Photo by Roxie Gonzalez
The Lady Eagles cross-country team continued their successful season finishing fourth among 11 teams with three runners recording personal-bests at the Oklahoma Baptist Bison Invitational on Oct. 11.
According to senior Tavia Hoheisel, the team has maintained a consistent level of effort throughout the season.
“I’m proud of the way all of the ladies have performed this season,” Hoheisel said. “I know that we have all worked really hard. As long as we keep working hard and giving every meet our best, that’s all we can ask for.”
All of Oklahoma Christian University’s top five runners finished within 92 seconds of each other.
For the third consecutive meet, Maci Rich led the Lady Eagles, posting a 19:22.20 and earning eighth of 109 runners. Layne Hammer placed 11th with a 19:39.34 on the 5,000-meter course and Ainsley Ibison ran a 20:07.13, finishing 25th.
“The women have had some good team performances with all of them working to close the gaps,” Cross-Country Head Coach Wade Miller said. “Maci Rich, Ainsley Ibison and Layne Hammer have done a good job of leading us up front.”
Katie Jones finished fourth in her team at 30th with a 20:25.53, while Sarah Cobb earned the 46th slot with a 20:54.81 cap-off the Lady Eagles’ top five.
Tara Lewis’s 21:49.29 was 68th, Emily Morton took 76th at 22:40.17, Maria Sargent ran a 22:55.07 for 80th, Hoheisel finished 90th with a 23:46.66 and Christina Pulpan ran a 26:15.76 in her first race as a Lady Eagle, earning 103rd.
Three of Oklahoma Christian’s women – Rich, Jones and Pulpan – finished with career records. Cobb recorded a time 3 1/2 seconds more than her personal record.
Hoheisel said an additional week between meets allows runners to condition and to refresh.
“An extra week off gives us more time to rest and let our bodies recuperate,” Hoheisel said. “We all understand that getting good quality rest is just as important as a tough workout.”
According to Miller, finding the balance between work and rest is a continuous process with each of his runners.
“Communication is key in training,” Miller said. “Both the athlete and I have the responsibility to discuss what is expected and how to achieve the objective of the day without going too far.”
The Oklahoma Christian cross-country program had another two-week gap before its next meet at the West Texas A&M Buffalo Stampede on Saturday, Oct. 25.
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