By AJ Werner | Reporter
A gloomy and drizzly morning didn’t hurt the intense Cottonwood Creek Golf Course atmosphere as Baylor opened up their postseason in the Big 12 Cross Country Championship with the men’s and women’s team both placing 13th. BYU took first place in both men’s 8k and the women’s 6k races.
As the story has often gone during the season for the Bears, it was the hometown freshman Jack Sterrett and Eldoret, Kenya freshman Ruth Kimeli, who had top finishes for the green and gold.
After setting a personal best in her last meet, Kimeli led the Bears with a 26th place finish with a time of 20:24.51 in the 6k race. Although she worked hard during the race, Kimeli said she had lots of confidence going into it.
“I had [high] expectations with the course because the way I previewed the course was really good,” Kimeli said. “After getting inside it, I think it was really hard and I had to work on it.”
Kimeli expressed pride in her and the team’s overall performance, especially to the coaches.
“My performance and my teammate’s performance, I’m really proud of it,” Kimeli said. “I think together we have been working so hard so I’m happy about it. With the guidance of our coach and help from the entire staff and everyone’s support [it’s been] really good for us and we really appreciate it.”
On the men’s side, Sterrett led the way for the Bears in the 8k race as he finished 84th with a time of 25:06.26. Sterrett explained many of the challenges he and the other runners faced on the course today.
“Just where I’m standing right now, there’s divots. Those were throughout the course,” Sterrett said. “You have all these hills and a little bit of wind. The hard part of cross country really kicked in today.”
Sterrett, being from the Waco area, had lots of family there to support him after the race and mentioned how much it meant for his family to be there.
“Just coming all this way means a lot and having people by my side this whole time only helps me better,” Sterrett said. “It means a lot and helps me go when the pressure’s on.”
Sterrett and Kimeli continue their strong freshman seasons as they will now prepare for their next meet.
“We got regionals in two weeks in College Station,” Sterrett said. “It’s a 10k so it’s a little longer but this is an opportunity to maybe go to Nationals. We’re looking good, and I think if we just trust the training, trust each other, trust God, we’ll do well.”
The Bears will prepare for the NCAA South Central Regional in College Station on Nov. 15.
