By Amelia Kibbe
Editor-In-Chief
After the cross country team competed at it’s second meet of the year at the University at Buffalo Stampede Invitational last weekend, Head Coach Bob MacFarlane only had good things to say about the team’s youngest runners.
“We are very, very happy with the young freshmen coming in,” he said. “Everybody did well. Everybody is improving….and that’s all we can ask for.”
The 2015 cross country team includes five first-year freshmen, three girls and two boys.
On the boy’s side, Orchard Park native Caleb Johnson said he has already shaved more than 15 seconds off his fastest time.
“Coming into this program, I had a 5k PR [personal record] of 16:49, a time that I have only reduced by six seconds in the last two years,” said Johnson, a marketing major. “After a mere two weeks of camp, I cut that to a 16:32 [in the season’s home opener].”
Last Saturday, in his first 8k race, Johnson crossed the line in 27:45, placing third for the Bonnies.
“…My new team is doing a good job welcoming in the freshmen, and the upperclassmen are very self-driven,” he said.
Sports studies major George Laraia agreed with Johnson.
“I think the team dynamic is very good,” said Laraia, a Middletown native. “I truly love the challenge of working with the team every day. We all know we worked hard this summer, and for now, we are going to keep working hard and stay confident in the early part of the season.”
In his first meet, Laraia tied his current 5k personal record. Last Saturday was his first 8k, but he said he is excited to work with the upperclassman to make goals for the future.
“My goals for my freshman season are to get enough racing experience to feel confident for my upcoming years,” he said. “I also want to learn as much as I can from the upperclassmen, whether that’s about certain courses or recovery after a workout. I just want to grow in knowledge.”
On the girls’ side, a group of freshmen, Rachel Guyer, Emily Izydorczak and Lindsay Weaver have worked together to stay at the front of the pack for the Bonnies, MacFarlane said.
Guyer, a Ridgway, Pennsylvania, native, finished second for the Bonnies last Saturday in Grand Island. She said getting the chance to work with a caring team has helped her with her early success.
“The team is great,” Guyer, a business management major, said. “Coming from a place where I had no team, it is certainly different, but it is so much better. Everyone is so encouraging, even if they’re having a bad day themselves. I look up to all the seniors. Their hard work shows, and they have been dedicated to this sport for a long time.”
Guyer, who set a personal record at the Little Three meet two weeks ago, added she is working through the next few meets to prepare for the conference championships in late October.
Emily Izydorczak, an education major, followed her strong performance at the team’s first meet, finishing third for the Bonnies last Saturday.
“The Stampede Invite was trickier than the Little Three,” she said. “But it still took a lot of effort, and I was fairly proud when I saw my result because it was still under 20 minutes.”
Like her fellow freshman, Izydorzcak credited her teammates with making the adjustment to collegiate running smooth.
“The team is one of the best things about cross country,” Izydorczak, an Orchard Park native, said. “The girls here are so kind and supportive, I honestly can’t imagine working without them. It’s really awesome to see so many people with a variety of interests come together for one sport.”
Syracuse native Lindsay Weaver agreed with Izydorczak, saying the team captains and other upperclassman have helped make starting her career at Bonaventure both successful and fun.
“The older girls on the team are great team leaders and very easy to get along with,” she said. “Right from the beginning, they were extremely welcoming to us. Being away from home was a really tough adjustment for me, and having the team there made it a lot easier and I’m thankful for that.”
Like the other four freshmen, Weaver said her focus is to stay positive and work hard in preparation of the high-profile meets later this fall.
“For this season, my number one goal is to be consistently running under 20 minutes,” said Weaver, a biology major. “As of right now, I have some work to do but I know that if I continue training hard and pushing myself that I can achieve that goal. As for a team, [our goal is] to do our best at A10’s and have a close-knit team, because I believe that is a huge key to success.”
The women’s team, led by senior co-captain Aubrie Russell, finished sixth out of eight teams at the meet last Saturday. Co-captain Kerry Caher did not compete due to an ankle injury.
Led by senior Joe Ferencik, the men’s team finished seventh on Saturday.
The team returns to the course next Saturday in Rochester.
