Monmouth XC meet: Be Better

The last time we raced on the difficult Holmdel Park course was three years ago. In 2014, we ran the Monmouth Invitational in September and the MAAC Championships in October. So while this is a small sample size, it’s interesting to compare and crunch numbers. After all, that’s what we coaches do. If I recall, the conditions today were a bit more challenging than in 2014 – especially in the men’s race, when it got downright midsummer HOT at the end of the race. Such is XC racing in September. Here are the comparisons among the top-7 times, first in the men’s 5-mile race:

2014: 26:34, 26:45, 27:04, 27:20, 27:24, 27:26, 27:28

2017: 26:27, 26:51, 26:53, 26:57, 27:06, 27:14, 27:18

This year’s times were slightly better and the top-5 spread was closer. That 2014 team helped turn to the corner to more successful seasons that followed. We hope that the 2017 will continue to point that needle in the positive direction.

Here’s where it gets really good, though: For the women, the disparity is stark, and the numbers are even more eye-popping.

2014: 18:38, 18:50, 19:06, 19:28, 19:54, 20:10, 20:18

2017: 18:43, 18:43, 18:47, 18:55, 18:59, 19:18, 19:25

The 1-5 spread in 2014 was 1 minute, 16 seconds (1:16). Today it was a minuscule 16 seconds (0:16) – or, a full minute (1:00) better and tighter than the 2014 that was pretty darned good. Dig deeper into the numbers and you will find this remarkable, incredible statistic (courtesy of Coach Chuck). In 2014, our fifth runner was a tough freshman named Jenna Robinson. She ran 19:54.8, and she was our fifth and final runner to break 20 minutes (20:00) on the course back on September 20, 2014. Today, senior captain Jenna Robinson (yes, that same, tough runner who has forged a marvelous career for us, in all three seasons) ran a PR on the course, 19:47.65 in what we would consider slightly more difficult weather conditions. Here’s the kicker: Jenna was our 12^th runner today, and we had 12 runners dip under the 20-minute mark on the challenging Holmdel 5km.

Above, you'll see our top finishers who earned top finisher shirts from Monmouth. Back here at Marist, the back of our practice shirts say “Be Better.” It’s gratifying to see that our women and men are taking that slogan onto the course. It was a “Great Day to be a Red Fox” for sure, but it’s also September 16, and we know we have a lot more to accomplish in the next two months.