This past sunny Saturday morn¬ing, the women’s cross country team embarked on their first of many races for the fall season, but they were neither racing anyone in the NESCAC nor, in fact, any other colleges. The Cardinals had the opportunity to race Wesleyan alumni, bridging the gap between teams from the past and present.
The women ran a 3460-meter race, which is a shortened version of their home course that is usually run on Long Lane during the Wesleyan Invitational. Four women alumni ran in the race; recent graduate and assistant coach, Ravenna Neville ’10 demonstrated what it takes to be a star Wesleyan runner by finishing at the top of the pack, while Julia Mark ’13, who is the fastest runner on the current Cardinal squad, placed third overall.
Sarah Hensiek ’13, who did not run due to an injury, commented on the energy of the team for the first race.
“Everyone was excited to race to¬gether and see where people fit in on the team since it’s hard to tell just from everyday practice,” Hensiek said. “We’re also excited because the team is bigger this year which makes more of an op¬portunity for pack-running.”
The shorter course was a warm up for the Cardinals’ seasonal opener, the Wesleyan Invitational, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 25. Membeers of the team say that running with the alumni allows for a fun, competitive race to gain experience and confidence for the up¬coming season. Runners of all ages get to take pleasure in the joy of running cross country even if they were never a part of the Cardinal team during their four years of attending Wes.
After this race, the team believes that that qualification for Nationals is definitely within their control. But Hensiek says that there are always things to work on in order to put the team in the best position for Nationals.
“We’ll need to work on closing the gaps between our top runners and stay¬ing focused and confident,” she said.. “There’s definitely the possibility for us to do really well as a team this season.”
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