Teter, Cutters win Team Pursuit

Heading into this weekend’s Team Pursuit competition, both Teter and Cutters had large leads in the overall standings based on their individual performances. It was only fitting that they continued their reign on top with victories Saturday, establishing themselves as the best overall teams going into the Little 500.

Teter took the women’s title with a 12-lap time of 8:08.28. Despite a hard-fought challenge by Kappa Delta in the finals, Teter was able to pull away late and secure the victory.

“We had expected to do well because we know we have trained hard and put in time where it counts,” Teter freshman Caitlin Van Kooten said. “People really hung in there. We had a slow start, but we caught back up and got our heads back in it.”

Though Kappa Delta did not win, senior Lauren Reynolds said that competing in Team Pursuit helped her team improve with just less than a week remaining before the race.

“We found out how to talk,” Reynolds said. “There was a couple times where I couldn’t get out there and take the lead. I just communicated with the two rookies and they pulled through for us, so we know what we have with them.”

For the men, Cutters edged out Phi Kappa Psi with a time of 8:02.5. This was the second consecutive year that Cutters has claimed the Team Pursuit crown.

“It couldn’t be better,” Cutters senior Paul Sigfusson said. “Both runs went really well for us and we are really happy with that. We were coming out here to see what we could do as a team and I think we did awesome.”

Another positive sign for Cutters come race day is the return of senior Erik Hamilton. Hamilton, who had a top three time in last year’s Individual Time Trials, missed the first two series events while recovering from knee surgery.

“He did really well,” Cutters coach Jim Kirkham said. “He is getting faster and fitter every day after his knee surgery. It validates all of the hard work the team has done all winter and it is nice to get a reward for that.”

Phi Kappa Psi senior David Schweer said despite not being victorious, his team felt good about their efforts in Team Pursuit.

“We were happy to get to the finals,” Schweer said. “Our communication was really good. We were hurting half way through but we kept on fighting through and tried to compete. I think that was the best thing.”

With less than a week remaining before the Little 500 race, riders said that their Team Pursuit success helps provide the extra momentum that they need.

“It feels great,” Teter junior Jackie Moeller said. “We have been training hard all year and it is great to see that our work is finally paying off. Hopefully we can stay strong and do well on race day.”

Schweer said he feels good about his team’s performance thus far and believes his team will be ready for the race on Saturday.

“It just shows that we are where we want to be fitness-wise,” Schweer said. “I feel very confident about where we stand in regards to the rest of the field. Everybody on our team is capable of taking over.”