On Saturday Oct. 5, Union University’s men’s and women’s cross-country teams competed in the Louisville Collegiate Cross-Country Classic in Louisville, Kentucky.
The women’s team placed 16th out of 24 and the men’s team finished 27th out of 30.
While the team scores had room for improvement, many cross-country athletes agreed that the future of the season looked bright, and that there was a lot of potential for improvement individually and as a team.
“I think [the season] can only get better,” Heidi Munday, sophomore exercise science major, said.
Jonathan Litscher, a sophomore athletic training major and a cross-country runner since fourth grade, opened up about the unique qualities of cross-country as a sport.
“In my opinion, cross country is pretty unique… but one of the best sports because everybody starts,” Litscher said. “In cross country, everybody runs… and everybody matters.”
Litscher explained cross-country scoring, and detailed how each individual score affected the overall team scores. There are no favored players because every player has a purpose and plays a part in the team score. He has high hopes for the conference this season.
“Our best year was 2019 when we finished sixth,” Litscher said. “This year, we’re hoping to finish fourth or fifth.”
Though cross-country does have competitive features, Litscher talked about how Union’s team could be competitive, but in the end, it wasn’t the main thing linking these athletes; their relationship with the Lord was.
Student-athletes are known to have a full load, especially in college, while balancing classes, competitive sports, and sometimes jobs. When asked how he and other runners balanced the workload, Litscher responded.
“As far as student-athletes across the board, that’s definitely a really hard balance each individual person has to kind of find,” Litscher said.
All three cross-country athletes shared how their daily schedule had to be regulated to fit their busy lives, from the classes and their social lives to the cross-country commitments to the aspects of building faith in a Christian college.
Munday, a recent addition to the women’s cross-country team, talked about team dynamics working alongside individual running dynamics.
“I feel like we work very well together as a team,” Munday said. “For the last half mile, me and my teammate ran together, and we were able to push each other.”
As a team, Munday described the cross-country women as supportive and encouraging. She expounded upon how the encouragement appeared in a race.
William Craig, a senior nursing major, agreed as they both individually shared how the men and women supported each other through the race, and both teams remained encouraging wholeheartedly on the sidelines.
“If you do well, [the cross-country women] make sure you know you did.” Craig said.
Munday’s mindset became evident; she, like most college athletes, focuses on improving and always looks for ways to learn and grow through the season and from past meets.
“Starting from the bottom has been a learning experience,” Munday said.
She continued with the insight that she always wanted to be the best at what she did, so starting from the bottom was not necessarily easy. This drive for excellence, a motto Union University has embraced, is emphasized in college athletes daily.
Craig shared helpful perceptions into an athlete’s mind for people who don’t share those experiences.
“You get out as much as you put in. If you want to do well in cross-country, you have to push yourself, and you have to try,” Craig said. “Our cross-country team is like a family, and so we have good days, and we have bad days.”
Craig went on to explain how when teammates were having those good days, they pushed each other, and used accountability to make sure teammates were performing to the best of their abilities. Not only did this encouragement involve running, but it extended to the team’s growth in the Lord. Craig has been running cross country since kindergarten, and it has been a part of his identity as he expresses his gifts from the Lord through running. Each runner develops individual skill, but they rely on teammates for support and encouragement. Unlike many sports, cross-country counts every score to create the team score.
“Each runner who comes in actually does matter, it’s not just an individual sport, it’s a team sport in that aspect,” Craig said. “This is the best our team has been since I’ve been on the team. I’m very confident in our ability.”
At the end of the day, running isn’t our common denominator,” Litscher said. “Our coach will be the first to tell you we are first here at Union to further our relationship with the Lord and second to get a degree.”
