by T.J. Badertscher
Nov. 23, 2009
Hello all. I can’t believe this is the end, but it is. We finished up our season this weekend at Vancouver, Washington in the NAIA National Championship.
As a team we ran pretty well. We felt we ran a better team race than our placing showed but at any measure we were happy with what we were able to accomplish.
We ended up 19th as a team which was a spot improvement from the 20th-place ranking we held coming into the meet. However, we were a mere 15 points behind the 16th place team. Dakota State, which shows just how close the team race was.
I think with the youth and inexperience we brought to the National meet (with Rob Trennepohl being our lone senior) that we were able to put a good race together, and I know a lot of the guys were already excited with what we did but also in anticipation with what next year can bring.
The course overall was not too hilly, but it was very muddy. By the end, the course was pretty tore up so times seemed to be a bit slow this year. Overall, I just feel so blessed to have been a part of the team this year, they were a tremendous group of guys.
We now get a week or two off to rest the legs before we all get started training again for the track season that looms off in the distance. Hope all is well with everyone, thanks for the continued support and the prayers throughout the season and we just want to give thanks to God for the wonderful season He blessed us with.
It was real, it was fun, it was real fun. Haha. Well thanks for following everyone - I hope God continues to bless each and every one of you.
Nov. 16, 2009
It almost seems too good to be true that we would have back-to-back weekends with wonderful weather, but we did. It was another dry, sunny day for the NCCAA national meet held at Cedarville University last Saturday.
Our team ran pretty well. Our goal was to try and capture the team title but we did not quite reach that goal as we ended up with the team runner-up title.
There were definitely some positives that we were able to take from the race, however, as Evan Thayer was able to run very well for the second weekend in a row, winning the individual title overall. Our second pack also used this race as a learning experience as they didn’t run as well as they had hoped but realized that their struggles were coming from the fact of the quick early pace was leaving them feeling dead and unable to make moves later in the race.
Although we always would like to have great races every weekend, sometimes getting a down race and learning what went wrong is almost as important. We were able to get some individual awards as well, having three athletes named NCCAA All-American: Chris Vaughn, Rob Trennepohl, and Evan Thayer.
Now our focus turns to the NAIA National meet held in Vancouver, Washington this coming weekend. We will be leaving early Wednesday morning to head out there to get acclimated to the time change and get a first hand view of the course a few days before we finally race on it.
This has been our goal to get to the national meet healthy and able to run well, and with God’s blessing we have made it to that point. We are all excited for the opportunity to go in and prove where we feel like we belong in the National scheme as we feel like we got a less than favorable ranking throughout the season.
So going head to head against all teams that were ranked ahead of us will fuel the fire that we will all be taking into this final meet. I think everyone is really excited to be going out west to race. I know personally it should be an awesome experience and I am excited to get out proving that our team belongs in the national meet despite our very low seed coming into it.
Please pray for traveling mercies for our team and all other teams making the trek to Washington, and family and friends who are coming out to support the athletes.
Nov. 9, 2009
This past weekend we ran in the American Mideast Conference Championship held at Cedarville University. We came into this race knowing that we didn’t have to beat Shawnee State University, or Malone University, that we just had to run a good team race, turn in some good times, so that we could stay ranked where we were at. We came into the race ranked 18th in the NAIA and knew that if we were to get a team bid to the NAIA National Championship that we couldn’t fall much lower than that.
We finally got a dry day to run - it seems like the first one in months - but it was a bit windy. Our team ran alright, it was not our best race of the season, but it was not the worst either. Evan Thayer really stepped up and ran a lifetime PR and really took a step in the right direction. This should give him a lot of confidence going down the stretch towards the last two meets.
We felt that we had done enough between the last three weeks to deserve to stay at #18 - if not move up in the rankings. However, come Sunday night we found ourselves ranked 20th in the NAIA final rankings.
So right away we got on the web and tried to figure out whether or not we had done enough to qualify as a team to nationals. When we finished the automatic and at-large bids we found that we were around the 7th at-large bid which would have been one of the last teams to qualify. So we were on edge all weekend and finally when the final rankings came out Monday night at 6 p.m. we were so excited to know we qualified as a team to the NAIA National Meet.
So this week is all about maintaining the aerobic base and getting prepared for the NCCAA National Championship held this weekend at Cedarville. We do have a chance to go in and try and win the team title, and try and get a few All-Americans.
On a side note please be in prayer for Joe Jinks as during the race this weekend he was injured. He is a senior for Shawnee State and just pray that he can recover and be ready to run at the NAIA National meet so that he can end his senior year on the right foot. Also just continue to pray for the health of our team, as we have been blessed to have been healthy all year and we just cannot afford to get sick now. Well hope everyone has a good week and a nice weekend and I will talk to you all next week.
Nov. 2, 2009
This past weekend was our last weekend off of the season, so it was great to relax and start getting amped up for the American Mideast Conference meet this coming Saturday - held at Cedarville.
Last weekend was the last time we were able to up our intensity and continue to keep the training at a higher level. This week we will be backing it down, so that we can taper for the last three meets of the season. It is crazy to see myself type "the last three meets of the season" as this year has gone by way too fast.
It seems like almost yesterday we were all meeting for the first time, doing our first run together as a team, and now we are quickly approaching our final week. I guess overall there is not much to say, our team is excited for the opportunity to go out and run well, and defend our home course. We know what we have to do, and we know what it’s going to take to try and get a bid to the national meet. We are peaking now, and that is a great sign as that’s what our plan has been all season.
I think we will really surprise ourselves this weekend with what we are able to do, and the times we are able to run. We are really hoping that this weekend we could finally get a dry, nice day to race, so that we can see visually through times just how much improvement we have made through the season.
Until we talk again, please pray for continued health for the team, as a cold or sickness now could be devastating for the guys on the team. Well I hope I have some great things to say to you all next week, but until then God bless and have a blessed week.
Oct. 26, 2009
It took me a few hours of flipping through the dictionary and surfing from site to site on the web to find the perfect word to describe the feeling of this past weekend: indescribable. On Saturday, we ran at the Aquinas Invitational in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
There was some stellar competition as many top-ranked teams in the NAIA competed in the meet. We knew coming into the meet that this was basically our last chance to get the raters attention, and move ourselves into the Top 25 again.
Through the week following our fall break I was hoping there would not be a letdown in the intensity that we were coming to practice with, and there wasn’t. The intensity actually increased throughout the week, as the meet looming in the distance continued to gain more and more importance.
We showed up to the race Saturday morning and, what seems like every meet now, the ground was wet, soggy, and muddy. As we were on the starting line, we did our last run-out and met up together and huddled up. As we stood there and I was getting ready to address the team with some last minute advice and motivation, I looked around into the eyes of all the runners, and saw a fire that I hadn’t seen before. I knew at that moment that everyone was more than ready to go out and do what our team needed to do.
We felt like we had the talent to beat #13- ranked Cornerstone and went into the meet with that as our strategy. However, when it was all said and done and the smoke cleared we realized just how well we ran as a team. Not only did we upset Cornerstone, but we had also beaten #9-ranked Olivet Nazarene. Our team was ecstatic. I have never been a part of a team that had such a breakthrough race - as a whole team - like we had this weekend. So to me the euphoric feeling I had after the race was just indescribable.
I’m so happy with what our team was able to do, and that everyone showed up and stepped up on the same day as we rallied around the saying "One team, one goal." Again we have another weekend off between this meet and the American Mideast Conference meet, so this week will be probably our last week to step up the volume and step up some of the intensity before we taper for the final three meets.
Please continue to pray for our team, that we are able to stay healthy and injury-free for the remainder of the season, and that we can continue to run and glorify God through our performances. All for the glory of God!
Oct. 19, 2009
We were off this weekend as it was our fall break, and a much needed break it was. Our week was a little more intense due to the off weekend, and we will be backing back down this week so that we can go into the Aquinas Invitational fresh, as it has become an extremely important meet for us.
Aquinas always brings together some good competition with a plethora of Top 15 teams competing in the meet. We really need to show up this weekend and show what our team is able to do and prove that we are a Top 15 team.
The only down side of coming off a break is the chance of some mediocre efforts given during workouts due to the lull of a break. We really need to come into this week focused on our goal, and though the break was a nice time to relax and recharge, we cannot let it negatively affect our training this week.
Every week I write, I realize that we are creeping closer and closer towards the end of the season, and every week and every workout is becoming more important. I can feel throughout the team that everyone is ready to go this weekend; all members are ready to race well and ready to put together the best race, personally and team, of the season.
The God sighting for the week is merely the fact that everyone stayed injury free over break, and had safe travels back to campus. Well, this weekend will be here before we know it and I will get back to you next week hopefully telling you about our awesome race at Aquinas. God Bless.
Oct. 12, 2009
Soggy conditions this past weekend couldn’t keep us from hitting a huge stepping stone as a team. We ran at Terre Haute, Indiana in the DePauw/Rose-Hulman Invitational and placed very well as a team.
The race was split into two different divisions, a University Division and a College Division. I believe the College Division was NCAA Division III schools. We, however, ran in the University Division and placed fourth out of eight teams.
The big encouragement for us was the fact that when we looked over the combined results we would have beaten Heidelberg College who finished 6th the weekend before in the All-Ohio race. This was a very promising sign that we are starting to drop our times and starting to run better each and every week.
This race we ran a little different strategy - as the first few races we got out conservative - this weekend we went out much more aggressive as to put ourselves in contention with the lead groups. I think this ultimately helped us to run a much more solid team race, and helped us to instill the confidence that we can get out a bit quicker and still compete and run well.
Another encouraging sign from the weekend is how everyone stepped up and supported Jordan Davies and Josiah Bragg, who by their standards didn’t have the greatest of races. Even with them struggling the team picked up the slack, which ultimately shows the depth we have and also relieves pressure off any one runner to feel like they must perform top-end every week. We proved this weekend that even if one or two runners don’t run their best that we have two guys who can and will step up for the team.
Overall, I feel everyone was very pleased with what transpired this weekend and now we look forward to Aquinas in two weeks. We have this weekend (fall break) off and so this week we will be able to up the intensity again, getting ready for our final "regular season" meet.
The God sighting for the week would just have to be how God was working in us. Coming off what would be deemed a disappointing weekend at the All-Ohio, God kept that fire burning in us and ultimately gave us the confidence to know we could redeem ourselves and come out and run a very good race. Confidence in one’s racing ability is a huge factor in cross country, so the mere fact that we all kept that confidence is awesome.
Until next time enjoy your week, pray for those traveling this weekend for fall break, and the Browns won. Ha! Alright, have a good week can’t wait to write again next time.
Oct. 5, 2009
This past weekend was the first time I was actually allowed to play in the mud, without getting scolded by my parents. However, after doing my laundry I now know why parents really don’t want their children to do this.
We ran at the All-Ohio meet and had a decent race overall. We were able to place 10th out of the 38 teams. This was a much better showing than we had last year at the same race.
The course conditions were very wet, and after the women’s race, the course was very muddy and slippery. However, despite the conditions of the course we were still able to run a good team race. As I looked deeper at the results a key thing stood out to me.
If we took all 38 teams and lined up their fifth and final runner to score for the team, our fifth man would have placed sixth. This shows how solid our 1-5 is, even though at this point in the season we don’t have a true "front runner" - that will come and we have all the makings of having a very, very good team.
Taking a look ahead, we have the DePauw/Rose-Hulman Invitational in Terre Haute, Indiana. For a little background information this is the same course where NCAA Division I pre-nationals is run, and a few of us have been there to watch that meet and have seen the course. It is a very legit course and has turned out some fast times, which is a very encouraging thing for us, to know we can just go out and try and throw down a season-best time.
I believe our team is right on track with where we need to be, and we are running some very impressive workouts as a team. Everyone is very excited and very upbeat, and we all know that we have some good races ahead of us.
To end with another God sighting of the week would be race day on Friday. I woke up and walked to my 8 a.m. class over in the ENS and it was miserable out. It was a drizzly 55-degree morning with strong winds. But as we arrived in Delaware, Ohio the clouds started to part, the drizzling rain left and the sun came out to make it a very enjoyable, comfortable day for us to enjoy.
Well, I can’t wait to get back to you next week and tell you about the meet on Saturday. Thanks for reading.
Sept. 28, 2009
Well, we were off last weekend, which gave us a great week to get in a couple tough workouts. Our training is coming along very nicely as we were able to step it up some over these couple weeks, and it was just phenomenal to see all of the guys that were able to step up to the harder workouts and push through them.
Each and every week I can see that confidence build as our team gathers a bit of "swagger" with each and every completed run. Looking ahead to the end of this week we are looking at the All-Ohio meet held in Delaware, Ohio. This meet will have almost every school from Ohio competing in it, from NCAA Division I to NAIA.
This is a great chance for us to get in a race with some stellar competition and just see what we can do in our first "big" meet of the season. The All-Ohio is a very demanding course, with many hills, but most of us have experienced the course at least once and know that we can run well if we enter in with the right mind set.
I know personally I am looking forward to the competition and showing what we are able to do against some of the "big dogs" from the area. "‘cause if you can’t run with the big dogs, stay on the porch." Ha!
I know our team with the way we have been competing and what everyone has shown throughout practice will be able to be very competitive this weekend.
To end off this blog I want to take a look back at the week and just give a weekly "God sighting" - just a time where I saw God working through or in something throughout the week. This week the thing that stood out to me was actually from our student assistant Jud Brooker.
We were running a tough mile repeat workout and we were coming up on the last one, and all the miles previous we had been battling the wind. On the last one Jud led us through the last 400 meters despite him having some soreness in his knee. It was just a very humble thing for him to do for us and I really appreciated it.
I can’t wait to get back and tell you about the race on Friday but Structural Kinesiology calls, and I should probably answer.
Sept. 21, 2009
Hey, welcome back. We had a very productive weekend at the Friendship Invitational - our first 8K race of the season held on our very own Elvin R. King Cross Country Course. As a team, we finished second overall, right behind Shawnee State.
Although we wanted to be up and running with the Shawnee State team, we are very happy with what we were able to accomplish with our team race this early in the season. We had a mere 19 seconds between our number one runner and number five runner.
The race started off very well and for much of the race we had a pack of about six runners. Josiah Bragg, a freshman, was able to step up and run a very solid 8K time. As a freshman making the jump from the 5K to the 8K he ran very well and very confidently and his time reflected that.
Jordan Davies, a junior, was able to run a very good time and step up as the number two runner on the team, and it was great to see him have the confidence to get out with the lead group and hang on. I think it was a great confidence builder for him to see that he is very capable of doing that each and every week.
Rob Trennepohl, a senior, struggled with some breathing problems about half way through the race so we all know he will break into the top five and be a very productive runner for the team. Joshua Wiseman, another junior, also ran a very good race, and was able to also get out with that top group from the get-go.
I think the most encouraging statistic from the race was the fact that we had eight runners under 27 minutes, which shows we have the depth and talent to make a lot of noise in the upcoming races. We had two guys, Jordan Davies and Josh Wiseman, who had huge personal bests exceeding 20 seconds even this early in the season. Given the training phase we are in and training phase we are entering into, we are very excited with what we accomplished and excited to see what we will be able to achieve in the upcoming races.
We now have a week off from racing so we will be able to up our training a bit, with some higher mileage and a bit more intense workouts. We are off until Oct. 2 when we start back up with the All-Ohio meet held in Delaware, Ohio. Although the course in Delaware is a tough one, we will be up against very good competition, as almost every school from Ohio will be there, and we’ll be able to see how we stack up.
I am very excited with where we are at as a team, and can’t wait to see what we as a team are able to do at the bigger meets coming up. Thanks for reading. Can’t wait to get back and share with you again.
Sept. 14, 2009
The summer training has finally ended and a starting point has been established. It seems crazy that a little over three months ago we all started this long journey on the back country roads of our hometowns.
Personally, it felt great to finally get the first race under our belt, to get that first adrenaline rush, the first gun, the sounds and smells associated with racing back into the blood stream.
Since we have returned back to Cedarville, we have been waiting for this race. The race overall I feel went very well and we had some very encouraging things to take from it.
Leading up to the race - the Queen City Invitational (5K) - there was a little cold going around, and I personally was just getting over it and I know a few others had or were starting to get it. Despite those circumstances, everyone was still ready to go and ready to start the first race.
Coming from a high school where we could barely field a team of seven, it was more than exhilarating to have a race where in the front pack I look around to see five of my teammates right there beside me. It was a feeling that I have never had before, and it was one of the biggest encouragements to me that we had such a tight knit pack that could go out and work together throughout the race.
Our team ended up finishing very well. We placed third behind Xavier and Cincinnati, but more exciting was the time between our first and fifth runners was a mere 15 seconds. I was very encouraged after the race given the circumstances, and the fact that we went to a fairly big meet and still placed five in the top 25 runners.
This week has started off well and we are all looking forward to our first 8K race. We have a home meet coming up and there will be some notable universities that will be attending. We will be going up against another highly-ranked NAIA team in Shawnee State.
Looking around I see a lot of the guys are getting over their sicknesses and everyone looks like they are starting to get healthy. We are hoping to be able to repeat the pack we were able to form during the 5K race. We had a good workout this week and have been keeping the mileage steady and just mentally preparing for what we need to do this weekend.
I am really excited to get back and tell you all about the 8K race at the Friendship Invitational this weekend, so I guess you’ll have to wait until then.
NCCAA All-American T.J. Badertscher is a junior from Marion, Ohio with a major in exercise science.
