The UCLA women’s cross-country team may have just returned
from the Notre Dame Invitational, but the state of Indiana will not
stray far from the squad’s thoughts.
Last Friday’s meet marked the first of three anticipated
trips to Indiana, where the Bruin women are scheduled to compete in
the Pre-National Invitational in Terra Haute on Oct. 16, as well as
the NCAA Championship race on Nov. 22.
Although unhappy with their seventh place finish behind three
lower ranked teams, the No. 12 Bruins feel it is too early in the
season to worry about the lackluster result.
“We were definitely disappointed by our
performance,” sophomore Ashley Caldwell said, “But not
discouraged.”
In an increasingly familiar scoring order, the women were led by
sophomore Alison Costello and junior Jenna Timinsky, with Caldwell
and juniors Allison Hall and Alejandra Barrientos rounding out the
top five.
Top-ranked Stanford claimed first place, with No. 6 Michigan and
No. 4 Notre Dame finishing second and third respectively. Missouri
(No. 23), Michigan State (No. 22) and William and Mary (No. 24) all
turned in impressive performances to finish ahead of UCLA.
But running best marks when the championship race is still six
weeks away is not the primary goal of the Bruins at this point in
time.
“Our training schedule is geared more to peak later in the
season,” Caldwell explained. “What you can accomplish
in four weeks is tremendous.”
Proof of the team’s tried and true method of training was
evident in its 2003 seventh place national finish. Until the
championship meet, UCLA was unranked in national polls. But that
didn’t deter the team, as it posted its best national finish
since placing sixth in 1985.
“I think nationals was a surprise for a lot of
people,” Caldwell said, “But we trained to peak at the
end.”
Avoiding over-training in the beginning stages of the season not
only created the opportunity for a great performance when it
counted most, but also minimized the risk of injuries that often
result from over-training. No one on the 2003 scoring squad
succumbed to injuries that prevented their participation in
nationals.
The early wake-up call gives the women an added incentive to
silence critics who feel the team is overrated and can not
duplicate last year’s national performance.
“We have more to work for now,” Caldwell said.
“We want to go out and prove everyone wrong again,”
she added.