Oak Hills Starts Season off at Battle Creek Triangular and a Podium Finish
The Oak Hills Men's Cross Country team was able to start off their season with a highlight from a new runner to the team this season, Noah Larson (Park Rapids, MN). They competed in their first meet of the season, the Battle Creek Triangular, which was a meet hosted by North Central University of Minneapolis and the University of Northwestern, St. Paul.
Coach Randy McKain said, "This meet is a fun pre-season run of Christian Colleges that keep Christ as the foundation for our lives and worldview. Not only are these colleges academically bibilical, but even their sports have biblical foundations. It is a meet that is quite competitive, yet encouraging for all, even those who don't finish at the top. The coaches provided a welcoming atmosphere and gave tips about the course during the pre-race walkthrough. The other athletes provided the racing bibs to our guys that had encouraging, handwritten notes and verses on them. It was a great trip and experience for our guys and these are teams that we will see again at other meets throughout the season."
The meet was held at Battle Creek Park in Maplewood, MN. The trails there cover a large range of terrain, and the 5k course was a great preseason trial for all of the runners. Larson was able to push into the front runners, and was just 2 seconds behind the second place finisher from North Central. Larson put in a time of 18:58. "Noah took off at the front of the pack and remained there most of the time. He kept gaining on the second place finisher and alsmost had him at the endu, but just ran out of space," said Coack McKain.
The Wolfpack will be competing at their next meet on September 20th where they will travel down to St. Olaf in Northfield, MN.
