Cross country season is officially underway, and with two meets behind them, the Raiders are off to a strong start.
On Sep. 6, the opening races were held at the Augustana Twilight meet, where the men’s and women’s teams finished 18th and 12th, respectively, in a massive field including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division 1 and 2 schools. It was a great success, with about every Raider finishing in their goal time or faster. Several runners broke their goals by over an entire minute, an extraordinarily rare feat.
At the Dordt Sunflower Open the following weekend, the team faced warmer weather but pushed through to finish with solid times. The Raiders are excited to be seeing some pay off already for the hundreds of summer miles logged and strenuous workouts completed since coming back to campus in mid-August.
The program nearly doubled its roster in 2024 – the men’s and women’s teams combined consists of 48 runners, and 23 of those are freshmen. This naturally brings change, but it is a positive change, one that helps strengthen the community within the team.
“This season has been special because of the sheer number of teammates that we have to support one another each day,” said senior captain Emma Haley. “Every season is unique, but I am thankful for the way our team has been so intentional in prioritizing a culture of faith this year.”
The promising entrance to the season has given further motivation to the Raiders and kept their goals within their sights.
“Our men would like to place in the top three of the conference this year,” Coach Bahrke said. “They also want to hold each other accountable for individual goals they have for running, academics and time in God’s word. The women plan to improve after each meet and do the little things to make this happen.”
While attainable, some of the goals will be more challenging than others.
“To achieve third place in the Great Plains Academic Conference (GPAC), it will take a disciplined team encouraging one another to improve each day. Every man will have to push from front to back,” said senior captain Trey Engelmann.“It will take encouragement and accountability as we sharpen one another.”
Raiders will race next on Sep. 20 at the Roy Griak Invitational in Minnesota.
