October 10, 2016
Dillon Taunton
The women’s cross country team came in fourth place at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minneapolis on Sept. 24.
The team finished with a total of 149 points, and was 27 points behind third place in the 6K race that included 360 female runners.
The team is now ranked 12th out of all Division II teams nationally, moving up from 14th place.
No UCCS runner finished out of the top ninety at the Roy Griak Invitaitonal.
Sophomore business major Aubrey Till came in at 11th place with a time of 23:21.
“The team placing fourth was the most exciting part of the day; we were able to beat some really good Division II teams,” said Till.
Till was satisfied with the performance by the team and herself despite facing some challenges with the course.
“The night before the event it had rained, and the race was on a grass course, so the race became less about my time and more about placing. I was happy to be on the medal stand,” said Till.
The event’s size will be beneficial for the team as it will help them to prepare for larger events later this year, according to Till.
“That event is really good practice for larger meets like regionals and hopefully nationals. It is always nice to get that practice against a wide range of competition in a large field to prepare,” said Till.
The size of the event may prove beneficial in preparing for larger events that the team will also compete in this year.
“That event is really good practice for larger meets like regionals and hopefully nationals. It is always nice to get that practice against a wide range of competition in a large field to prepare,” Till said.
The team was not nationally ranked prior to the race, according to undecided freshman Kayla Wooten. Wooten, who placed 30th at the invitational at 24:03, said she is excited about the team’s new ranking after their performance.
“Being ranked shows people that we have been working hard, and even though we were not ranked before, people are going to have to be looking out for us to do well,” said Wooten.
Although the individual team members are experiencing their own success, the team’s mentality is to translate this individual success to their performance as a whole, according to Wooten.
“My goal for the season is for the team to become a more cohesive unit, and I want to be a part of that. I want everyone to know their importance to the team, even if you are not in the top ten, everyone is important to the team,” said Wooten.
The team hopes to be top five in the South-Central region at regionals in Denver later this year.
“Our region is very strong; there is strong competition which is exciting. It forces us to give our best effort but we are all capable of that,” said Wooten.