2022 EAGLES … The girls and boys teams gather for a picture following the BBC Championships held at Harrison Lake on October 15. (PHOTO PROVIDED)
By: Nate Calvin
FAYETTE – Over the past two decades the Fayette Eagles Cross Country program has become a power in the BBC along with their success at the district, regional, and state level.
The man leading Fayette cross country during that time is Bryan Stambaugh, a 1998 graduate of Fayette.
Stambaugh just finished his 22nd season as head coach, 17 of them with another Fayette alum, Matt Maginn, as his assistant.
“I started coaching the year after I graduated and I was not ready for that”, recalled Stambaugh. “It took some time to implement what I wanted to get going since I was the head coach of kids I just literally ran with.”
Stambaugh though gives credit for the success of the program to the kids who have been a part of Fayette cross county the past 20+ years.
“Honestly, I would have to say the kids. We have been very fortunate to have some very hard working, “lead by example” kind of kids.”
“These same kids help recruit within the school and are really the face of our program”, continued Stambaugh.
“When you have kids that have individual success, it helps build a platform to a more competitive program overall.”
“Success breeds success and without the leaders we have had throughout the years our program wouldn’t be where it is.”
“Lastly, the families of so many past runners help make our program complete, to where it feels like one big family.”
“That’s my favorite part of all this…the friendships and the memories.”
The boy’s dominance is displayed in the fact they have finished no worse than third in the BBC since 2005 with league titles in 2005, 2014, 2018, and 2020.
The history of success extends past BBC championships and into district and regional competition.
The boys team had a stretch of regional appearances from 2002-2010 along with berths in 2014, 2015, 2018, and 2021.
Perhaps the highlight during that time was in 2005, when the boys team was district and regional runners-up to qualify for the state meet.
That team, comprised of Heath Armstrong, Nathan Stoltzfus, Tyler Downing, James Henry, Matt Kovar, Andy Mullett, and Nic Roth, are to date the only team from Fayette to reach the state level in any sport.
For Armstrong, 2005 was his fourth year qualifying for state, as he finished fifth overall.
Darrell Randal (2008-2010) joins Armstrong as a multiple state qualifier for Fayette during Stambaugh’s tenure along with single state appearances from Skylar Lantz (2014), Brett Merillat (2018), Quinn Mitchell (2020), Wyatt Mitchell (2022), and Jose Blanco (2022).
The 2005 season was also a big one on the girls’ side as the Eagles fielded their first full team in 20 years.
They followed that accomplishment with league titles in 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, and 2020.
The girls have produced state qualifiers in 2005 (Danielle Wyse (Shay), 2008 (Erica Goeltzenleuchter (Towers) and Leslie Burrow in 2021 and again this past season.
The success of Fayette program can also be attributed to in part to a strong junior high program.
On the boys’ side, Fayette captured league championships in 2006, 2009-2012, and another run between 2014-2019.
The girls team has BBC titles to their credit in 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2021.
“I just hope the kids keep enjoying it”, said Stambaugh when talking about what he wants the program to be in the years ahead.
“Running isn’t for everyone. It isn’t pretty. It’s run until you want to fall down, in any kind of weather, only to have to do it again the next day.”
“But as many of our past runners will tell you, it’s so rewarding in so many ways.”
“As I mentioned earlier, it’s the friendships and memories you make before and after those workouts or races.”
“Most of all it’s what those runs teach you about yourself. From the first time you laced up those running shoes to just how much stronger and capable you really are.”
“That’s what I hope to see, kids continuing to grow and become amazing adults in the real world.”
Nate can be reached at sports@thevillagereporter.com