For SU cross country head coach Chris Fox, it was quite simple – think square donuts, he pleaded after each team workout.

As coaches around the country employ various motivational gimmicks, from inspirational songs, to posting what a competitor has stated about them, for Fox, it came down to his sweet tooth.

‘Leading up to regionals last year, coach was always getting it in our heads that we need square donuts,’ sophomore runner Lauren Penney said. ‘There is this place in Terre Haute that sells square donuts, and he would use that before every workout to get us pumped up.’

Terre Haute, Indiana is known for more than just square donuts: It was the site of last season’s Division I Cross Country Championships. To get there, the women had to finish in one of the top two slots at regionals. Finishing second, the women secured a spot at Nationals for the first time in program history and finally got the donuts they had waited for.

The No. 21 ranked women finished 28th out of 31 teams in Terre Haute last year, and as the 2009 season heats up, expectations are high.

‘Last year the goal was to make it to Nationals,’ said junior Catherine DeSarle, who was one of the seven women representing SU at Nationals last year. ‘This year, our goal is to actually do well at Nationals.’

With a young but experienced squad, the Orange women are looking to build off of their Nationals experience this season. Six of the seven runners who represented SU at Nationals are back, and only one, Maegan Krifchin, is a senior. Juniors DeSarle and Rebekah MacKay return, along with sophomores Penney, Lauryn MacFawn and Heather Stephens.

Motivated from last year’s experience, it is clear that just getting to Nationals will not satisfy the hunger that has built up since last season.

‘Once we qualified for Nationals, we were really excited, it was like we met our goal,’ said Krifchin, Bellmore, N.Y.-native. ‘This year it is like we better get there and when we do we are going to do better. Now it’s like, let’s just do it.’

It was only two short years ago that Krifchin was watching the national championships from her laptop. On the track’s Web site, there was a live feed of the race and Krifchin watched in envy, wishing she was there.

Now that reaching the national stage is checked off, the women are a more confident, motivated bunch.

‘The girls who ran at Nationals should be better runners and they are,’ Fox said. ‘They are doing a lot more work, a lot faster, and more confident. Having gone to nationals now they are aware of what it takes to do well at that level.’

And the progress extends well beyond running.

‘Last year I was always forgetting things,’ said Penney, a New Jersey native. ‘There were times when coach was like, ‘Lauren, where is your extra T-shirt, where is your water bottle?’ I was always forgetting things, but this year I am getting the hang of things.’

This talented group of six runners views it as their duty to not only get the team back to Terre Haute, but compete with the top runners in the nation.

Just two meets into the 2009 season, things are panning out that way. The women, led by MacFawn, finished in third place at the Harry Lang Invitational in the first meet of the year. Two weeks later, the women captured first place at the Colgate Invitational, led by MacKay.

Their toughest challenges, however, lay ahead.

On Oct. 3, the Orange travels to Wisconsin to compete in the Wisconsin Inter-Regional. Its trip to the Badger State is the squad’s first true test of the year.

‘Probably 10 teams ranked in the top 25 in the country will be there so that is really big probably the biggest meet in the country until Nationals,’ said Fox.

Traditional powers such as Wisconsin, Georgetown, Michigan State, Texas A&M, and Arkansas will compete in Madison, but this marks just the beginning of a road that will hopefully end in Terre Haute.

This time around, simply getting the donuts will not be enough.

‘It was an exciting season last year and it was great getting the donuts,’ Penney said. ‘But this year we expect to actually be a presence there.’

restern@syr.edu