A team performance that prompts a coach to say that his team “has got the makings to be the best [cross country] team Mississippi State has ever had” is an indication that a good showing occurred during a contest.Those words were used by men’s cross country head coach Steve Dudley to describe his team’s tremendous effort and solid finish at the Pre-National Invitational Saturday in Terre Haute, Ind., where the Bulldog men’s and women’s teams competed.
The men’s team placed 22nd in its 8K race, which featured 40 squads. Included in those squads were several nationally-ranked teams from various regions of the country.
Dudley was enthusiastic about the team’s overall performance on the day and was quick to praise the hard work.
“It was the best effort in racing that I have seen since I have been here,” he said. “As a team, they ran faster than what I asked for.”
The men’s team had been away from competitive racing since Sept. 28, when it placed 12th at the Notre Dame Invitational.
The time away from the competitive course was purposefully placed into the schedule to allow time to train, as well as to recover between races.
The additional training time appeared to benefit freshman Ben Blankenship, who was the team’s top finisher for the first time this season with a time of 24:15.
Jonathan Rono placed second for the Bulldog team with a time of 24:27, and Robert Scribner was the third Bulldog to cross the finish line at 24:45.
Saturday’s showing at the Pre-National Invitational was encouraging to Dudley and helped him set his sights on upcoming goals. The next goal for himself and his squad is to finish well at the Southeastern Conference Championship Oct. 27 in Lexington, Ky.
“We’re getting better every two weeks,” Dudley said. “I think we can finish in the top four in the conference [at the SEC Championship].”
The Lady Bulldog team also attempted to gain some momentum heading into the SEC Championship meet with a 32nd place finish in its 6K race.
Several members of the women’s team have been plagued by injuries, and head coach Al Schmidt has focused on limiting them to keep them as healthy as possible heading into the SEC Championship meet.
The women’s side was paced by freshman runners, with Sarah Hammes leading the Lady Bulldogs with a time of 21:44, and Simone Domingue crossing the line seven seconds later at 21:51. Senior Annie Falor finished third for the team at 22:17.
With the pesky injuries that are hampering some of the runners at this point in the season, Schmidt said he knew the injuries could hurt the team.
“We were a little conservative since we [limited some of the runners], and we had to pay the price for that,” he said. “We’re being really cautious going into the SEC Championship meet because that’s when it really matters for us.