By Justin Brosemer |
Sports writer
Coach Adam Ward’s Augusta University cross-country teams finished the regular season strongly at the North Georgia Invite on Saturday, Oct. 31 in Gainesville.
In last Saturday’s meet, sophomore Mackenzie Taylor would finish her regular season undefeated individually as she ran the 5-kilometer course located at the University of North Georgia in 17 minutes and 5 seconds, breaking the school and course record. She would finish more than a minute ahead of her nearest runner, Flagler runner Jessie Mescal, who finished with a time of 18:18. After winning her race, Taylor spoke about her thoughts surrounding her accomplishments this season as a first year runner and the team overall.
“It felt surreal honestly,” she said. “I can’t believe that I was able to accomplish so many of my goals so soon, it is really rewarding. And, no, I really don’t think I know my actual capability yet. It is only up from here, and I’m looking forward to how I can learn and grow with each race and each practice.”
Taylor has been a bright spot for the AU women’s cross country team in a COVID-19 shortened season. Teammates Jaelen Alexander (18th, 19:49) and Hayley Gilbert (22nd, 20:25) finishing in the top 25 also bodes well for the team’s final event. Considering the Peach Belt Conference Championship event will be raced at the same course as Saturday’s competition and the strong supporting cast behind Taylor, the future is bright for the women’s cross country team as they await their chance to claim their first conference championship in school history.
While Ward ultimately decided on resting the top seven men for the 8-kilometer race, the young men who would race in their place accepted the challenge and showed promising signs for the future in their runner-up finish behind Flagler. AU sophomore Carlos Rodriguez finished in seventh place with a time of 26 minutes and 26 seconds. AU runners Mikias Mekonen (eighth, 26:33) and Ben McGinnis (10th, 26:38) would finish in the top 10 as well. Rodriguez spoke about the opportunity and the results post-race with the Bell Ringer.
“It felt really good to step up and be able to lead the team with the older guys not racing.” Rodriguez said. “I feel like this will help me in the future because when the upperclassmen graduate, I’ll be in their position to help lead the team.”
The Jaguar men moved up a spot in the NCAA Division II rankings this week and now are fourth in the country.
The next and final race for both teams will take place on Nov. 14 in Gainesville. With a strong season from both cross-country teams, expectations and determination sit upon the team’s shoulders as the men will compete for a second consecutive conference championship and the women looking to earn their first.
“Lots of things to be happy about, but we still have work to do in the last two weeks to be successful on race day,” Ward said, anticipating the Peach Belt Conference championships, also at North Georgia.
Contact Justin Brosemer at JBROSEMER@augusta.edu.
The Bell Ringer 