OREM — Instead of a stirring speech before the Great American championship race in North Carolina, Mountain View cross country coach Dave Houle simply wished his team luck.

"Last year when we went to North Carolina, we were totally confident we were going to win," said junior Steve Strickland, "and then we found out we didn't have the training we needed.

"This year we were pretty nervous, but we had the training, and he didn't even give us a talk; he just said 'good luck' in our hotel room, and I think that took all the pressure off."

Houle's strategy paid off as the coach and his eight-member team accepted a trophy declaring them national champions in boys cross country Wednesday in the school's gymnasium in front of hundreds of students. It is the school's third boys' title in five years and Houle's fifth, an unprecedented record for the school and coach.

The national champion is named annually by Harrier running magazine. A USA Today poll also ranked Mountain View No. 1. The Bruins also won the region and state titles.

Houle said the improvement in this year's squad from a top 10 to No. 1-ranked team was due to better workouts, including running 10 to 15 miles a day.

Going into the North Carolina race in October, the coach worried that instead of inadequate training it would be a mental breakdown that robbed his team of a national title.

"I told them fear is a great robber of dreams. They went out and ran outstanding . . . They're probably the best boys team I've ever coached," he said.

The team was ranked second until two weeks ago, when the No. 1-ranked team, a Woodland, Calif., school, lost an in-state meet.

It might have seemed an unrealistic goal, but this team has had the title in its sights since the beginning of the year.

"We wanted it so bad because we'd won it before in 2000," Strickland said, "and we knew this team was so much faster than the team in 2000."

The boys were thrilled to earn the honor, especially because there are four seniors on the team.

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"It's a once-in-a-lifetime honor," said senior captain Nate Houle. "Being on top is a hard position to hold onto, especially with all the competition."

Orem Mayor Jerry Washburn thanked the team for a great performance, and the student body gave the team a standing ovation.

In addition to Strickland and Houle, the varsity team includes: Sterling Goodwin, senior; Steve Handy, senior; Justin Leavitt, sophomore; Jared Keller, junior; Graham Cheever, junior; and Mike Steele, senior.


E-mail: adonaldson@desnews.com

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