For the second time in Harding history, a Bison won the Great American Conference Cross-Country Championship. Sophomore Dylan Douglas won the 8K race Oct. 26, 2019, with a time of 25 minutes, 16.7 seconds. The first Harding win came six years earlier in 2013 by alumnus Andrew Evans. Douglas said he was not stressed about the race and saw it like any other race. He said his calm and driven mindset led him to the victory. "Having friends and a good coach is nice, but they don't decide whether you win or not," Douglas said. "So, it's pretty much up to the individual. I would say yes, they push me, but the decision to win is made by the individual and not by anyone else." Don Hood, head cross-country and track coach, said Douglas had a good fall semester in his first year but struggled with an injury in the spring of his freshman year. Hood said he was impressed with how Douglas overcame the setback. "[He] was injured during the springtime and really struggled and wasn't able to compete much and do anything at all," Hood said. "To go from that and then six months later he's conference champion in cross-country just says a lot about his talent and his work ethic and his competitiveness." Hood said Douglas' success was the product of his unique work ethic. "It's really neat to see how he surprises people," Hood said. "Once you get to know him, you realize that's who he is -- that he's really determined and talented and tough. It's just a real good combination." Hood said when a large group of freshmen joined the team at the beginning of the 2019-20 school year, Douglas proved he was more than a good athlete; he was a team player. "Dylan did a great job of accepting the newcomers and not being challenged by them and pushing them away but really drawing them up and trying to get them to his level," Hood said. Camden Barrett, men's cross-country graduate assistant, said because Douglas' win came so early in his collegiate athletic career, Douglas had the chance to continue to grow as a runner and encourage those around him. "Due to Dylan winning conference so early on within his collegiate career, this has allowed him to build more confidence as a runner," Barrett said. "Not that he didn't have any before, he is just now able to run more confidently, which in turn, allows for the team to also run with confidence knowing that they are running with the best runner in our conference." Douglas said he was happy with the conference victory and looked 3 to future successes. 'I still have long-term goals in mind: time goals and placement goals," Douglas said. "Conference is nice, but there's obviously much more to it than that." story by Emma Aly Freshman Zach Reed runs toward the finish line at a regional competition at Missouri Southern University Nov. 9, 2019. Reed finished 79th overall andfirstfor the team. I photo courtesy of Victoria Hood The Harding men's cross-country team huddles for a prayer before regional race at Missouri Southern University Nov. 9, 2019. The team finished 21st out of27 teams. I photo courtesy of Victoria Hood athletics 229
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTc5NA==