Brian Stetter’s contagious work ethic and leadership could lead Michigan Tech to even greater Cross Country success.

Throughout the year the headline story for the Cross Country team has been the achievements of junior Brian Stetter.  Today, we take a look at what motivates and drives the Husky runner to compete like he does and delve into his goals and aspirations for next years team and himself.

Every good season is built on a solid off-season of hard and focused training, and for Brian the off-season was much more than just the weight room and constant running.  “The great season can probably be attributed to the passion of the sport, having access to a healthier diet, the support of a lot of people, and my inner drive” says Stetter.  His inner drive and passion for the sport led him to create a lofty, but attainable, goal for the season.  Stetter told me that, “I was hoping for top ten finishes in every race, being able to win the smaller meets, and giving the team motivation to better themselves”.

Brian was honored this year with earning a Midwest All-Region honor, and I asked him about what it meant to him to earn this award.  “Earning Midwest All-Region honors, means that the season really did pay off but I will need to work harder than before for next season to qualify for Nationals”.  But it is not just an individual step; Stetter is hoping this award might motivate some of his younger teammates to work hard through the off-season.

It was very evident from the interview that the team is a very big focus and passion of Stetters, not just his own individual times, and he would like nothing more than to see his teammates push themselves to success as well.  When asked about the Team expectations for next year he simply said, “There is a lot of talent present and potential available, and it would be nice to see many of them utilize this only to improve on what is already present.” He noted that in order to do this many of the runners would have to buckle down over the off-season and work hard to realize many of their own goals.

When it comes to his own goals, the ever-focused Stetter reminded me that there is still a Track season to go through before he can even think realistically about Cross Country again.  But some initial goals for next year would be to get the Tech trails records, qualify for Nationals and finish in the top five instead of the top 10.

Personally after hearing his interview responses, I have no doubt that Brian could do this because he holds a certain passion for everything he does that is the mark of a great student-athlete, “Through running and academics I have always pushed myself extremely hard and try not to let others down” says Stetter.

From all of us here at the Lode we wish Brian and the Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams the best of luck next year. Remember to check out the Lode for all of your Cross Country news.