Kennesaw State began this year’s cross-country season on Sep. 1st by hosting an in-state competition for the season’s first men’s and women’s 5K events.
Competing schools in attendance included the University of Georgia, Georgia Tech, Emory, Georgia State and Brewton-Parker College.
The Owls now look back on what they consider to be a strong start to the year, finishing 4th in the Men’s Collegiate 5K and 2nd in the Women’s Collegiate 5K. Head Cross-Country and Assistant Track and Field Coach Adam Bray praised his team’s focus and execution in sticking with their event plan.
“You know, we talked a lot about being conservative early on,” Bray said. “I thought both of our teams executed our race plan really well. That’s a great thing to see so early in the season, and it’s something I’m looking forward to building on as we move forward.”
KSU placed 2nd in the Women’s Collegiate 5K, with Anna James finishing as KSU’s top finisher at 4th overall and a time of 17 minutes, 31 seconds. In a stellar start to her season, James credits the coaching staff and mental strength training for her fast start.
“There were times throughout the race where I had to get myself out of trouble,” James said. “In practice, we do a lot of tempo runs to build mental strength on runs and I feel like that training really came to fruition today and helped me finish strong.”
KSU placed 4th in the Men’s Collegiate 5K, with freshman Dillon Burger leading the way for the Owls, finishing 29th overall with a time of 15:32. Burger says that it’s the team’s togetherness and cohesion that got him through his race and sees team chemistry playing a huge part in the Owls’ current and future success.
“I just love how my team cheers me on,” Burger said. “They’re always encouraging me to go faster, work harder, and push me to be the best person I can be. I think the selflessness says a lot about our athletes and surely nothing but good is to come out of that.”
Coaches and athletes alike reserve positive feelings about the first event of the year, yet remain focused on what the rest of the year has to offer.
“It’s the first meet of the season and we have a long way to go,” Coach Bray said. “We’re building the aerobic foundation and trying to get stronger every day because when early November rolls around and championship season begins, that’s when we want to be running at our best.”
The Owls resume competition on Sept. 22nd at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
