Now entering its second Division II season, APU’s cross country team faces equal parts of both opposition and opportunity.
“We want to be a national contender,” head coach Preston Grey said. “We have a lot of pieces in place to make that a reality. Whether that happens this year or next year, I think we are definitely heading in that direction.”
This season is not without its unique challenges. According to Grey, this may APU’s youngest team ever. There are three freshmen on the men’s team and seven freshmen on the women’s team.
“They’re figuring out how to train,” Grey said. “Now that we’re a couple of months into the season, the freshmen are really picking this stuff up.”
The team lost some athletes over the summer that they weren’t anticipating losing.
“It’s been hard, having to move kids up in roles they weren’t expecting,” He said. “But they’ve done a great job adapting and stepping into those roles.”
Sophomore returner Jeremy Porter is glad to have younger, more open-minded athletes on the team.
“They all seem like they’re ready to venture into this new path and they’ve helped out a lot so far,” he said.
Eileen Stressling, the Cougars top female runner, said that the youthful team was thoroughly positive, adding that the team is looking forward to the path ahead.
“Having a young team naturally gives [us] forward momentum,” Stressling said. “We’re already good, so we’ll be excellent in the future.”
“Not everything is going to be what you expect it to be, but you’ve always got to put your best foot forward,” freshman Lauren Harrell said, who was named Freshman of the Week in the PacWest twice this year. “Trust God, trust your training, work hard and do your best.”
Team captain Aaron Potts said their performance at the Lancer Invitational was a good sign of things to come.
“[Porter] finished second, and I finished seventh,” Potts said. “[PacWest] beat us, but I think we put a statement out there. We’re not intimidated and we’re here.”
The team is going on to compete in Triton Classic on Oct. 10 in La Jolla before proceeding to the Pacific West Conference Championships in Riverside on Oct. 24.
“I want as many APU students [as possible] to come to Riverside and take away that home field advantage,” Potts said. “[With] APU students cheering us on, we can take home that championship.”