Scouting Report: Hereford

Scouting report interview with Hereford head cross country coach John Roemer. Despite their school size, the Hereford girls are annually one of the state's best cross country teams as they have maintained their dominance over the 2A classification over recent years. The boys are regular state qualifiers and one of the top teams in Baltimore County behind Dulaney. A strong core of 5 varsity runners return for each team from their 2015 cross country season.

Top 7 Boys Returnees

46Hereford High School (MD)1426
1) Dillon Coffey16:51.0067
2) Dietrich Sweeney17:42.50234
3) William Creel18:01.33322
4) Jacob Turner18:19.23397
5) William Holbrook18:21.42406
Average Time: 17:51.10 Total Time: 1:29:15.48 1-5 Split: 1:30.42
6) Will Reider18:27.18435
7) Drew Turnbaugh18:31.06458


Top 7 Girls Returnees

9Hereford High School (MD)412
1) Emily Konkus19:12.7715
2) Kelly Shearer19:50.5037
3) Nicole Burkoski20:15.3868
4) Lillian Behan20:56.82138
5) Olivia Holbrook21:06.00154
Average Time: 20:16.29 Total Time: 1:41:21.47 1-5 Split: 1:53.23
6) Abby Walters21:07.78156
7) Emily Francis21:10.91162



1. How many years have you been coaching high school cross country (and at your current school)?
 
I started with indoor and spring track in 1994-1995, so this is my 23rd year coaching at Hereford.  I volunteered for my first 16 cross country seasons, then took one of the two head positions.  
 
2. What do you attribute as the main reasons for the success of your program?
 
I think we've capitalized on success that goes back to the early 1960s.  Cross country is what many people in northern Baltimore County think about when they hear "Hereford", and while there have been long stretches without a state championship, the combination of the sport's accessibility and potential for achievement keeps our numbers high.  Last year 125 people (11% of the school's students) joined the team.  It's a cohesive bunch, and the weekly team parties are special.  
 
Hereford also has many miles of trails in the surrounding state park, so there's novelty and potential adventure on most of our routes.  Last year the Turnbaugh brothers encountered a black bear near the school, and it's not rare to scare up a poisonous copperhead snake in the rocks.  We swim in the river during the August heat.  When we're hurtling along a trail in the middle of the forest, I tell the kids to soak it all in, because in 5 or 6 years it's going to be a fond memory.  If you like to run, this is a good place to be.  
 
Consistency and enthusiasm are important.  Eight head coaches have made great contributions since I started, but 3 guys have spanned the last 60+ years.  Layton Stamper started when the school opened in 1954, Jim Heffner picked it up in the 1960s, and I began just before Jim retired.  Jim and I are storytellers and are pretty enthusiastic about running and racing.  I suspect that the kids here probably have bonded over ridiculing their coach's ramblings for at least 5 decades, but I also think they know we're "all in" when it comes to their success and wellbeing.  Adam Hittner began coaching at Hereford last year and he's likely to be here long after I'm gone.  
 
3. What would be the best way to describe your style and philosophy of coaching and working with high school runners?
 
I'm pretty laid back and give our established runners options within the framework that Coach Hittner and I establish.  Some self-determination regarding one distance route versus another, or which group of hills to tackle helps makes a long season more fun, and still achieves the goal of getting fast.  We also test the toll of the training by running with the kids when we have spare people to time workouts, and one of us usually is roaming the trails during distance days to keep track of everybody.  Coach Hittner is the lifting guru, and his weight room knowledge has helped the team immeasurably.  
 
4. What are your core beliefs in your training plan and workouts for your cross country squads?
 
I try to meld the successful aspects of my training as a miler and cross country runner, so the rigor of track workouts is applied to our weekly intervals on measured routes in the woods.  We weave in weekly hill repeats during the first half of the season and our distance days typically have plenty of challenges.  We use the trails in the Gunpowder State Park a lot, and seldom run on the Hereford course.  Varsity kids do 6-10 miles on Saturdays on the local rail trail when we aren't racing.  I take most athlete suggestions seriously, and try to improve the workouts each season.  We don't run on the track or on the roads.  
 
5. How many runners do you return from your top 7 from a year ago?
 
5 boys, 5 girls.
 
6. Who is your projected top 7 heading into the cross country season?
 
Here are 7 boys based on the day 1 time trial:  Dillon Coffey, Drew Turnbaugh, Konrad Shire, Shane Taylor, Will Holbrook, Dietrich Sweeney, Will Creel.  There are 7 more in close proximity.  
 
7 girls from the time trial:  Emily Konkus, Kelly Shearer, Emily Francis, Lillian Behan, Nicole Burkoski, Abby Walters, and Olivia Holbrook.  There are several close behind 
 
7. Who are your team captains or leaders and what stands out about them as examples for the rest of their teammates?
 
Dillon Coffey, Dietrich Sweeney, and Jake Turner.  Lillian Behan, Kelly Shearer, and Nicole Burkoski.  These six have many seasons of dedicated running and are were voted in by their teammates.  

 
8. Who have you been most impressed or surprised with their improvement and/or fitness from their summer training?
 

The usual suspects cranked it up, but two who began their careers modestly and are discovering that dedication can transform your running are senior Britta Miller and junior Jake Bass.

 
9. Any impactful freshmen or transfers to join the team this season?
 
You never know for sure!  Liberty's Maeve Lyons and Heidi Rinehart improved by about 90 seconds each between Bull Run and States in 2014 to stun our girls.  Maybe there's another Emily Konkus (she had a similar improvement between Barnhart and the county championships 2 years ago) among our freshmen so we can return the favor to our closest competitors, but we probably won't know until Counties.  
 
10. What are the top invitational meets that your team will be attending this season?
 
We're going to Barnhart, Gunpowder, and William Tennent in Pennsylvania.  We've tried to return to Octoberfest in Virginia for 3 years, but storms cancelled it twice and this year we're not allowed to go because of a holiday.  
 
11. What will be the biggest obstacle or challenge facing your team this season?
 
Injuries, as always.  We monitor our kids closely, but the mileage/individual susceptibility/rough trails combination is a challenge.  
 
12. What will be the biggest reason why your team is successful this season?
 
Summer mileage, injury avoidance, and carefully-tailored workouts.  
 
13. What is a favorite annual or common pre-season workout or run for your team?
 
Falls Road hills.  This is a steep 0.4-mile affair, repeated 3 times, in the middle of a 9-mile run.  For perspective on the difficulty, Hereford's top runners Mason Rivera, John Luckin, and Dillon Coffey averaged in the mid-2:30s.  Kristen Malloy, Erin Causey, and Kelly Wesolowski were around 3 flat.  This one hurts for a few days, and we usually do it before the racing season begins.  
 
14. What is a favorite annual or common mid-season workout for your team?
 
We typically cycle thorough a series of hill workouts, including Bunker Hills, Sandy Lane, and Darksides.  The latter are comparatively short but are stupid-steep and exquisitely uncomfortable.  
 
15. What is a favorite annual or common championship season or end-of-season workout for your team?
 
5x1000m.  These are on a loop in a pine forest, and by the fourth one of the season we often see significant improvement.  The footing, turns, and a hill make this about 15 seconds slower than the track for the fastest guys.  
 
16. What are your top 3 goals for this year's squad?
 
1) Keep the girls' team fit, continue their success at 2A states, and try to stay among the top 3 programs in Maryland.  
2) Develop the boys' team for a higher state championship finish.  It's a different competitive landscape now, but several sophomores are making the kind of progress we saw just before Hereford won 3A from 2010-2012.
3) Cultivate all of Hereford's runners so I will see them racing on the roads 10 years from now.