BULLDOG HARRIERS TAKE 7TH AT TWILIGHT INVITATIONAL
From the McPherson College Sports Information Department
(CrossDove Writers / www.mcpherson-county-ks.com )
(THIS POST IS SPONSORED BY CROSSDOVE WRITERS)
The McPherson College cross country teams opened their 2019 campaigns on Friday night at the annual Terry Masterson Twilight Invitational hosted by Hutchinson Community College. The races took place at the Fun Valley Sports Complex and featured a 3-mile (4.83k) loop for the women that started at 8:30 p.m., followed by the men’s 4 mile (6.44k) loop at 9:05.
Both Bulldog teams finished in seventh place, the women out of eight teams, the men out of twelve. Arayana Archuleta (Sr. Sacramento, Calif.) was the top female runner for the Bulldogs, finishing in ninth with a time of 20:31.2, and Kevin Boeckman (Jr. Wamego, Kan.) was tops for the men in 23rd with a time of 23:03.9.
Below is a summary of the first race of the season from first year head coach Kendrick Clay.
The McPherson College Senior Women (Aryana Archuleta, LeaAnn Myers and Rachel Foreman) helped lead the women’s team with our first race of the 2019 campaign. Led by Aryana Archuleta (Sr.) the women’s team started their season off on the right foot. For our team to progress and have the highest finishes possible we need to work on narrowing our 1-5-time gap as much as possible and committing to running as close to the front or middle of the field as possible. From the gun it was apparent that our women’s team was focused and ready to race. With 3 seniors in our top 5 it was apparent that the team is committed towards working to this higher standard. Two newcomers, Savannah Moore and Georgia Hitchcock competed like seasoned veterans and really helped our women’s team have a solid 1-4-time gap. We now need to push a 5th runner closer to our 4 runner and continue to narrow that time gap between Aryana and the remainder of our team.
With the graduation of MC’s Jesse Freeman and Jerod Fuller our men’s team is left to redefine their identity and determine who is going to take on the leadership role(s) left by Jesse and Jerod. Within the first mile you can see that Jadin Fleming (So), Kevin Boeckman and Cole Hinton are ready to compete this fall and take over where the 2018 team left off. After a fall Jadin Fleming fell back and Cole Hinton and Kevin Boeckman quickly took over and led the charge for the men’s team. Kevin finished the race with a 4-mile XC 14 second personal best. The Men’s team also had a solid 1-4-time gap but will need to work on narrowing our 1-5-time gap to remain competitive in the top half of the field at upcoming races. This was an early season race and will be very useful to help guide our team with our training during the early weeks of the season. I was very pleased with our focus and effort this early in the season. The key for both programs will be to remain focused, be able to stay healthy and train consistently and continue to work on narrowing our 1-5-time gaps as much as possible.
The Bulldogs will be back in action this coming Saturday when they head south to Wichita, Kansas to take part in the JK Gold Classic hosted by Wichita State University. Races begin at 8:30 a.m.
(Check us out at www.facebook.com/mcphersoncountyks/ )