LHS’ Crowell to run at D-I level

Cross country was only supposed to be a means to an end athletically for Lakeland High School’s Jacob Crowell.

“He always was a soccer boy growing up,” said his mother, Kimberly Crowell.

He tried out cross country in eighth grade as a way to stay in shape for soccer.

Jacob Crowell said his cross country coach, Don Moberly, told him, “‘You need to come back next year.’ And so I just kept coming back and improving my times, and it became a big priority and a big part of my life.”

Crowell, now a senior, recently signed with Radford University to be a cross country runner at the NCAA Division I level.

“It means so much,” he said on Friday. “That’s what I worked my whole high school career for. College was always a goal, and then D-I was another dream out there, and to sign today, everything’s coming true. So, it’s great.”

Lakeland cross country coach Christopher Novakoski said he was happy for Crowell, noting, “He wanted to run Division I, and that was his goal, and he achieved it.”

Crowell’s mother said, “D-I was more than I anticipated him doing, in all fairness, because cross country was never his primary (sport).”

Crowell has also had three different coaches over the course of his brief cross country career, but rather than that lack of consistency being a hindrance, each coach pushed him forward in a positive way, as both Crowell and his mother attested.

Of Moberly, Crowell said, “He got me inspired in cross country so much, and my second coach, Coach Erik Johnson, pushed me and got me into the best shape that I’d ever been in, and he helped me realize my talent, that I could go on to the next level.”

In the latter part of his high school career, Crowell began to receive letters and calls from schools interested in him.

“At the end, Coach Nova pushed me to where I actually got to that time where I could get these letters, and he helped so much with the recruiting process,” Crowell said.

Crowell narrowed the schools he was interested in down to two — Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Radford.

A big part of what gave Radford the edge was his visit to the school.

“I loved the campus, and the coach, she knew her stuff,” Crowell said of Mackenzie Wartenberger. “She was on top of her game, and I knew she could get me through the gap to the next level where I wanted to be.”

Crowell said he is going to major in kinesiology.

“I think I’m going to be a physical therapist,” he said.

Novakoski expects Crowell to make an early impact on the Highlanders’ cross country team.

“There’s a strong chance that he could be a top-five runner for them this year,” the coach said. “I don’t see why not.”

Crowell’s agreement with Radford gives him a roster spot, but he must earn an athletic scholarship with his performance as a freshman.