There was plenty of preseason hype for the men’s cross country team.
The Bruins will have a chance to justify that hype on Friday, as they compete in the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational.
The invitational, described by coach Forest Braden as a “mini-nationals,” will feature 17 of the top 30 men’s teams in the nation.
“It’s a pretty exciting environment,” said senior runner Nick Hartle. “It’s a lot of fun to get out there and just roll with some of the top guys in the nation.”
Hartle’s 15th place finish led the Bruins to seventh place in last year’s Wisconsin meet. But the team’s success would diminish from that point on, as the invitational was one of UCLA’s best performances of the season.
“Last year, I think we peaked a little early,” Hartle said. “This year, we’re more geared toward peaking at the right time. … I think we’re on the right track.”
The Bruins will be looking to rebound from a subpar display at the Oct. 2 Washington Invitational, at which they finished fourth out of 11 teams. That result dropped UCLA from No. 11 to No. 20 in the most recent national rankings.
The Bruins’ top seven runners from the Washington race will all be competing in the Wisconsin Invitational.
Heading into Friday’s race, Braden said the focus is on running a complete race.
“We want to put ourselves in good position early, we want to run as a team for most of the race,” Braden said. “The big emphasis will be on finishing the last 2k hard, being able to finish with the best teams and show that we can be competitive in the last 2k of the race.”
The unranked women’s team will also be competing in Wisconsin against a stacked field that includes 20 of the top 25 teams. Braden said he has a much more relaxed approach for the women’s team, which finished 10th out of 12 teams at the Washington Invitational.
“Our women, I just want to get in there and just compete, have fun in that mix – that experience of another big-time competition,” Braden said. “We’ll just kind of get them relaxed a little bit more, just having fun competing and running together in a big field.”
Carolina Johnson, a freshman who won the silver medal at the European Junior Championship, will make her UCLA debut at the meet.
Compiled by Matt Cummings, Bruin Sports senior staff.