The women’s Cross Country team came out on top at the Winthrop/Adidas Invitational race on Oct. 5. The team ran at the Winthrop Farm course near the coliseum.
The Women’s team placed first overall in the 5K. The men’s team placed fourth overall out of five teams at an 8K. The Winthrop Invitational was originally going to be on held on Sept. 15 but was rescheduled due to damage from Hurricane Florence.
Winthrop Cross Country coach Benjamin Paxton commented on the state of the cross country team and the placement of each group.
“All the ladies stepped up for a team win. The men are in a rebuilding phase with five of the eight men running in their first collegiate season” Paxton said.
According to winthropeagles.com, cross country runner Junior Henson was awarded the Women’s Big South Cross Country Runner of the Week for her time of 19:25 during the 5K, which led the team to victory.
“It’s nice to be recognized, as I was recognized with an award at the first meet of my freshman year [which was my best race],” Henson said.
Cross country runner senior Kelsey Ballou also noted how the Big South Runner of the Week is a prestigious honor for runners and how it make a name for runners like Henson.
“I think that it’s been a long time coming” Ballou said. “I really think she deserves it and [the award] helps put Winthrop on the map.”
Harper Henson is from Midlothian, Virginia. She came to Winthrop after her high school coach helped her picked out Winthrop University as it had the major she was looking for, Human Nutrition with a Concentration in Dietetics. Coach Paxton offered Henson a scholarship for participating in the Cross Country team.
“I started out running track in 7th grade and field hockey in high school” Henson said. “I started cross country my sophomore year [in high school], though I prefer track.”
Ballou was drawn to the sport of cross country from high school with her experience in playing softball. The sense of encouragement and team building are both elements that help keep the sport special to her.
“[Cross country] is an individual sport, but moments like practices and races make it team oriented,” Ballou said.
Both teams are looking to improve their running performance as well as working together based off their performance during the Invitational.
“We are still trying to increase our mileage over the next couple of weeks. I feel we are getting comfortable with our training,” Paxton said.
One of the ways that the cross country team did well was based on the practice and camaraderie of the women’s team players.
“The women did very well, since we grouped together. Some of the girls stepped up so that’s why we won,” Ballou said.
The next meet both cross country teams will be competing in is the Big South Conference Championship in High Point, North Carolina on Oct. 26. Paxton is expecting both teams to step up and push themselves for the upcoming championship.
“Next meet is the Big South Championships. The men are very young but definitely getting better. The women, if we can stay healthy could surprise some teams,” Paxton said.
Henson is working hard to use the upcoming championship, which she hopes to place in the top runners at the Big South.
“My goal would be to make top conference, which would be the 15 runners at the Championship,” Henson said.
Meanwhile, Ballou is hoping for the women’s cross country team to come together and encourage each other just like the Winthrop Invitational.
“I want to see the girls group together like last time, I would like to see the girls run together and push each other,” Ballou said.
