Team Pursuit to end Spring Series

In the last competition before the actual race next weekend, the Spring Series will draw to a close Saturday when 73 different men’s and women’s teams suit up for Team Pursuit at Bill Armstrong Stadium.

Unlike other events in the Spring Series, such as Individual Time Trials and Miss-N-Out, Team Pursuit is a team effort rather than an individual one.

Beginning at 1 p.m., two teams begin on the track, one on turn two and the other on turn four. Four riders begin for each team but only three need to finish. After 15 laps for the men and 12 laps for the women, the third rider for each squad to cross the finish line stops the clock for their team.

At the end of the day, the two teams with the best times for both men and women square off against each other to determine the champion. The women’s final is scheduled to begin at 8:48 p.m., and the men’s is at 9 p.m.

“Team Pursuit is a lot different because it’s obviously a team event,” sophomore Cru Cycling rider Lyndi Hollis said. “The strategy is a lot less every man for himself and just go as hard as you can, and a lot more work together. You have to figure out how to accommodate your slowest rider so that the whole team sticks together the whole time.”

Because Team Pursuit is the final event of the Spring Series, the champion of the season will be crowned after the event. Teams are awarded points depending on how they perform in the Spring Series, with fewer points being better.

Phi Delta Theta currently leads the men for total points with the second-place Cutters trailing by seven. If Phi Delt makes it to the finals in Team Pursuit, it will wrap up the Spring Series championship.

However, if the Cutters win the event and Phi Delt places third or worse, the white jersey will belong to the Cutters.

“The Cutters and Phi Delts have a very storied and wonderful history of awesome battles,” senior Cutter Kevin Depasse said. “This year looks to be the same.”
On the women’s side, Teter has all but won the white jersey. With a 22-point lead ahead of Wing It and Kappa Alpha Theta, Teter needs just an eighth-place finish in Team Pursuit to guarantee a championship in the Spring Series.

Junior and rookie Kappa Delta rider Lauren Kohut said all the events leading up to the Little 500 are important, but this one means a bit more.

“They’re all important, but especially this one,” she said. “Because if we do well, mentally it will be a good boost of confidence for us going into the race and knowing what we can do as a team. It will be a goal-setter for race day.”