After a first-place finish for the men and second-place finish for the women last weekend, Ohio will look to carry momentum into a 5K competition at Miami
Ohio hopes to take energy from its Ohio Invitational success and carry it into Saturday when they will face off against Mid-American Conference competition at the Miami Invitational.
In last week’s 8K, the men’s and women’s cross country squads performed well on their home turf.
The men didn’t have much to worry about last Friday, but that will certainly change as the competition gets better this weekend.
This week will be a 5K race. As opposed to previous seasons, the Ohio Invitational was first this year followed by the Miami Invitational. Calkins wanted to test the squad with a longer race before competing in a 5K at the Miami Invitational.
“We didn’t want to do two 5K’s in a row,” coach Clay Calkins said.
Junior Jake Gentile, and Senior Chase Robinson know what they need to do individually and they both look to not only carry themselves, but to also lead the rest of their team to the front of the pack.
Junior Kayla Scott of the women’s squad knows that she has to do the same thing. Even though it was unfortunate that she lost to two Miami runners at home — whom she will see again this weekend — she wants to try and bring her teammates with her to close the gaps between them.
Another junior on the squad, Krista Roehlig, looks to bounce back from the last time she took the course.
“(Miami) pushed me the whole time,” Roehlig said after the meet on Friday.
When it was said and done, Roehlig raced well but she knows what she has to do to place higher than her last outing, where she placed fourth.
As hard as it was racing in the heat last weekend, it doesn’t look like the conditions will be any better in Oxford, so some of the same problems the Bobcats faced last time with the blaring heat will return.
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