Truman State University’s men’s cross country season is off to a rough start so far. The team had a close loss at its first meet with a total time of 1 minute and 47 seconds and a longer average time of 21.4 seconds.
At the team’s next meet, it ranked 21st out of 27 teams. Next, the team ran at the Rim Rock Farm Classic at the University of Kansas, and the team ranked 11th out of 15 teams. At the meet at Principia College, the team ranked third out of eight.
The women’s team has been more successful than the men’s. At the women’s first meet of the season, they finished in first place against Lindenwood University. Their next event was at the 2018 Southern Stampede, and they placed 15th out of 34. At Rim Rock Farm Classic, the team ranked sixth out of the 16 teams and went on to place first out of eight teams in their match at Principia College.
Head coach Tim Schwegler said the teams are progressing well. He said the team is encouraged to pack together while running, a strategy often used to make it easier to both pass other runners and prevent being passed by opponents. Schwegler said he feels optimistic about the ending and the teams’ potential placements in conferences.
“I’m really happy with how they have matured as a team,” said Schwegler.
Both teams traveled to Bellarmine University this past weekend for their next competition.