Written by Chamerlain Zulauf
Coming into the ODAC preview last Saturday, the men’s and women’s cross-country teams were hopeful, both placing first at the Golden Bear Classic hosted by West Virginia Tech. The Old Dominion Athletic Conference is the first real taste of the season for the Maroons as it was the first full 8k and 6k they will run, respectively. All of the other ODAC teams were present, as well as a few unattached runners. Roanoke’s focus this year is on Washington and Lee University and Lynchburg University, two schools who have been consistently competitive with the Maroon cross-country program.
“The women were 5th overall… Washington and Lee and Lynchburg were the only two ODAC teams they were behind, I think that realistically, with the team we have plus some of our women who aren’t competing at the moment, we will be a top three team.. but anything can happen,” cross country coach, Tim Smith, said. The men finished 4th behind Concord, W&L, and Lynchburg. However, it is worth mentioning that two of the men’s top runners were inactive on Saturday. If both their projected times and scores are totaled in the race, things would have looked much closer in the end.
The women had an average 6k time of 25:36, with freshman Emma Maras leading the team and coming in 17th overall with a low 15 points. Lauren Brown, another freshman, finished next in 29th followed by sophomore, Hannah Koepfinger in 32nd. The men had an average 8k time of 27:01, with sophomore, Chamberlain Zulauf also coming in 17th. Senior, Nate Willis came in second for the team at 23rd with fellow senior, Tyler Barret scoring 29 points in 33rd. Additionally, the two unattached runners who won the race were both Roanoke alumni, Kerri Dalton and Harrison Toney. Toney and his spouse Dalton both finished well before any other runner crossed the finish line. These alums were well respected All-American and national qualifiers while they attended Roanoke.
“We want the whole team under 28 minutes and 1st in ODAC… the team culture is completely different. Everybody wants to be here,” said Willis on his hopes for the team and how this group compares to what it has been in the past.
“There’s definitely a lot more camaraderie and sportsmanship on the team. It’s the best teamwork I’ve seen,” said senior, Wilson.
Wilson didn’t feel “race-ready” Saturday morning and felt it during the race. He ended up running well, though, keeping his score under 30 and has hopes to break 27 minutes this season. Koepfinger was also a determined runner on Saturday. A hurdler in track season, she was able to hang with the other cross-country runners around her.
“I learned a game in high school where you find people in the race and try to pass them. When you pass one you add one to your body count and hopefully by the end of the race you have a good amount of people you passed,” said Koepfinger, who started this game in the third mile and passed six people.
Hopes are very high for Roanoke’s Cross-Country program. There are title hopes for this year, but if they fall short, they will work twice as hard next year. Coach Smith is proud of the athlete’s collective responsibility that they take for themselves. The team will be racing in the Louisville Cross Country Classic October 5th where, as the team motto goes, they will “do it for Rooney.”
