By: Aoife Mahony
Kent Reiber, head coach for track and cross country, mentioned he was driving a van full of athletes back from a trip from Tindel after a Sunday practice long run and one of the student-athletes asked, “What do you do outside of practice?” And he thought, “I don’t do much other than this.”
Reiber said he believes the student-athletes can help push you, and likewise, you can push them to do better and do the same thing. Reiber, who is originally from Cleveland, Ohio, said some of his favorite things about Saint Leo are the campus, his team, the sense of community and of course that it is a beautiful place to run.
“When you do something you love every day, it doesn’t feel like a job,” he said.
The cross country/track team spends a lot of time together. Athletes wake up at 5:15 a.m. Practice location varies, but the soccer field as of right now is where the team meets six times a week. They even have their own mascot; Reiber refers to his dog, Guinness, who stills acts like a puppy.
“If anyone broke into my house they could only expect to get licked,” he said. “I am sure I will be taking Guinness out to practice, maybe for a long run or two.”
New assistant middle to long distance coach, Zach Hall, who ran for Florida Southern College, a rival school, during his collegiate years openly admitted: “We all bonded faster than I had imagined and I can honestly say the team and staff were very welcoming.”
Coach Kent Reiber said, “When you do something you love every day, it doesn’t feel like a job.” Credit: SaintLeoLions.com
As the new season approaches, the first meet will be held at the University of Tampa, March 1. As the first competition looms, the team will begin to taper off their practice sessions and mileage. Right now, the average mileage the men are covering is up to 60 to 70 miles per week, and the women are covering 40 to 50 miles per week.
The main focus right now has been keeping the routine and balance consistent internally at practice and externally outside of practice by eating, sleeping and resting well. Progression and consistency like this are what they think they will need to do to accomplish qualifying for Nationals in Texas from May 23-25.
According to Cierra White, the assistant sprinting coach “persistency with strong work is key.” White was an experienced athlete; she held the national record for women’s Division II, 200 meters. Last year, White attended the cross country meets and admitted it was actually a lot of fun.
“Everyone is fun to be around,” she said.
Hall, who started in Fall 2018, said it is refreshing to be with the team.
“The track men didn’t have a choice but to accept me, so when I joined mid-cross country season we hit the ground running and the team responded very well,” he said.
Many of the current track team members traveled up the east coast to participate at the Paul Short Run in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and visited New York City after the event. @coachreiber
The expectations for the overall team is “personal records” (PRs), but a lot of events the men are not used to running, so Hall is excited to see what they can do on his first college track assistant coaching year. He is confident the team is aiming to do everything in their power to succeed.
Coach Rick Jones, who has been working with the Saint Leo cross country team for seven years, agreed.
“It has been great to be part of a team, including the long trips,” he said.
The main goal for the track team in 2019 is for everyone to excel and smash their personal records in their designed disciplines, and it would be nice to see some athletes make it to nationals.
“For cross country regionals last semester, we knew it was going to be close,” Reiber said. “The men’s team was probably the closest it has ever been so that was the highlight for Saint Leo.”
The women were 24 points off qualifying, but he thinks the way he ended it was the best he can do, especially being the fourth time in a row for women and the fifth by the men for making nationals.
“Sometimes other people are going to run better than you on any given day,” he said.
