Cedarville University Yellow Jackets

November 15, 2017
 

Wow! This is the word that comes to mind when I think about how fast this season went by. It feels like we were just welcoming the freshmen to our little family in August, and now they are cross country veterans. It was a season full of ups and downs. I think most of us can agree that the season as a whole did not go as we hoped, with quite a few injuries, sicknesses, etc. However, we ended the season on a very high note at the NCCAA Championship in Jackson, Mississippi, bringing home the championship title.

Our varsity squad left campus last Thursday morning and hit the road. We made a stop at Mammoth Cave in Kentucky for some hiking and a cave tour. It’s a strange feeling to be inside a cave, hundreds of feet below the earth’s surface. At one point our tour guide turned all the lights off and we got to experience total and complete darkness. We even got to see a few bats while in the cave.

The course itself was any cross country runner’s dream. It was dry, relatively flat, and fast. As a senior, I was so proud of how our team stepped up. All season we have had individuals run very well, but we haven’t managed to all have a good day on the same day. However, everyone came to run fast on Saturday. We had LOTS of PR’s: Kayla Casaletto (18:29), Christy Jesson (18:12), Alaina Spears (17:28), Grace Norman (18:52), Carly Rose (19:12), Rachel Sweeney (18:49), and Jordan Penrod was just seconds off her PR with a 19:04. Additionally, Marie Ewing ran in the open race on Friday afternoon and ran a lifetime PR of 19:38. Individual All-American honors included Kayla, Christy and Alaina. Coach Bo received the Coach of the Year Award!!! He is pretty great! Also, shout out to him for driving and putting up with a van full of us crazy gals for 12+ hours one way to Mississippi (especially on the way home considering we were not able to shower after the race).
 

I feel incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity to wear a Cedarville uniform, and run alongside my teammates for these past four years. These girls have become my family, and I can’t quite come to terms with the fact that it is over. Thankfully, we still have track so I don’t need to break down crying quite yet. For the rest of this blog, you will have the treat of hearing from the rest of our seniors that have been with us the past four years. I want to end by thanking you all for your support and prayers. There is no other family like our CUWXC family, and we love you immensely! The Lord has blessed Cedarville in a special way. RUN FOR HIM!
 

Alaina Spears





Paige Logan

7000 miles. According to a detailed training log and a bit of estimation, that’s how many miles I’ve run thus far as a Cedarville athlete. I’m so glad there’s still track season because I’m not quite ready to not be a part of this team (and let’s be honest, I never will be). I’m thankful for every long bus ride, every meet, every team dinner, every K repeat at VO2max, every team Bible study, every 6 a.m. practice, and every single girl that has been on my team. It’s a priceless gift to have a tight group of sisters in Christ, something I had never experienced before coming to Cedarville. I remember when I was a senior in high school watching my sister race here, I saw the team huddled up in prayer before the race. I decided that’s what I wanted in a team. It’s incredible to have teammates who love Christ, genuinely love each other, and work so hard. After running cross country for 10 years, I’m seriously gonna miss it. But I’m grateful for the 10 seasons I was given, especially the four I got here. Even when my time as an athlete here is done, I hope to continue running for Him!

~Hebrews 12:1~
 

Christy Jesson

It's hard to believe that this cross country season has come to an end. These four years of training and competition have certainly flown by. I am amazed at this journey, making life-long friends and enjoying the daily privilege of running. More than the training or racing, participating on this team has significantly influenced the person as I finish college. Disappointments, working to the point of tears, sacrifice...those formative times taught me more about the Lord, His faithful hand leading me through those trials. Joys have marked my career as well, moments of sheer joy in the Lord's blessing. I will joyfully remember these years of training, both physically and spiritually. Moving forward, no matter what my future holds, the cheer of our team will be my heart's desire, "RUN FOR HIM!"

 

Carly Rose

Although it is difficult to sum up my four years running at Cedarville in a few short sentences, I would say it's been an incredible journey. Not only have I greatly improved as an athlete under Coach Bo's leadership, I have also developed some amazing, lifelong friendships. Through countless miles, my teammates have not only challenged me as an athlete, but also in my relationship with God. I never could have guessed what a priceless gift God was giving me when He gave me the opportunity to run at Cedarville. I will be forever grateful for these seasons and all the sweet memories that came with them.

 

Daniele Modderman

Just a few days ago, the seniors were reflecting on the months before we started our careers at Cedarville. We remembered the excitement that came when we first got the XC roster from Coach Bo. In attempts to get to know each other during the summer, we sent social media friend requests, began to create email chains, and added teammates’ phone numbers to our contact lists. Looking back, we are able to laugh at old Facebook messages and recount the hilariously inaccurate first impressions that we made of each other after reading "introduction emails." As we laughed, I realized that the strangest part of the whole conversation was the realization that there was a time not many years ago when we didn’t know each other and we didn’t have CUWXC.

Since that summer, CUWXC has filled such a big place in my heart and though my involvement over the past four years has not been what I had hoped or planned, God has given me such a good gift in the team and each and every girl who has been a part of it. Perhaps one of the biggest blessings has been learning with my teammates how to praise God despite circumstances. I could list countless athletes who have faced the most frustrating and nagging injuries. I’ve seen dozens of seasons ended because of sprained ankles, stress fractures, and anemia. I’ve watched CUWXC train for months only to come short of a nationals bid by one place. During these times, my teammates have come together, encouraging and loving each other through the difficult times, and praising and trusting the Lord despite outcomes.

I’m so proud to have learned from each of the Godly, unique, and incredible girls on this team and am looking forward to one final track season running for HIM!

 

Carsyn Koch

Hey guys! This is Carsyn, helping out with the last XC blog. My running experience at Cedarville has been nothing short of amazing. Other than my faith, sports has been possibly the biggest factor to shaping who I am as a person. At our senior share night, I passed on a few pieces of advice that have helped me try to reach my potential in running. I will share those now and try my best to keep it short! Those of you who know me well, know that I could talk for hours (especially about running). First of all, you have to work harder than you've ever worked to accomplish more than you ever have. Times don't just drop, people don't just become better all of a sudden and you can't wish your way into improvement in life and in running. Hard work and diligence are some of the most prominent factors to a successful season. You owe it to yourself, your coach, and Christ to work as though you are working for the Lord.

Second, please please listen to me when I say this: skinny girls are not fast girls, STRONG girls are fast girls and the number on the scale really doesn't mean a whole lot. Ima let you in on a personal fact, the freshman 15 was a very real thing for me. Coming in as a freshman, the most weight training I had done was lifting the milk out of the fridge soooo......muscle builds up quickly when you didn't have any to begin with. I began lifting and eating more to try to make my body stronger and that is something I hope to pass on to the team when I leave. EAT FOOD and lift weights. You'll feel better and learn to create a healthy lifestyle that will go beyond college.

Lastly, confidence is a process and it starts when you decide to take your training into your own hands. No one knows your body like you do and as soon as you adopt pain as your pal, you will be able to push yourself in a way that no coach can. Running is such a mental sport that developing confidence is arguably as important as physical fitness. Working hard creates confidence in your training that can help you to power through your races. This was a big area I had to work on and one that I am continuing to refine. I still have moments where I wonder if I can run fast enough to reach my goals. I have to remind myself to trust my training and trust my coach. He always tells us that success is not an accident and our team has seen time and time again that he's right. Confidence means setting multiple goals for yourself and finding ways to measure your own success on a personal level. I could go on and on about all that I have learned through training but I'll keep it short:)) Overall, this experience has changed me as a person, strengthened my relationship with the Lord and helped me to have experiences I will cherish forever.

#RunForHim

October 31, 2017

Hello friends!

Well the weather has certainly taken a nose dive straight into the arctic. That may be slightly dramatic, but the colder weather always comes as a shock to our bodies after being accustomed to running in the summer heat. It’s funny because in the fall, as soon as the temperature hits about 45 degrees we all bundle up to run outside. But, in the spring if the temperature reaches 45 degrees it feels like tank tops and shorts weather. It’s fascinating how God has designed our bodies to adapt.

This past weekend we did not have a race. We had our Annual Cross Country Halloween Party. It’s always a fun way to interact with the guy’s team, and just have a good time. There is good food, lots of dancing and a costume contest!! We don’t get many opportunities to do things not related to either running or schoolwork, so there’s usually a pretty good turnout.

 As

the end of the season approaches, Coach Bolender has decreased the volume of our workouts to give us the best opportunity to feel fresh and ready to run fast at regionals. We only meet for practice twice this week, giving us some much-needed time to relax and get in some studying. Going into regionals this weekend we need to stay focused and mentally strong. It could potentially be cold and rainy this weekend, so we need to prepare for that as well. I am already nervous thinking about this race, and its only Wednesday. I always get super nervous for races, so I guess its nothing out of the ordinary for me. We know our region is VERY strong. It is one of the toughest regions in the nation. It will be difficult to qualify for Nationals, but if all our girls run to their potential on Saturday, we have a legitimate chance of making it out. We are well prepared and ready to run with everything we have. So, grab your rain jackets and come out to the Elvin R. King Cross Country Course this Saturday at 10:30 a.m. for a great race.

We appreciate all your prayers and support this season! Stay tuned for our results, and I’ll talk to you all next week!!

That’s all for now!!

#RunForHim


October 26, 2017

Happy Thursday everyone! This past weekend was our G-MAC Championship at Trevecca University in Nashville, Tennessee. We left campus bright and early Friday morning, and drove for what felt like two days to Nashville. When we arrived, we jogged the course and made mental preparations for the next day’s race. Something new that the conference started last year was holding a banquet the night before the conference meet. It’s a fun time to get all fancy, take lots of pictures, and most importantly eat LOTS OF FOOD. It’s nice to be able to gather and have fellowship with athletes from other schools. We had the rare privilege of listening to Olympian Paul Chelimo speak to us and share his story. Born and raised in Kenya, it was inspiring to see where hard work and determination took him. He is the 2016 Olympic silver medalist in the 5,000 meters, and the 2017 World bronze medalist in the 5,000 meters. Chelimo shared with us his motto that he trains and lives by, which is "Go hard or suffer the rest of your life."

The course definitely had areas that were uneven, and I felt like I was constantly playing hopscotch over tree roots, but overall the conditions were beautiful, and the course was relatively flat and hard. We were up against several other nationally-ranked teams, including Malone, Walsh, and Hillsdale. This was the first year competing in the G-MAC for some of these teams, and they have significantly increased the competitiveness of the conference. We had high expectations going in of defending the G-MAC title, but on that day, it just wasn’t in the cards. That’s the hard thing about cross country. You can train hard, and do everything in your power to prepare to succeed on race day, but sometimes things still don’t unfold as planned. We have a VERY talented team this year, and a team that has the capability of qualifying AND being competitive at DII Nationals. However, this season has come with more than its fair share of injuries. Carsyn is red-shirting, Olivia is now out with a foot injury, Kayla is battling a sprained ankle, and just about every other girl on our team has some degree of ache or pain. I say this, not to make excuses, but just to share a little bit of insight about the uncertainty that is distance running.

Even though the meet overall was not our best day, we still had some awesome performances and season PR’s!! We had two girls receive All-Conference honors (Alaina Spears and Christy Jesson). Carly Rose had an AMAZING race, coming very close to a PR. Carly is one of the hands down hardest working girls on our team, and she has battled more than her share of health issues. It was exciting to finally see her break out and run fast like we all know she can!

A special shout-out to our injured girls for being the best cheerleaders and split takers out there! I could hear Carsyn all the way from the woods! Thanks to Coach Bo and Coach Katie for supporting us this past meet, and the entire season. We're so thankful and blessed to have you as coaches!

Please keep our team in your prayers as we start to transition and taper this week and set our sights on REGIONALS! Some of our girls are done for the season, and are taking their much-needed break from running. The rest of us will be gutting it out for a few more weeks. Regionals will be an intense meet, because Nationals is at stake. Please pray for peace of mind, and calm nerves as we race next weekend! Thank you for all your support as always this season! We truly appreciate all the friends and family who have followed and encouraged our team this season!

Until next time!

#RunForHim


October 18, 2017

Hello friends! This past week has been relatively uneventful for the women's cross country team! We didn’t have a meet this past weekend, so it was a nice time to catch up on some much-needed sleep (and homework). Fall break begins this Thursday, and while many students will be heading home for the extended weekend, we will be heading to NASHVILLE for the G-MAC Championship this weekend!

We will leave campus for Nashville early Friday morning, and do a run through of the course. Friday evening, we have the G-MAC banquet, where we get to dress all fancy and eat some good food with the other teams in the conference. We will compete on Saturday morning!! For some of our girls, this will be the last meet of the season. It's bittersweet feeling, but it has been a season full of hard work and growth. We are looking forward to racing again this weekend, with defending the G-MAC title as our goal!

Please keep our team and our injured girls in your prayers. At this point of the season a lot of our girls are being held together by duct tape and pure grit! Here’s to finishing this season on a high note!

That’s all for now!

#RunForHim


October 11, 2017

Hello! Filling in for Alaina this week, I’m Paige Logan, a senior athletic training major. It’s crazy that I’ve already had three years with this team, and I’m soaking up every second of this final cross season with these girls I love so much. God has blessed me so much with a team like this one, and it can’t be overstated how amazing it is to be on a team of encouraging sisters in Christ that are crazy enough to love this sport.

This past weekend we got to go on our first real trip of the season! Home meets are convenient and we love a home course advantage, but it’s fun to travel to new places and experience different courses. We headed up to Romeoville, IL (a suburb of Chicago) on Friday morning with the guys team. We were prepared for a rainy weekend, but God was gracious and we arrived in time to run the course just before the storms hit. The course was fairly flat, with one short, steep hill within the first 200 meters and lots of long straightaways. Despite all the rain, it held water pretty well and it wasn’t all that muddy. After doing our pre-meet run, it was looking to be a fast day Saturday with two down hills in the last K to give us a speedy finish.

You may wonder why we drove six hours to run circles around a bean field, which is not too different from the terrain here in Ohio. This meet however, was a big one. There was a high volume of runners, but also we were racing a good amount of big shot NCAA DII teams. There were even teams from California and Alaska here, if that tells you anything about the importance of the competition at this meet. The new system in qualifying for nationals now includes bids based on rankings in addition to the Top 3 at each regional, so our goal was to improve upon our rankings by racing lots of very fast teams.
 

It is important on race day to stay composed and be ready to give it your all, despite high pressure situations and surprise mishaps that are out of your control. Upon arrival, we were presented with our race bibs and a meager number of safety pins to attach them with. You may not have thought that a deficiency of such a trivial object could cause such alarm, but even the littlest thing can get any already amped up runner agitated. I wish I could say the safety pin famine was the biggest stressor of the day. We had to stay composed when we knew what kind of teams we were up against; all of our most important competition was present. We had to stay composed and resilient when two of our top seven could not race due to some injuries. God blessed us with a breeze on a humid morning and a lack of rain, and despite some setbacks, we gave it our all. Kayla Casaletto was our top finisher, placing 31st of 359. Next were Christy Jesson (37th), Sarah Hoffman (81st), Rachel Sweeney (125th), Jordan Penrod (138th), Grace Norman (148th), and Marie Ewing (179th) to round out the Top Seven.
 

As coach emphasized before the gun went off, though we had a few important people missing that day, that gave the rest of us had an opportunity to step up, and that is precisely what people did. Sarah Hoffman (once again, this is her first year running cross with us) came in a solid third spot on the team, and she has been truly impressive with each race she has run so far. Rachel and Jordan continue to be solid freshmen in our Top Seven, which can be nerve-racking, yet they overcame the pressure and performed well. Grace made her first appearance in our varsity line-up (and her first appearance in a 6K) coming off her gold medal a few weeks ago. Marie, another freshman, made her first appearance as well, stepping it up to help round out a solid Top Seven. Carly Rose, our 8th runner overall, also had a stand-out race. Times for everyone this race seemed a little off; even the race leaders were significantly slower than would be expected for such a flat course, so we took that into account when analyzing our splits. We ended up finishing 11th out of 34 teams.

Please keep praying for our injured runners! It’s been great to watch God heal, and some of our girls are back running the roads with us! Pray that we finish our season strong, peak at the right time, and do it all for God’s glory.

We get a week off racing and next up is G-MAC in Tennessee! We are excited to shoot for our goals against some new competition this year. Thank you for your support!

#runforHim


October 5, 2017

Hello again! This past Friday, we competed in the All-Ohio Championship on our home course, the Elvin R. King Cross Country Course. We were blessed with amazing weather and sunny skies for our race, which as I mentioned last week is not typical weather for All-Ohio in the past.
 

For this past weekend, our varsity squad that ran in the championship race consisted of Alaina Spears, Christy Jesson, Kayla Casaletto, Olivia Kundo, Rachel Sweeney, Jordan Penrod, Sarah Hoffman, Gabby Johnson, and Rachel Davidson. Several of these girls are newer faces to the varsity scene, and they did a phenomenal job stepping up and filling those shoes (literally and figuratively). As a senior, it was very bittersweet to think about this being the last All-Ohio cross country meet of my collegiate career. I remember my freshman year, being absolutely petrified by the number of girls competing. The championship and open races were actually combined that year, resulting in around a 600-person race. It was kind of a run or get trampled by a stampede situation. I still get more nervous than most people do before races, but I feel like I’ve come a long way since then.

We ended up having a great turnout. There were 40 women's teams represented, spanning from DI, DII, DIII and NAIA and 343 girls who ran in the women’s championship race. We had three girls finishing in the top 30 runners across all divisions. There were 180 girls in the open race. Congrats to freshman Marie Ewing, for finishing first on our team in the open race with a 24:05. She placed 12th overall in the open race!! The one cool thing about the races being split up was getting to watch some of my teammates race and work hard. As a team, we placed third in Division II and sixth overall. For our freshmen, this was the very first 6K that they’ve ever run. Rachel Sweeney actually ran a 5K PR within her 6k which is pretty impressive! I think overall it was a good day for our team, although we still have a lot of work to do before G-MAC and the post season.
 

This weekend we are going on a road trip!!! We will be leaving campus on Friday morning, and driving to Romeoville, Illinois for a meet at Lewis University. We will be racing Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m. (Central Time). Please pray for safe travels and a good race. This is our last meet before conference. The season is flying by so fast! Thanks for all your prayers and support!

Have a wonderful week!

#RunForHim








September 26, 2017

Welcome back friends! This Friday, we have the unique opportunity of hosting the All-Ohio Championship. This is the one meet where all collegiate schools in Ohio, regardless of division, come together to compete in one race. Since my freshman year, this meet has never failed to fall on a day filled with torrential downpours and hurricane force winds (okay maybe a slight exaggeration, but you get the idea). Regardless of weather conditions, All-Ohio is a meet filled with high adrenaline and lots of emotions. In past years, the varsity and open races have been combined into one HUGE race due to weather, but as of now we are scheduled to run in two separate races.

Anyone that knows Coach Bo is most likely familiar with his favorite saying, "The hard days are hard, and the easy days are easy". This week at practice, he has been stressing to us the importance of mental toughness and preparation. The hard days of practice truly are hard, and it takes more than physical preparation to get through them and succeed. Having confidence in our abilities is no less important than our abilities themselves. With that in mind, All-Ohio is one of those meets that is right in the middle of our season, where fatigue is starting to set in, and our volume of training is still very high. It is important for our team to have the mind set that yes, this will hurt and it will be hard, but we are prepared and ready to race well.

The men’s varsity 8K begins Friday at 2:00 p.m., followed by the women’s varsity 6K at 2:45 p.m. The men’s and women’s open races are to follow! Like I said, we have the honor of hosting this meet on our very own home course, so we want to see all of you out there cheering! Go Jackets!

Until next time,

#RunForHim


September 20, 2017

Hey heyy everyone! I’m Carsyn Koch, filling in this week as a guest blogger:) I am a senior nursing major and captain on the team this year. It seems like just yesterday I was a bright-eyed freshman, trying to figure out what I was doing. I blinked and now I’m a senior…..still trying to figure out what I’m doing lol.

Last weekend was busy busy with an estimated 6,000 people coming in and out of our little town for the 2017 Friendship Invitational XC race. We raced, sold a lot of t-shirts, served a lot of hot dogs, cheered a lot of young runners on, and got at least a sunburn, ouch (really missing Kacy Dunn and her spf 100 rn), but all in all it was a great weekend! Shout out to Dr. White for coming out to support us before we raced (and awesome job to his daughter for her race too!)

Alaina was battling a pretty nasty bug which is why you did not see her name on the results list. Feel better soon Lainey!! Christy also took an easier weekend by pacing a few of our girls while they raced. Big performance this week was from our new to cross but not new to racing, Sarah Hoffman. Sarah joined the team this year as a senior and was a little hesitant to try out the 6K. She has had national success in track, but had never tackled a distance this long. Her hard work paid off this weekend as she set a new PR!! Proud of you Sarah!! Also, big congrats to Kayla for finishing 1st on our team and 2nd overall!

As for me, and many of the other lovely faces you haven’t seen race yet, the word "injured" has unfortunately been in the midst. I’ve been battling a hamstring tendonopathy which is probably taking me out of the season entirely. Even though this is not exactly how I planned my senior season to go, God planned differently. He’s been teaching me so much about patience and learning to trust in his timing above anything else. I am antsy to get back to running and my heart hurts to sit out but I know I have been assigned this mountain to show others it can be moved. Easier said than done right? Until then, you may find me in the pool, on our brand new ElliptiGO (this fancy bike/elliptical combo that I can speed around the outdoor track with) or probably in the training room.

Our next race is the All-Ohio on Friday, Sept. 29th at 2:45 p.m. on our home course. We are working on being more consistent as a team and learning to work together. One big thing we want to improve on is running in a pack. Pack running can help to keep runners accountable when they fall off pace because different athletes will be strong at different parts of the race. Our team is young and the upperclassmen are working really hard to help cultivate a competitive and focused atmosphere. We have lots of goals this season!! Some highlights of our week included: Gracie Norman winning WORLDS in the triathlon (yayyy 2peat!!), Lauren (Lo) Ries being cleared to run after breaking both her legs, and Peach turning 22.

This week’s rankings came out and we are currently ranked 4th in the region and 10th in the nation. Yay! Praise the Father for being good and faithful to us always, whether that be through encouraging rankings, a great workout, or simply the camaraderie of the team.

Remember, our next race is the All-Ohio Championships on our home course. GET PUMPED!!!


September 13, 2017

Hello friends!

This past weekend was not a typical meet weekend for us. On Friday afternoon, we held the Ekiden Relay. For this race, each girl was assigned a teammate as a partner. One partner ran the first 5K of our home 10K course, and the second partner ran the last 5K. Coach Bo ended up having our team use this race as a workout. Instead of running at race pace, we ran tempo pace (which is about 30 seconds per mile slower than 5K race pace). My fellow senior, Paige, and I ended up having to do a 5K tempo run at 5:30 a.m. Friday morning. Paige is an athletic training major and had to work at the meet, briefly switched roles from runner, to caretaker of the runners. I, on the other hand, had to go work at the pharmacy where I am an intern this semester. Let’s just say it was a very early morning for both of us. Even though I didn’t get to race with the team, it was great to see the effort and determination everyone displayed. We had some strong packs going, and most girls were happy with their performances.

This Monday, we had our first morning track workout as a team. It’s always hard to roll out of bed and start running almost as soon as your feet hit the floor, but these are the days and workouts that teach us discipline and mental toughness. A lot of us have to squeeze quite a few miles in, so we will start warming up at 5:30 a.m. to get about three miles in before the workout. Our workout was 5-7 repetitions of 800 meter repeats at VO2 Max pace (about two-mile race pace). Let me tell you, at 6:00 a.m. it feels like NASCAR pace. I am a 5K to 10K kind of girl, so speed workouts are typically not my favorite activity. However, as I’ve matured as a runner I have begun to embrace these workouts because they prove to me how strong I am, and getting through these difficult workouts gives me confidence that translates into my races. As physical as running is, it’s even more of a sport of grit and mental toughness. There aren’t many things that compare to the feeling after a hard workout, when we gather together and pray to thank God, as the sun is just starting to peak over the horizon. It is something surreal.

Our next meet is this coming weekend at HOME! The 27th Annual Friendship Invitational is on Saturday, starting with the collegiate men’s 8K at 9:30 a.m. Come support our men’s team! Following the men, is the collegiate women’s 5K (THAT’S US!). We want to see lots of Jackets fans on the sidelines. We really do hear you when we are racing, and your cheers truly do help!

In other news, Coach Bo celebrated his 25th (again) birthday this week! Make sure to tell him Happy Birthday if you see him running around the course this weekend!

Finally, please continue to pray for the injured girls on our team, and a special prayer for Grace Norman as she is in the Netherlands getting reading to compete at the World Championships in the triathlon. GO GRACE!

Until next time,

#RunForHim


September 6, 2017

Welcome back CUWXC friends and family! It was a busy weekend for the Lady Jackets, as we raced in our season opener, the Queen City Invitational in Westchester, Ohio last Saturday. For the past few years, this meet has fallen on a blazing hot 90-degree day, without a cloud in the sky. However, this year we were blessed with near PERFECT racing conditions. It was cloudy, with temperatures in the mid 50’s, and the rain even decided to hold off for us.
 

The first race of the season, at least speaking for myself, can be pretty nerve wracking. There is that degree of uncertainty about exactly where our fitness levels are at, and what realistic goal times look like. I would say overall, we had a very successful meet. Out of seven competing teams, Cedarville was the only NCAA DII school. We ended up placing fourth, behind Dayton, Xavier and Cincinnati, and beating Wright State, Northern Kentucky and Georgia State. It was exciting getting to see our freshmen compete in their first collegiate race, and it was a little bittersweet for us seniors, running our last first cross country race. Several of our girls had personal records; Freshman Sarah Groh (21:02), freshman Gabby Kabler (21:14), senior Rheeme Zayed (21:36), junior Erin Ashley (20:30), and sophomore Grace Norman (18:58). Other highlighting performances were freshmen Jordan Penrod and Rachel Sweeney, both placing in the top seven for Cedarville.

A lot of hard work lies between now and the end of the season, and we are going to take this first meet as a learning experience and starting point. Our next meet is this Friday (Sept 8) at home for the Cedarville Ekiden Team Challenge. It will start at 4:50 pm. We hope to see you there!!

That’s all folks! #RunForHim


August 29, 2017

Welcome CUWXC friends and family! It is hard to believe that another season of Women’s Cross Country kicks off in just a few short days. My name is Alaina Spears, and I will be your team blogger this year! This is my senior season, and let me tell you, when you come in as a freshman and want to roll your eyes at all the people who tell you how times flies, you will soon realize that IT REALLY DOES! Despite losing some key seniors (we miss them a lot!), our team has the potential to do incredible things this season. We have put in many hot summer miles to prepare, and we can’t wait to see what’s in store for us. I want to start by introducing my wonderful teammates.

First off, we have LOTS of talented incoming freshmen. We have Skyler Farrand, Lauren Ryan, Rebekah Jenkins, Marie Ewing, Jordan Penrod (who’s twin sister, Jasmine, is running for one of our rival teams, Malone University), Hannah Karayan, Gabbriella Kabler, Rachel Sweeney (fun fact: Rachel’s dad is the Dean of Pharmacy at Cedarville, and being a pharmacy major myself I better be nice to her), and finally, Sarah Groh (sister of our just graduated Rachel Groh, who is getting married next month!). Also, new to Cedarville are transfers Lauren (Lo) Ries, and Elizabeth Bassette.

Our returning sophomores are Anna Thayer, Olivia Kundo, Grace Norman (who will be racing at World’s this fall), Krista Green, and Rachel Davidson.

Starting round three are our juniors Abigail Snyder, Erin Ashley, the newly engaged Gabby Johnson (who’s fiancé, Isaac Wheeler, is a senior on the men’s team), Grace Flint, and last, but certainly not least Kayla Casaletto (who you may recognize as the girl from ESPN that got hit by a deer during NCCAA Nationals her freshman year).

Finally, let’s meet our seniors! I’m sure you recognize the names Sarah Hoffman and Rheeme Zayed from track. We are SO excited they decided to join our cross country family. Our returning seniors are Paige Logan, Carly Rose, Christy Jesson, myself, and you may have heard the name Carsyn Koch thrown out there once or twice throughout the past few years. Over the summer Carsyn competed in the USATF Outdoor Championships (the qualifying meet for the IAAF World Championships!). Finally, we have our team manager, and ever so talented photographer, Daniele Modderman.

We recently had our camp week, which is exhausting but amazing at the same time! In addition to daily practice, our week consisted of a team canoe trip, breakfast at Clifton Mill (where if you can eat two pancakes the size of your head, you get one free), tie-dyeing t-shirts, and a team cookout with s’mores!

Like I mentioned earlier, we have put in many hot summer miles. These summer workouts and training, while seemingly tedious and mentally challenging, build the foundation for the rest of the season. We have some big goals this season, striving to build on our success from last fall. To fill in those that are new to the CUWXC family, last year we qualified for DII Nationals in St. Leo, Florida, which our then seniors had their sights set on for the past four years. It was an indescribable experience, and something we are hungry to experience again! Our biggest focus is qualifying for DII Nationals for the second year in a row. We would love to have your prayers for a successful, injury free season, and more importantly for us to grow closer to God and learn more about Him and each other. Running is a huge part of our lives, but in the end, it certainly isn’t the most important. Also, pray for our amazing coaches, Coach Bolender and Coach Katie, who do so much for our team. We wouldn’t be able to accomplish a fraction of what we have without their guidance and support.

Our first meet is this upcoming Saturday in West Chester, Ohio. We would LOVE to see you all out there! Make sure to visit the Cedarville website for any updates and results.

Again, welcome to CUWXC! #RunForHim


Alaina Spears is a senior from Frazeysburg, Ohio. She is in her fourth season with the Lady Jackets and is a Dean's List student majoring in pharmacy.