine Miller | 19:20.10 | 459 | ||
*Carmel ranks #5 in the nation