The UCLA women’s cross country team is focused on building a program that can rival the likes of top-ranked Stanford, and top-20 teams like Arizona State and Washington.
But the Bruins aren’t there, yet.
The young Bruin team returns 13 runners and adds three freshmen but enters the season with realistic expectations, especially after being unranked in the preseason top-30 poll released by the USA Track and Field on Sept. 11.
The Bruins were tabbed the eighth ranked team in the west region in the preseason poll.
“I would say it is a rebuilding year,” coach Eric Peterson said. “We have one senior and everyone else is going to return. We’re going to focus keenly on our recruiting efforts.”
Peterson also mention the disparity in talent level of the men’s and women’s teams.
“In 2006, we had two very different teams (men’s and women’s),” Peterson said. “Different levels of experience and different set of results.”
That seems to be the case again this year.
The women’s team got off to an adequate start at the Nevada Twilight Classic held on Aug. 31 in Reno, Nev., but there is much room for improvement. Junior Olga Aulet-Leon got off to a great start and led a majority of the race before falling the pace. Fellow junior Ciara Viehweg finished sixth overall and led UCLA to a third-place finish. The men’s team won the Nevada meet.
“The Nevada meet was a good learning experience,” Peterson said. “We had a controller in the front but she moved too early and was not able sustain throughout. We learned that we have to do a better job running as a team. The team has to rely on getting five athletes across a window of time that is as small as possible.”
Another concern Peterson emphasized is the lack of depth caused by injury.
“We need to get healthy,” Peterson said. “We have some athletes but it is very difficult to absorb the loss to injury. Hopefully we can have junior Allie Bohannon back for the Pac-10 Championships.”
The addition of Bohannon, a native of Nashville, Ten., would definitely provide a boost to the squad. Last season, Bohannon was the Bruins’ top finisher at the West Region Championships and was named an All-Conference performer.
UCLA’s young corps will also need to develop a familiarity with competition while remaining patient with results.
“The injuries create an opportunity for our younger athletes to gain experience and leadership ability,” Peterson said.
The Bruins’ success will be measured by the level of progress and improvement the team makes, along with the amount of experience each member gains.
The women’s next competitive meet is at the Pepperdine Invitational on Saturday Sept. 22 in Malibu.