Even though the IU men’s and women’s cross-country teams have worked their way into the top-30 in the most recent U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Poll released on Tuesday, fans might not see the same runners that got them in that position at the Indiana Intercollegiate at West Lafayette on Friday.
After dominating season-opening performances at the IU Open in Bloomington two weeks ago, the women’s team is now No. 26 in the country, while the men’s team is No. 27.
Despite the recent wave of success, Coach Ron Helmer has decided to sit most of his top runners for this weekend’s contest in preparation for next Friday’s much more competitive Coast to Coast Battle in Beantown in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. However, that does not mean Helmer is not expecting quality performances from his teams this week.
“Our teams are going to be fairly thin on Friday,” Helmer said. “We’re sitting a lot of people, but what we hope is we have two or three people on both teams go out and run really good, solid individual races.”
Friday’s meet will feature a large amount of in-state competition from schools around Indiana, including Big Ten Conference rival Purdue, but Helmer will sit six or seven top runners on both teams. However, for those who do participate this weekend, spots on the team are open for the taking.
On the women’s side, sophomore Grace Walther will be running alongside a number of track and field half-milers to earn a coveted spot in the team’s top-seven rotation. Meanwhile, freshmen Cameron Clements, Teddy Browning and Marcus Ellington will be competing for top-10 positions on the men’s squad.
“There’s some really talented people in the group that’s running this weekend,” Helmer said. “I think some of them are ready to run really good cross-country, and we’re hoping by the end of the year they have developed and can be a part of the nine that compete in the Big Ten Championship.”
As Helmer has said all season, early-season meets like Friday’s are not as much of a priority compared to postseason races such as the Big Ten Championships or qualifying for the NCAA Championships. For those that will not travel to West Lafayette, this week’s training will be all about getting ready for next weekend’s meet in Boston, which will be a good chance to see where the team stacks up against some of the country’s best competition.
“For those that aren’t running, we’re going to put some work in on the course and look to have solid practices all week,” Helmer said. “For those that are running, we’re going to keep them off the grass and off the hills and let them relax a little more. We want them to have their legs this weekend so they can race pretty well.”
