For the first time in four years, Idaho heads into a cross country conference championship without being the favorites to win on the women’s side.
For the first time since 1996, the Idaho cross country teams will race in the Big Sky Conference Championships Saturday at the Ray Richards Golf Course in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
Jose Bendeck | Argonaut
Tim Delcourt warming up before practice on Wednesday.
“I think we’re in a great position, I think we feel really good about where we’re at,” Idaho coach Travis Floeck said. “I think we’re excited, our energy is up, fitness is exactly where we want it to be and what you envision at the beginning of the season, I think that’s where we’re at.”
The Vandals head into the meet against some stiff competition. On the men’s side, conference favorite Northern Arizona is ranked No. 10 in the nation while Southern Utah comes into the meet ranked No. 24. On the women’s side, NAU is ranked No. 36.
Aside from NAU, Floeck said the teams on the women’s side are really close in talent level. He said Idaho could finish anywhere from second to 10th depending on how the race pans out. On the men’s side, he said the team could realistically land anywhere from third to eighth depending on how everyone runs that day.
Jose Bendeck | Argonaut Morgan Choate works out during practice Wednesday. Idaho will compete in the Big Sky Conference Championship Saturday in North Dakota.
“I’m going to be real happy if we walk away and we compete well,” Floeck said. “Wherever that plays out, I’ll be happy with that and we’ll keep moving forward to the regional meet and then beyond the season.”
Idaho goes into the meet mostly healthy, but there are a couple of question marks on both sides. On the women’s side, sophomore Alex Siemens took some time off the past week to rest and recover from some nagging injury problems but is expected to compete.
For the Vandals not competing is junior Halie Raudenbush. After not training much over the summer, Raudenbush would have been the second-best Vandal at the Inland Empire Challenge Oct. 18, as she competed in the meet unaffiliated to keep her redshirt. Even so, Floeck said it is best for her and the future of the team to have Raudenbush keep her redshirt this season and not have her run in a Vandal uniform at the conference meet.
“I’m confident in the team I have right now and making that decision with the big picture in mind as far as the seasons to come and what’s in her best interest and the best interest of the team,” he said.
On the men’s side, sophomores Mickey Day and Tim Delcourt will be back in the lineup after missing the last meet for Idaho.
Going into the meet, the plan for the Vandals is the same as it always is — not start out too fast and then take advantage of the racers who do, Floeck said.
“It’s not as exciting as far as Xs and Os go even though I think sometimes people try to make it that way,” he said. “It is really a simple sport when you think about it — you’re going out and you’re running hard and you’re racing people and trying to get to the line.”
Floeck said sophomore Nathan Stark brought up a good point in practice last week. Stark said the Vandals should focus on passing teams at the end of the season just like they focus on passing racers at the end of a race. That mindset of finishing the race and the season better than they started is the goal going into the meet, Floeck said.
“What I want to try to do is mitigate the pressure a little bit and just know that it’s a race just like anything else,” he said. “You go out, you run hard and run to your fitness level and that’s all we’re trying to do. If they are able to do that, we’ll get good results for sure.”
Stephan Wiebe can be reached at [email protected]