FARMVILLE, Va. -- Longwood University senior cross country runner Sean Flynn|Goodview (Roanoke Catholic) is this week's Longwood Male Athlete of the Week. He led the Lancers to a ninth-place finish at the Big South Cross Country Championships on October 27 with his season-best 8K time of 26:52 to place 42nd among the field of 90 league competitors. Flynn’s time was also the fourth-fastest 8K that he has run during his four-year collegiate career. Longwood will complete its 2012 campaign in the NCAA Southeast Regional Cross Country Championships on Friday, November 9, at McAlpine Park in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Question and Answer Session with Sean Flynn and Abby Pendleton
AP: Did you do anything different during the Big South Conference Championships to end up with a good final result?
SF: I started off slower because during my sophomore year I realized it helped to start slower.
AP: How did it feel to lead your team in its first Big South Championship?
SF: It was really cool. I had wanted to do it for a while because I was the only senior and last year I caught a bad break with my knee and had to have surgery. I was pretty proud and it was great.
AP: Is it different running this year with the conference schedule in the Big South?
SF: Yes, because before we just had a couple of little rivals, but now we have teams to look out for. You see the specific color jerseys and race for them. It is a much different feeling to look for specific teams than to just run because those teams are there.
AP: What got you started in running cross country?
SF: I started in sixth grade. It was the biggest team at my high school and it seemed like a lot of fun. Some of my friends were running, so I started too.
AP: Did you also run track and field in high school?
SF: Yes. I did indoor and outdoor track. Cross country was a huge sport at my school. We had about 67 people on the team, yet track was always so small, so the top three guys and girls would end up running almost every event. From that, I got a lot of middle distance and long distance experience in running.
AP: What have been some of your proudest moments in your cross country career?
SF: Being the second fastest on the team my freshman year and also running an 8K at the same pace I was running a 5K in high school months later. Also this year, coming in three spots better than we thought we were going to in the conference.
AP: Do you have any pre-meet rituals or are you superstitious in anyway?
SF: Not necessarily superstitious, but I definitely kind of have to go through the motions and listen to pretty easy going music to make myself not freak out before the race. Then ten minutes before I turn on Guns and Roses. We always get in a huddle, say a prayer, then get on the line and I take off my headphones. Nothing too crazy.
AP: Why did you choose Longwood?
SF: My sister went here and I had been visiting Longwood for about three years and was really comfortable with the campus and the people. I already knew a bunch of people. Also, at the time, the team was just about where I was, so it was a perfect fit.
AP: Are you involved with anything else on campus?
SF: I’m in the jazz ensemble and I play guitar.
AP: What are your post-grad plans?
SF: It’s still kind of up in the air. I’m either going to be in Roanoke working with my dad or I’ll be in Richmond with my band trying to make things happen there.”
AP: What type of band are you in?
SF: It’s a blues and punk band. It’s a very strange combination. We actually played at Battle of the Bands during Oktoberfest weekend.
AP: Do you have any role models?
SF: My dad is probably my biggest role model because he’s worked hard to get to where he is and he never stops working so that he can get our family to where it needs to be. He came from so little, but made so much of himself. He didn’t make excuses when things didn’t work out, he just kept on pushing.”
AP: What advice would you give to a young runner who’s looking to run in college?
SF: Don’t get scared when coaches talk to you about training plans because it’s pretty intimidating at first. I started freaking out, but you get used to it fast and it really does make you faster. Don’t get intimidated.”
