Lake Buena Vista, FL - The men's and women's cross country teams participated in one of the biggest meets of the year last Saturday; the Walt Disney World Cross Country Classic. With over 300 runners in each race, both the men and the women had a lot of ground to cover, as well as a lot of competition. The top finishers for the men were Willie Bankston, who has been battling through a fierce knee injury, and Michael Jordan. The two posted times of 35:37 and 36:50 respectively, earning them 297th and 304th place out of 324 runners.
The remainder of the men's squad consisted of Ricardo Vera, who ran a 38:16 for 311th place, and Kareem George, who ran a 39:28 for 315th place. While the men have much work to do in posting more competitive times and places, the women stayed consistent in their quest to the finish.
A shift in the spotlight took place when freshman Noralis Lambert outkicked sophomore Amanda Bennett for the number one spot on the team. Lambert's finishing kick rewarded her with a time of 25:12, good for 301st place out of 353 runners. Bennett stayed steady and posted a time of 25:16 for 304th place. The other half of the ever consistent fantastic four is composed of Koely Kempisty and Monica Garcia, who both finished strong and posted times of 25:26 and 26:33 for 305th and 319th place. The remaining women, Stephanie Ricardo and Jenny Sanchez, finished in 333rd and 347th, posting times of 27:34 and 31:06.
Both coach Norman and coach Jacobsen agree that there is plenty of work to be done in order to strengthen the men's and women's times before conference. “The women's team is staying consistent, and you like to see that, but we're still waiting to see what they're really made of,” said Norman. Norman was able to see a piece of what Lambert was made of this weekend, and he could not be happier with her performance. “You've got to love the girl, she just works hard everyday, and the next day she'll come out and work even harder than she did the day before,” he said. Jacobsen agreed in saying “the kid is just a breath of fresh air, I don't think she knew what she was capable of until she was truly pushed to her limit. Give her time, and she'll be the one to watch out for.”
As for the men's squad, Norman is still searching for his stud; someone willing to step it up to a stronger level of competition. “You can't see what you're made of until you're tested, and as it stands, none of the guys have been truly testing themselves. I'd like to see that change,” Norman said. “These next few weeks are going to be a test, and hopefully someone will step up and ace it.”
The men's and women's next race will be the Stetson, Hatter Invitational this Friday, October 17 at 4:00pm in DeLand, Florida.
