Women place fifth at CIS Championships
Susan Sobey, Sports Contributor
On Nov. 13 the Tigers Cross Country teams took to the trails for the final time, for the race they’ve been gearing up for all season, the CIS championships hosted by the Université de Sherbrooke.
The 10th seeded women’s team did not disappoint, finishing the 5 k.m. race with a fifth-place finish. This time it was AUS bronze medallist Jessica Belliveau who led the Tiger pack. Her 19-minute effort earned her 15th place and narrowly missed selection to the second all-Canadian team. AUS champion Caroline Schlosser wasn’t far behind her teammate. Five seconds back, the team captain finished 18th in her fifth and final CIS cross-country championships. Also scoring for the Tigers were Gina Stewart (38th), Ashley Ryer (41th) and Cara Groves (66th).
After an undefeated season in the AUS conference, highlighted by winning the AUS banner for the first time since 2004, naming four runners (of a possible seven) to the AUS first-team all-star team, and claiming AUS MVP (Schlosser) and coach of the year honours, the women were slightly disappointed with their performance at CIS. “We didn’t quite get the result that we wanted, considering our strength, but we did place much higher than we were ranked and overall had an awesome season,” said Belliveau.
The women’s team’s high expectations this year were due to a newly compiled AUS super-team. Veteran Tiger and former team MVP Schlosser, and former Dal rookie of the year Groves were joined this season by a trio of transfers in Belliveau, Stewart and Ryer. Former AUS champions and former CIS all-Canadians Stewart and Ryer transferred this season from St.FX and Saint Mary’s respectively to pursue graduate studies. Belliveau made her debut in the CIS after taking a few years off following two NCAA seasons with the University of Maine.
Despite suddenly becoming teammates with their former competition, the women easily came together as a team and as friends. “At first it was really weird (not lining up with St.FX), but as the season went on and I got to know the Dal girls better, I became a part of the team and felt great in the black and gold,” Stewart said.
Head coach Heather Hennigar was extremely pleased with the women’s performance. “Going in to CIS I felt a top five would be a solid performance to walk away with, so in that regard I am pleased,” Hennigar said. “I know being that close to top three may have left some of the athletes disappointed, but they gave it everything they had on the day. We were 13th last year so it’s a huge step forward, and the team will be very strong next year. Overall, they were an outstanding group of individuals to work with and I think we all enjoyed the process this season.”
For Schlosser, Stewart, and Stephanie Bennett, this marked their final CIS championship. “I was a little sad going into CIS knowing it was my last one, but I tried to put that thought behind me.” Schlosser said. “I have competed at CIS all five years, but I can happily say that this year was the most fun. I had the honour of running with some of the greatest girls I have ever met, and winning AUS individually and as a team is something I will never forget.”
Stewart expressed similar sentiments. “The team this year was one of the most fun groups of girls I have ever run with and it was great to have shared my last race with them.”
Men’s squad have disappointing showing at nationals, but excited for future
The young men’s team headed into CIS with few expectations and the hopes to use this national experience in the years to come. In their 10km race, the 10th seeded AUS champions ended up 17th overall. Individual AUS champion Dan Gorman led his squad with a 46th place finish in 34:26.1. Also scoring for the Tigers were Bruce Russell (80th), Jacob Moore (96th), Justin Vere (104th), and AUS rookie of the year Adam McGregor (108th). Also racing for the Tigers team were Josh Coyle and Ryan Kiros.
For the men, CIS capped off an undefeated AUS season, in which they claimed back the AUS title after a two year hiatus, had three runners named to the AUS first-team all-star list, and received AUS MVP, rookie of the year, and coach of the year honours.
The final placing of the team at CIS can largely be attributed to their lack of experience at a high-calibre level. As team captain Gorman put it, “CIS for the guys was a chance to see what the national level is like as far as competition, and I think we came away from it with the experience we needed and the techniques on how to run a race like that.”
More specifically, Russell added, “the race at CIS goes out much faster than any race in the AUS and it’s very easy to get caught up in that fast pace and go out too hard, which makes the next nine kilometres very tough.”
While this was the last CIS meet for Gorman, the remainder of the team will be around next season, and are confident in their abilities.
“While Dan is a big loss, we’ve got a solid core of young runners who will be returning, one year older, more experienced, and faster,” Russell said. “Add to that a solid cast of recruits that Heather is working on, and we’ll be looking to be in good shape to defend our AUS title.”
Overall, Hennigar is happy with the men’s performances this season. “They are a young and inexperienced team and this CIS experience will pay off for them next year,” Hennigar said. “I think another key will be getting them into some big races early next season so they have raced some highly competitive and larger fields before the championships. The programs continue to build each year and I am looking forward to working with both teams over the next number of months to prepare for next season. We have a very solid group of returning athletes and some young talent that will continue to develop.”
Both teams have taken a week off, and since most cross country athletes also compete on the track and field team, they will be using their hard work and experience from cross country as they turn their attention to the indoor track season.
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