A need to compete and a love of running lead the Bisons to victories Running cross country brought a true competitive edge to this year's men's team. Having to run five miles may not sound difficult, but running that five miles up and down hills, through the forest, over creeks and in bad weather makes it a little harder. This year's team was a young team striving to achieve its goal - nationals. The Bisons experienced new challenges, competing in the Southwest Region rather than in a conference like before. "Running in the region has helped us boost our level of competition, not that the AIC [Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference] was easy, but we have had to work harder to prove that we can compete with anyone," juniorMatt Quigley said. Many things contributed to a successful year for the Bisons. Coach Bryan Phillips believes that the team expected a good year. "I coach the runners to work hard and accomplish high goals. The team as a whole has progressed." Competitionwas very important to the team. Tommy Noel, Abe Kirwa and Seth Crum were the top three runners for the Bisons this year. "Cross country is a team sport. If I am about to cross the finish line and am behind a teammate, it does not matter. Team is what matters. We achieve as a team and we run as a team," Noel said. Many of the players felt teamwork was the necessary ingredient for them to win. Ken Kulei said that teamwork was the most important motivation for them to accomplish their winning season. Competing in regionals was a first-time experience for this former AIC team. 'We were competing with the former national champions for this region," Kulei said. "The competition was 10 times harder, and we were ready and excited." Harding placed third overall at regionals out of 13 schools. They missed going to nationals by one point. "We had a great season, but we ran the worst race of the season," Coach Phillips said. Not only was this the first year for Coach Phillips to be the cross country coach, but also for the runners to receive scholarships. "Before, we ran just for the competition, but now we get money for having fun, " Noel said. Running cross country takes a lot of dedication and a true love. "Running is so painful and hard. You have to like running to do it," Kulei said. For many of the runners, this "Jove" helped them accomplish their goals as athletes. For a young group, the men's cross country team boosted their level of intensity and competition to show the region that they were worthy to be competing there. "This team was not afraid ofhardwork and the dedication to be the best," Coach Phillips said. "This dedication helped them achieve their goals and satisfy the outstanding cross country team. " - Heather Allison Men's Cross Country. First Row: Jonathan Dandy, Dave Parks, Jay Hurt, Seth Crum, Matt Quigley, Jonathan Griffin, Clay Midyett, Tyson Ledgerwood. Second Row: Tommy Noel, Donnie Stover, Russell Brown, Kenneth Kulei, RyanFlint,Alan Seim,Mitch Seim, Abe Kirwa. Photo by JeffMontgomery. Men's Cross Country ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Sp_o_rt~s ~- 263
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