Head Coach Guy Murray handed out postseason awards to members of the 2010 Detroit Titan men's cross country team. Patrick Liederbach (Petoskey, MI, Petoskey) highlighted the evening by receiving his fourth straight team MVP award.

Liederbach was tabbed First Team All-Horizon League for his impressive performance over the course of the 2010 season. This marks his fourth Dominick Taddonio MVP Award placing him alongside Ken Dubois and Chris McPhee as the only other four-time MVP recipients.

The senior led Detroit in all but two races during his four year career as a Titan. His Titan-best 8k time of 24:32 landed him in fourth place at the Horizon League Championships, making him the second Titan to earn All-League honors four times.

Additional highlights from this season include a 41st place finish at the NCAA Regional (#3 Titan – 31:22), finishing runner-up at the Running Fit-Detroit Titan Invite (20:31 PR), and finally a fourth place finish at Louisville (25:05).

The Student-Athlete Award went to senior Ryan Ayala (Coopersville, MI, Coopersville). Ayala is majoring in education and holds a GPA of 3.603. He is student teaching at Sterling Heights High School this semester.

Ayala opened the 2010 cross country season with his Cass-Benton best (21:09) for 15th at the Running Fit-Detroit Titan Invite. His most impressive race of the season came at the Horizon League meet as Ayala improved 29 places from the year before to take 32nd overall, finishing the race in 26:21 (PR).

The Coach's Award was split between two athletes this season. Kevin Smalley (Gladwin, MI, Gladwin) and Alex Harris (Huntington Woods, MI, Shrine) both deserved recognition after completing great senior seasons. Harris finished 11th in the Running Fit-Detroit Titan Invite with a time of 21:04 (PR - #6 Titan). He also ran a season-best 26:07 at the Horizon League meet placing him in 22nd overall.

Smalley became just the 18th Titan to run in the NCAA Great Lakes Regional four times. This year he finished in 188th place with a time of 35:03. He set an 8k PR at Louisville with a time of 26:32, and at the Horizon League meet the senior placed 47th with a time of 26:57.

After having his 2009 cross country season cut short due to an injury, Edwin Gay (Grosse Pointe, MI, GP South) was dubbed the Comeback Athlete of the Year. Gay bounced back from injury plagued rookie year with a strong varsity season in 2010. The sophomore broke the 26 minute barrier at Louisville running 25:27 which stands as his personal record in the 8k. He also placed 34th at the Horizon League meet with a time of 26:34.

Senior Brian Greenhoe (Sand Lake, MI, Grant) earned his first cross country varsity letter in 2010, which got him the Most Improved Award. Greenhoe opened the year at the National Catholics with a time of 27:57. He lowered his PR to 27:53 at Louisville, and he finished the season placing 60th overall at the Horizon League meet with a time of 27:26.

Finally, the Rookie of the Year honor went to Martin Nelkie (West Branch, MI, Ogemaw Heights). This talented freshman was a varsity scorer in all of his races. He set his 8k PR at Louisville with a time of 26:28. Other notable performances include a 48th place finish at the league meet (27:02), and his debut at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional where he took 154th place running in 33:42 as the team's third man.

Dominick Taddonio MVP: Patrick Liederbach
Student-Athlete: Ryan Ayala
Coach's Award: Kevin Smalley & Alex Harris
Comeback: Edwin Gay
Most Improved: Brian Greenhoe
Rookie: Martin Nelkie

Varsity Letter Winners:
Four Year- Patrick Liederbach, Alex Harris, Ryan Ayala, Kevin Smalley
Three Year- Kevin Wozniak
Two Year- Edwin Gay, Bob Radlich, Erik Westbrook, Derek Hoerman
First Year- Martin Nelkie, Sam Felton, Chris Smalley, Brian Greenhoe