Feb. 16, 2006
Just over four years ago, Stony Brook head cross country and track and field coach Andy Ronan took a gamble on a Kiwi, one that would essentially change the face of Stony Brook's cross country and track and field programs forever.
Ronan, who established ties in New Zealand back in the late 90's as an assistant coach at Providence College after recruiting All-American Hamish Thorpe, recruited Dale Summerville despite never seeing him compete.
"I had never seen Dale run, so I was taking a gamble," said Ronan. "His performances were consistent and New Zealand's tradition of producing some of the most successful middle distance runners in the world also helped my decision."
Summerville was the first of Ronan's Kiwi recruits to arrive on the Stony Brook campus in the fall of 2001, gradually working his way to the top of America East conference in both cross country and track while rewriting the Stony Brook record books.
In his four seasons, Summerville posted the highest finishes for a Stony Brook male at America East Championships (third in 2004), IC4A Championships (third in 2004) and the NCAA Northeast Regional (34th in 2003 and 2004) while earning a pair of America East relay championships and shattering five school records. As a senior, Summerville led his Seawolves to the first IC4A Men's Cross Country Championship in program history and to a third place finish at America East Championships, the highest ever by three spots for the men.
"The first fall Dale was here I wasn't really sure what to expect as he struggled to adjust," said Ronan. "The following semester though he started to show signs of what we could expect from him. During his time here he raised the level of our teams and rewrote the record books in the mile and 3000-meters, but more importantly he raised the level of our cross country program with this top finishes in the conference. Dale was essentially responsible for helping us transition from being a young Division I program into a mature one that is highly competitive within our conference."
Summerville was followed by arguably the most decorated Kiwi in Stony Brook red in Leonora Joy, who after posting a runner-up finish in 2004 joined former America East women's cross country champions Jenny Payne and Jackie Nunez to become the third champion in four years for the Seawolves after taking home the 2005 individual title.
"After seeing Jenny win in my freshman season, winning the title had been a goal for me," said Joy. "It's such a big thing for the school, and to finally accomplish that as a senior was a great way to cap off my cross country career."
Joy, who is wrapping up her career at America East Indoor Championships on February 17-18, holds eight Stony Brook records and has captured four America East titles while earning All-Northeast Region and America East all-conference honors in each of her four seasons.
"Leo is the female version of Dale," said Ronan. "She got off to a quicker start, winning the ECAC cross country title as a freshman, but she had more help here with Jenny and Jackie, so she didn't have to do it on her own. She took what they started and brought consistency to the women's side of the program, helping us to become one of the top three teams in the league year in and year out."
The accomplishments of Summerville and Joy are amazing in themselves, but more importantly then breaking records and winning titles, the duo played a huge role in the development of a fairly young program.
"Dale and Leo have carried the program to a new level, certainly in the conference and through the higher levels of ECAC and IC4A," said Ronan. "They have raised the standard and expectation level for all the student-athletes in the program and those coming after them. How their work ethic has translated into success has shown the others what it takes to be successful in this sport.
Since the arrival of Summerville and Joy, three other Kiwis have made the trip from the country of New Zealand, an island of four million people, to a much smaller island in New York State with nearly as many people. Shaun Krawitz and Dana Hastie arrived on campus in the spring of 2004, with Sarah Beresford just behind the following fall semester.
All three have shown signs they have the potential to follow in the footsteps of Summerville and Joy.
Hastie, who earned all-conference honors with a fourth place finish at America East Cross Country Championships in the fall, and Beresford, who earned Metropolitan titles in the 5000-meters both in and outdoors last season have stood out as Joy's successors on the women's side.
"Dana is certainly taking steps towards getting to the level Leo is finishing up on, especially with her performance in cross country in the fall and her continued success so far this indoor season," said Ronan. "In the short time Sarah has been here she has been among the top end of the conference in the 5000 and 10,000-meters and we expect her to challenge for those titles in the upcoming years."
Krawitz, who placed 15th at the America East Cross Country Championships as a freshman, made the jump to second in his sophomore season while posing top eight finishes in the 3000-meter steeplechase in both years.
"Shaun has taken steps to show that he can compete in the top end of the conference in the steeple and in cross country," said Ronan. "With great finishes in his first two years and two more to go, I see him as a strong contender to challenge for the cross country individual title and the steeple title."
From One Island to Another
All five Kiwis have similar stories of how and why they chose to move more than 18 hours away from home to attend Stony Brook, including its academic reputation and location and the chance to compete on the collegiate level, but mostly due to one person - Andy Ronan.
"The biggest reason I came here was because of Coach Ronan," said Summerville. "I remember the first phone call we had. He said he'd take a chance on me and either we'll both go up together or we'll both go down together. Five years later and we're still going up."
Hastie, who as a theater arts major was drawn to the Stony Brook's proximity to the New York City area, has excelled in her two years under Ronan's tutelage, earning America East all-conference honors in cross country in 2005.
"I love coach Ronan's approach of seeing the best come out of his runners in the long term," said Hastie. "He is so focused on seeing you excel long term as an athlete rather than squeezing all of your potential out in your college years."
That approach is no more evident than in the case of Summerville, who improved drastically in his four years at Stony Brook and has continued to do so since beginning his international racing career following the completion of the 2005 indoor season.
A member of the New Zealand senior national team that competed at the World Cross Country Championships in France in March of 2005, Summerville went on to spending the summer as a member of the country's development squad that toured Europe. During the tour, he raced in Belgium, the Netherlands, England and Germany, where he ran the 35th fastest time in the 3000-meters in New Zealand history. In August, he moved onto race in the World University Games in Turkey, crossing 19th in the 5000-meters.
Summerville, who recently signed a deal with athletics giant Asics, returned to Stony Brook in January to continue training with Ronan before heading back to Europe to compete with the New Zealand team in June and July and ultimately has his sights set on the Summer Olympics in 2008.
Five Different Kiwis
Despite hailing from the same country and competing for the Seawolves, each of the five have come from very different backgrounds and have equally different personalities. No one has seen that more than Ronan.
"Dale is the politician of the group, very outgoing and approachable, but he takes care of business," said Ronan. "Off the track, Leo is shy and reserved, but on it she is a fierce competitor. Dana is a little theatrical, but is also very outgoing and approachable. Sarah's has a stubborn streak that makes her a very competitive athlete, at times she can be a bit strong-willed so she has to be held back occasionally. Shaun can be very reserved and needs a little more attention throughout the season, while the others are a little more independent."
Their stories of how and why they came to Stony Brook are also vastly different.
Krawitz, who was born in South Africa where he lived until the age of eight, moved with his family to New Zealand in December of 1993 because of the uncertainty caused by apartheid and arrived in New Zealand. He began running in 2000 and, in 2003, got his first taste of international competition when he placed third at the New Zealand under-20 cross country championships in Australia and raced with future teammates Hastie and Beresford at the World Mountain Running Championships.
Despite his success at home, Krawitz was ready for an increased level of competition and found it in Stony Brook.
"New Zealand is a fairly small running community, so the competition is not nearly as good as it is in the U.S. The depth just isn't there," said Krawitz. "I could only get five or six good races in a season, where as I'll always get a good race here. That was a big factor in coming here."
Hastie grew up on farm in Wellington with three older brothers who she jokingly credits for getting her hooked on running.
"I was constantly chasing them around, trying to keep up with them," said Hastie. "I kind of got into running that way. Everyone in New Zealand does the cross country thing and I was so competitive and wanted to keep winning, so I just kept running and training. Coming to America and Stony Brook was an open door for me to do that."
The differences of the five seem to have tied them together even more in a sense, as they try to travel together on that 18-plus hour trip home and adjust to the American culture.
"We're completely different people even though we come from the same country," said Beresford. "We don't spend a ton of time together outside of the team, but it's still nice to have people are from the same country being so far from home. When you come from another western culture, there are still a lot of differences but you never think of it until you get here, and then it's quite strange."
The similarities and differences of the Kiwis have combined to form a group that has helped usher in the most successful four years in Stony Brook cross country and track history.
"Dale, Leo, Shaun, Dana and Sarah have raised the level of the athlete that we recruit," said Ronan. "They have exposed the other athletes to what it takes to really be a competitive college athlete. They are professional in their approach to their sport and they manage their day so as to get the most out of their academics and athletics."
In Ronan's five seasons at the helm of the Seawolves, he has recruited five Kiwis who have ultimately turned the men's and women's cross country programs into consistent contenders for America East titles each season while posing threats for individual titles in both indoor and outdoor track.
The numbers are outstanding - six America East Championships, 17 school records, nine Metropolitan Championships and 19 ECAC/IC4A qualifiers.
And with even more to come, it already looks like Andy Ronan's little gamble paid off.
