LARAMIE, Wyo. – Set to begin preparation for the 2017 season, the University of Wyoming cross country team will report for fall camp on Wednesday. Under the direction of sixth-year head coach Bryan Berryhill, associate head coach Amanda Clower and assistant coach Scott Dahlberg, the Cowboys and Cowgirls will head to Saratoga, Wyo., Wednesday through Sunday for training and team development. 

"It gives us a chance to spend some time away from campus where we can just really focus on the goals for the year and become a closer team," Berryhill said of the team's trip to Saratoga. "By this time, the kids are getting pretty antsy and excited to get out there and get started training and competing. I'm just excited to see how they've grown from last spring to this fall, and I'm excited to see Coach Clower and Coach Dahlberg get to lead the two teams."

Clower will oversee the Cowgirls, who took fifth place as a team at the 2016 Mountain West Cross Country Championships before an 11th-place finish at the NCAA Mountain Regional. Anchoring the Cowgirl cross country squad will be reigning Second Team All-Mountain West honoree Lauren Hamilton, who took 13th place at the MW championships after establishing herself as team leader throughout the 2016 season. Joining Hamilton as a veteran leader will be senior and 2014 all-conference honoree Kerry White, who took 19th in the field of 88 runners at the MW championships last season. Hamilton and White took 33rd and 48th, respectively, in the field of 135 runners at the 2016 NCAA Mountain Regional. South Carolina transfer Meridith Heneage and Gillette, Wyo., native Quinn DeStefano will join Hamilton and White as the third and fourth Cowgirl seniors to provide veteran leadership in the wake of the losses of Audra DeStefano, Megan Brunette and Cassidy Meade to graduation.   

Juniors Kiah Leonard, Emily Person, Solana Quistorff and Regan VanDePol will bolster the Cowgirl squad with experience and maturity. After an impressive freshman campaign, Kacey Doner will attempt to continue her growth as a rising star during her sophomore season. Doner finished in Wyoming's top five runners in five of her six meets as a freshman, including a 19th-place finish to lead the Cowgirls at the Colorado State Invite, the first meet of her career. Newcastle, Wyo., native Calbi Ausmann will look to continue momentum on the cross country course from a strong freshman track & field season, while fellow sophomores Ashley Bock, Kirsten Kropkowski, Ashley Urman and Madison Yager will add depth to the team. Jackson, Wyo., native Sarah Bentlage and Colorado Springs, Colo., native Allison Mann will look to be competitive as the Cowgirls' two incoming freshmen after impressive prep careers.

After five years at Colorado State, Dahlberg will coach the Cowboy harriers in his first year as an assistant coach at UW. With Jonah Henry – the Cowboys' top finisher in five of six meets last season – redshirting the 2017 campaign, the door is open for a number of athletes to take on leadership roles during the upcoming season. Returning to the team is 2013 Mountain West Freshman of the Year Michael Kesy, who has not competed for the last two seasons. As a senior in 2017, Kesy will attempt to provide the kind of consistency that placed him in the Cowboys' top six in five of six meets during the 2014 season. Jesse Gray joins Kesy as the only other Cowboy senior in 2017.

After another quality track & field season in the spring, Rock Springs, Wyo., native and junior Ricky Faure will be a key presence in the Cowboys' top five. In 2016, Faure was the Cowboys' third or fourth finisher in five meets, while his 30th-place finish at the 2016 MW championships was good enough for second on the squad. Joining Faure to add upperclassman depth will be Cheyenne, Wyo., native Michael Downey and Casper, Wyo., native Calum Kepler. 

A number of talented Cowboy sophomores will look to build on impressive freshman seasons in 2017. After coming to UW from New Zealand, Harry Ewing quickly established himself as a presence near the top of the Cowboy lineup last season, leading the team at the Roy Griak Invitational with a 45th-place finish and finishing in UW's top five at all five additional meets. Fellow New Zealand native Daniel Hintz also had a solid year, finishing in the Cowboys' top five at two meets. Laramie High School product Christopher Henry flashed serious potential at the end of the season, finishing as the No. 4 Cowboy at the MW championships before a 65th-place overall finish at the NCAA Mountain Regional, good for second on the team. Phillip Thomas and @br round out the group of Cowboy sophomores, while newcomers Hayden Scott of Athena, Ore., and Jerald Taylor of Westcliffe, Colo., will join the ranks as incoming freshmen. 

The UW cross country squad will conclude fall camp and return to Laramie on Sunday. They will spend the following week gearing up for the first meet of the season, the Colorado State Invite in Fort Collins, Colo., on Friday, Sept. 1. Stay tuned to @wyo_track on Twitter for additional information about the approaching 2017 cross country season.