The Occidental men’s and women’s cross country teams began training for the upcoming season Aug. 15, a week before the start of the fall semester. Robert Bartlett, head coach of the men’s and women’s cross country teams, said the new season brought with it a turnover of members, with the new class of seniors rising to the occasion.
“Our current seniors have done a really good job of transitioning from juniors to seniors and taking on those leadership roles organically,” Bartlett said.
Assistant Coach Demi Marine said having strong student leaders is essential for the success of the teams.
“They have really strong personalities, so they’re all leaders in their own sense,” Marine said. “I think that’s what the team really lacked last year.”
Grace Optekar (senior) and Josh Abeyta (senior) said they feel confident about the new makeup of the teams. Optekar said after having dealt with injuries in the past, she looks forward to the opportunity to train and compete injury-free. Both Optekar and Abeyta said a recent time-trial revealed promising results.
“I’m excited for the talent that we have,” Optekar said. “We just did our two-mile time trial […] and our coach said it’s one of the fastest iterations of a women’s team that he’s got coming in.”
Abeyta also said he feels the team is en route to a notable season.
“We had our time trial … it went really well,” Abeyta said. “I think almost everyone ran at a personal best, and the people who didn’t on the men’s team were only seconds away from what their PR is.”
Bartlett, Marine and Optekar said since the beginning of training, both the men’s and women’s teams have made adjustments to deal with the high temperatures in the LA area. They said although the recent heat waves have not measured up to those in previous years, the teams have still adjusted their training patterns to accommodate the weather conditions.
“We go early in the morning when we have to,” Bartlett said. “Particularly on days when it’s been very hot, we’ve gone at six or seven o’clock in the morning for practice.”
Abeyta and Marine said they anticipate strong performances all around at the upcoming Pomona-Pitzer Cross Country Invitational Oct. 4. Abeyta said he believes they have a chance at breaking personal records and competing well against the other teams.
“We’ve run that course every year, so all the returners have a bit of experience with it,” Abeyta said. “It’s also going to be the course for SCIACs and regionals — it’ll be a good dress rehearsal.”
Optekar said the teams customize their training based on the characteristics of the upcoming race course. She said the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational is no exception, with the teams doing off-campus runs at the Arroyo Seco Trail to prepare for the particularities of the route.
“We’ve been doing a lot of workouts on Ian’s loop, which is a part of the Arroyo Seco Trail,” Optekar said. “Our coach has chosen that deliberately because it mimics the change in elevation and the loopiness of the Pomona course.”
According to Optekar, the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational bears particular significance given the long-standing rivalry between Occidental and Pomona-Pitzer. Both Abeyta and Optekar said they look forward to competing against Pomona-Pitzer.
“We have a very fun rivalry with the Pomona Pitzer team, so it’s always exciting to race against them,” Optekar said.
According to Bartlett and Marine, the teams’ dedication and work ethic gave them confidence in their prospects for the season. Both said they are proud of the hard work the runners have put into the season so far.
Marine said she wants the runners to have more confidence in themselves.
“I want them to believe that they’re NCAA Division III athletes, not just someone who’s lucky to be here,” Marine said.
Bartlett said given Occidental’s rigorous academic environment, it is even more impressive that the runners put so much time and effort into their training.
“I think being a student-athlete is not easy anywhere, but at a school like Occidental they’re doing the same thing as every other student and then also getting up at 5:30 in the morning to practice some days,” Bartlett said. “They’re giving up 15 hours to practice each week … their dedication, their enthusiasm [and] their passion is all pretty amazing.”
Contact Nicholas Dobbs at ndobbs@oxy.edu
