TIGERS CROSS COUNTRY BATTLE IN BLAZING TIGER CLASSIC
Ashland Neb. –
The DWU cross country teams ran tough races today at the Blazing Tiger NAIA Classic. Abby Hasart was a top finisher for the women's team as she finished in the 73rd spot out of 288 runners. Caleb Sayler put in a strong race as he finished in the 55th position against 156 runners. Although no records were broken today, all Tiger runners were within some of their personal best times.
Quick Stats
Women's Race
73rd - Abby Hasart – 24:01.97
190th - Caley Murphy 26:21.73
Unattached – Tania Hernandez – 27:41.08
Men's Race
55th - Caleb Sayler 25:52.12
110th - Hunter Shanks – 26:45.4
How it Happened –
After a huge race two weeks ago, the Tigers cross country teams looked to improve. This meet will give the Tigers a taste of what nationals could look like with the number of teams from outside the GPAC that competed today. The women's race started with a staggering 288 racers, like the previous meet. Abby Hasart looked to pick up where she left off, breaking the DWU's All-Time 6k record. Hasart was near the front pack after her first 1k split as she was in the 42nd position. As she came in on her 3k she would fall multiple positions and stick in that area for the remainder of the race. Caley Murphy had a hot start as well staying in the middle of all the runners but would fall in her 3k split and finish the race with a time of 26:21.73. Tania Hernandez ran unattached in this meet and crossed the line with a time of 27:41.08. Coach Rosado had this to say about the women's race, "The women put together a strong race with Caley finishing just shy of her PR. Abby showed she was human for the first time this year, not coming away with a PR for the first time this season. I think she needed this race to realize how tough post season racing will look like. I told her at the finish, I'd rather see this result now than when it matters most. The girls will be well prepared to battle when the gun goes off November fourth."
Caleb Sayler led the men's team, as he crossed the finish line in the 55th spot. Sayler ran a strong race early, being in the top 30 through the first kilometer. Sayler fell a dozen spots as he rounded out the 3k but stayed in that area for the remainder of the race as he came in with his time of 25:52.12. His teammate Hunter Shanks ran one of his best races of the year, only about 12 seconds off from his personal best. Coach Rosado stated this about the men's performance, "The men looked swift at the beginning of the race and slipped mid-race, but they were both able to realize they were mid-race and make adjustments, which is a really good sign heading into the post-season."
Up Next for the Tigers –
The Tigers will travel back to Sioux City, Iowa to compete in the GPAC Conference Meet on Saturday November 4th.
