Emily Leighton | Staff Writer

It’s that time of the year again: school’s starting to get into full swing and so is the men and women’s Cross Country season here at Buena Vista University (BVU).

Seniors Sydney Crnkovich and Alex Lamp are ready to go for their last season on this cross country team. They are both very confident and have seen these men’s and women’s teams grow.

“With the new coaching staff our team have been blessed with, it has been a significant impact on how our program is run. Coach Schroeder had a decent first year of coaching and took recruiting to the next level with finding girls who aren’t afraid to work hard and who are willing to build BVU a tradition for the future,” Crnkovich said.

While the Beavers have high expectations for their team they also have individual expectations.

“At a team standpoint, we are focused on finishing really well going into the Conference meet in late October. At an individual standpoint, I am focused on helping the team as much as I can this season,” Lamp said.

Head Cross Country and Track and Field Coach Ryan Schroeder also has high expectations for these two teams.

“My expectations are to continue to see movement in the right direction for both programs. What I mean by this is that I want to continue to see all of our athletes working hard every day and getting better. I’d also like us to improve on our place finishes from last year’s conference and regional meets,” Schroeder said.

While numbers are down on the men’s end, the women’s numbers have dramatically increased from years before.

“Our men’s team doesn’t have a lot of athletes but I really like the guys we do have on the team and I’m confident we can surprise a couple of teams at the conference meet. Our girls’ team is a polar opposite from last year’s team. We have more bodies and are very young. I’m really excited for what this girls team can do this year and see where they set the bar for future teams,” Schroeder said.

Crnkovich is excited about the season and ready to see what it will bring.

“Honestly, the new girls coach has brought to campus are not only great athletes but have such great hearts. I’m excited to watch our team start building that foundation for upcoming years,” Crnkovich said.

The transition from off-season to pre-season was an easy one for Lamp.

“Practices have gone really well. I followed coach Schroeder’s training plan this summer, so it made for an easy transition into the preseason,” Lamp said.

Even though the Beavers have a young team, they have some big strengths starting out.

“I believe our work ethic this year is our biggest strength. So far for the first month everyone has been working hard to try to get better each day. In the sport of running, and more so than any other sport, what you get out of it is all about what you put into it. Our athletes have really dedicated themselves to doing the right things in and out of practice. I know that’s really going to show come the championship portion of our season,” Schroeder said.

From the looks of it, this cross country team is ready to go and ready to make a name for themselves. Both the men’s and women’s teams have the faith that they can do well this year and they will be ready.

The cross country team runs at the BVU Invite on Friday, Sept 11th, starting with women’s at 5pm and men’s starting at 5:45.