ENMU runners ready for opener

STAFF WRITER

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Following the Lubbock Christian University Relays, an unofficial meet back in August, the ENMU cross country team is now ready for their first official race today: The Lori Fitzgerald Classic which takes place at UTEP.

Coach Danielle Kcholi expects the top Greyhound runners this season to be seniors Trevor Merhege and Amber Saiz. Merhege is a two-time All-Conference runner in his freshman and sophomore seasons.

link Staff photo: Matthew Asher

The Greyhound cross country team finishes their warm up on the track before going out for a run in the country.

“He’s been a huge asset for us,” Kcholi said. “Now it’s time for him to step up and take leadership.”

Last season Saiz finished fifth at the LSC meet and 19th in the South Central Regional meet, the highest anyone in program has ever finished in both the conference and regional meets.

Cross country events are team-based, but different than track and field events. In a meet, the top five runners for each team are given points based on where they finish. Like golf, the lower the overall number, the better the score.

“We try to pick one big meet to attend on top of the conference and regional meets,” Kcholi said. “The other meets are workouts to see where we are.”

This year that meet is the Chile Pepper Festival, which is hosted by the University of Arkansas and will be held on October 3.

To make sure all the runners are well-conditioned for these events, the Greyhounds train six days a week. Mondays and Wednesdays the team works out on the track, twice each day logging around 3,000 meters a day. Tuesdays and Thursdays the Greyhounds run off-campus for about 60 minutes.

Fridays are light running days and on Saturdays the team goes out to the country roads for a longer run. Kcholi estimates the women run 75-80 miles a week to prepare for their 6K races while the men average 85-90 miles training for their 8K runs.