Cross country races to inaugural Pac-12 Championships

Runners always move forward.

They have no reason to turn their heads and peek back at opponents. It only breaks their concentration and leads to errors.

So when the UCLA men’s and women’s cross country teams head to Tempe, Ariz. this Saturday to compete in the Pac-12 Championships, they know that the only direction to look is ahead.

“Things are coming together. We’re training really hard,” sophomore Dustin Fay said. “Everyone is getting their mind-set right. We’re looking forward to seeing what we can do, see if we can put ourselves up in that top spot.”

After struggling to find confidence through much of the season, the women’s team is coming off a much-needed second-place finish at last weekend’s Titan Invitational. The Bruins hope to carry that same momentum into this Saturday’s conference championships.

“The women are getting their fire back,” coach Forest Braden said. “If they can get that mentality and that attitude and that confidence for future races, they’re going to be fine.”

The women’s second-place finish at the Titan Invitational may have provided a necessary boost of confidence, but the Pac-12 Championships are a big step up from the low-key schools that competed last weekend.

On the women’s side, six of the 12 conference teams are ranked, while five of the nine men’s teams in the Pac-12 are currently in the top 25, including No. 20 UCLA.

Among the ranked conference teams that will be competing on Saturday feature No. 2 Washington and No. 5 Arizona on the women’s side and No. 4 Stanford for the men’s team.

All these big names can get intimidating for an inexperienced women’s team that has only one senior on its roster.

“You practice and you think you’re doing well. Then you come to these meets and everyone is practicing that hard, if not harder,” said freshman Bronte Golick, who led the Bruins with an 11th-place overall finish last weekend. “You really have to put everything that you have, every second of every race, to be successful.”

Braden recognizes that competing against tough conference rivals may make many of his young runners feel doubtful in their ability to win. He has been working hard to dispel this notion.

“(He) really works at keeping our confidence up and makes sure we’re not slacking off,” Golick said. “We’re learning that we can run with anyone.”

On the men’s side, the intimidation factor surrounding the other conference schools is still certainly there, but the team’s self-belief is much more apparent.

“We have Colorado, Stanford and these other great teams, but they’re not too far from our grasp,” Faye said. “We’re looking to get into that mentality of competing at that high level as those teams. It’s definitely within reach.”

Last year at the Pac-10 Championship meet, the Bruins placed fourth in the men’s division and sixth in the women’s. Stanford took home both team titles.

But what happened last season does not matter because the teams are not about to peek over their shoulder to glance at what lays behind them. Their focus is moving forward to next Saturday and then to the NCAA Tournament races.

“It’s an exciting time,” Braden said. “Postseason has begun now, and we have the three biggest races coming up. Everyone is fired up and ready to go.”

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