By Michael Walker, Staff Writer
After an exhilarating race at the regional competition, the Men’s Cross Country team earned their tickets to the NCAA National Championships in Spokane, Washington. They were a top team in the Sunshine State Conference as well as in the entire southern region for Division II athletics. These fierce runners had two weeks to critically train and mentally prepare themselves for the frigid mountainous territory they were about to enter. For two weeks, they ran, rested and worked out to make sure this flight was worth fighting for. On Thursday morning, the Lions packed their bags and embarked on this journey that they earned through a tough and outstanding season.
The six men who raced at Nationals were Valentin Lenz, Carl Dunne, Rafal Matuszczak, Brain Haynes, James Mullin and Christopher Westfall. Christopher Westfall was used to replace Rafeal Lohner who was a top scorer for Saint Leo University at regionals and at the Sunshine State Conference. The race kicked off at 11:30 a.m. Saturday morning. There was a cold mind-numbing breeze that filled the atmosphere, and the ground was covered with snow. There was a field size of 246 runners who earned their spot at this National Championship race representing a total of 32 different schools.
The field fell silent once all of the runners took the line. The only thing that could be heard were slight heart beats until the gun went off and the race started.
Valentin Lenz lead the way for the Lions taking the 104th finishing spot. He hit an all time personal record of 32:20.80 for the 10k. Not even the frozen lands of Washington could slow this runner down.
Carl Dunne finished second for the team. He took the 123rd spot with a time 32:35.60 without a spike. He noticed his shoe was coming undone early in the race and knew it was going to slow him down. Carl decided to take off the shoe and run the rest of the race spikeless on his one foot.
Following behind him was Niclas Bez crossing the finish line at 33:08.20 placing 170th. The third runner to come through the finish line was Rafal Matuszczak placing 188th with a time of 33:23.40. Senior Brian Haynes came through the finish at a time of 34:29.70 in 223rd place. The freshman duo of James Mullin and Christopher Westfall were the last two to finish the course for the Lions respectively. James Mullin hit a time 35:14.50 taking 236th place. Christopher Westfall was in the back of the pack finishing 244th in the field with a time of 36:11.60.
These runners prove that there is no limit to what can be accomplished with hard work and perseverance. This race wrapped up an amazing season for the members of the Men’s Cross Country team. After claiming so many titles and having such a great season, this reporter looks forward to what can be accomplished next year.
