MHCC CROSS COUNTRY READY FOR NWACS

 

The stage is set: This Saturday, Nov. 10, the Mt. Hood Saints cross country team will compete in the 2018 NWAC championships, to be held at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey, Washington.

We headed down to the track to see how the Saints runners were preparing.

A TEAM PLAN

On the men’s side, team leader Tyler Tenny has hopes of a good performance going into this weekend. He spoke with us, saying, “At this point (in the season), I’d rather support the team so that we can do well as a team.”

He is happy with his new personal record (26:58:30 for an 8K course), which he achieved at the Warner Pacific XC Classic in October. It was a bit surprising, as he wasn’t feeling very good and felt unprepared during that race, he said. While excited, he’s keeping his head on the ground this weekend: He plans on finding his pace at the start and going from there, and if he gets another personal best it would be great, but he isn’t worrying too much about that.

Chris Garcia has been a great addition to the team since he joined halfway into the season. Garcia is a sophomore transfer from Treasure Valley Community College and is glad to be helping the team out. He wasn’t able to finish the most recent meet as he slipped and fell during the race, injuring his knee and causing him to drop out of the competition.

Garcia says he’s all good now and ready for NWACs, hoping to perform at his best.

“I don’t really have an individual plan. We have a team plan, and it’s just to place well,” he said. “We have a shot to do really well at NWACs for the first time in a while for Mt. Hood.

As for Emanuel Ibarrah, he’s looking to improve his time. “I feel good going into NWAC’s; out of everyone, I feel like I’m the one that hasn’t raced to my potential,” he told the Advocate. “Just because I opened up second-to-fastest and everyone in their second race PR’d (set a personal record) by over a minute, I haven’t PR’d by a minute since my first race,” he explained. “I’m just hoping to PR at NWACs… and hopefully that will help us do good as a team.”

SEEKING A BREAKTHROUGH

For the women, freshman Hana Alvarez is determined to do great at Saint Martin’s. Through the three meets she ran this season, she has been able to cut down her time in each. She currently stands at a 22:53 (for 5K) and is very close to breaking her personal best of 22:32, which she set in high school three years ago.

Alvarez is determined to reach this goal over the weekend, but admits she feels very nervous about it. She suspects she has had a mental barrier along the way, causing her times to be slower.

“So, for me, getting to this PR is more than just a PR. It’s like me saying I am back to my healthy mental state,” she said. Asked about her confidence in her goal, she said, laughing, “Every meet I always believe that I’m going to get it, every single time. Even when I’m 5 minutes away or 2 seconds away, I’ll always believe I’ll get it. That’s just kind of the way I go at it.”

Sophomore Amber Herman is looking forward to the NWACs but is trying to take it like any other race, she said. She just hopes to have an overall good race, as she’s been focusing on her pacing this season.

“In practice it seems to go really well but then in the meets my pace is really off,” Herman said. “I think if I’m able to do really well at that this race – go out more conservatively, and then feel better towards the end of the race – I think that will help a lot.”

The Saints are excited for this final road trip as a time to bond as a team, and look forward to competing on Saturday. They are set to leave today (Friday) for Lacey, and give their best effort.