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91传媒 > Mountaineer Magazine > Fall 2018 > Running away with it

Running away with it

Champs
Conference Champs
Student-athletes on the men鈥檚 outdoor track and field team were determined to bring home a conference championship in 2018.
鈥淭hey told me, 鈥楥oach, we鈥檙e not competing for it, we鈥檙e going to win it,鈥欌�� Welch said.

The men鈥檚 team reclaimed the Cascade Collegiate Conference title for the first time since 2015. Ranked third and expected to lose by 40 points, the Mountaineers won by an even larger margin.

Matt Kirkendall closed his collegiate career as conference champion in the 400-meter and 110-meter hurdles, breaking 91传媒鈥檚 oldest standing record (set in 1962 by Lou Thorn). Nic Maszk won the 5,000-meter race and placed third in the steeplechase, later coming in second at nationals. He was named the CCC Men鈥檚 Athlete of the Year.

鈥淲hen you get a group that really buys into it that鈥檚 what makes this happen,鈥� Welch said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not just that they didn鈥檛 want to be second or third 鈥� they were flat-out unwilling to be.鈥�

Ben Welch
Regional Champ
91传媒鈥檚 track and field program has competed at nationals for more than 30 years, and Ben Welch has been coaching at 91传媒 for 27. Welch said he consistently works with about 80 student-athletes.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of work, but the student-athletes make it worth it,鈥� he said.

His hard work was rewarded this year when his fellow NAIA coaches from the West Region voted him Men鈥檚 Coach of the Year for both indoor and outdoor track. The award followed his selection as CCC Men鈥檚 Track and Field Coach of the Year.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a testament to having good help from assistant coaches and having good athletes,鈥� Welch said.



Rachel Rolle
National Champ
Several standout student-athletes set the bar for their peers, Welch said. This year, Rachel Roelle, 鈥�18, was one of them. She鈥檚 the NAIA鈥檚 reigning national champion in women鈥檚 steeplechase and was named CCC Women鈥檚 Track and Field Athlete of the Year.

鈥淲hen you have people like that it shows the rest of them it can be done,鈥� Welch said.

In 2018, the Mountaineers took 11 men and six women to the outdoor national championship. The men鈥檚 4×800 relay placed second, and the men鈥檚 team landed at No. 15 in the nation.

Steeplechase Success with Rachel Roelle
The 3,000-meter race takes athletes around the track 7.5 times, encountering five hurdles and a water pit in each lap. Roelle called the event chaotic and unpredictable 鈥� one missed hurdle or an inefficient exit from the water pit can change everything.

鈥淭here are so many variables in it,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he only time I did everything right was in the championship.鈥�

Here are her tips for coming out on top:

  1. Take it slow
    鈥淭he worst thing you could do in steeplechase is start out fast,鈥� Roelle said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a patient race.鈥� Harnessing her adrenaline is key to a good race, and she plans a calculated push for the final two laps.

  2. Find your rhythm
    鈥淵ou could be the fittest person out there, but if you get off on the timing of hurdles you鈥檙e going to struggle,鈥� she said. In practice, she drilled that rhythm into her muscle memory.

  3. Keep your cool
    鈥淵ou have to be a mentally tough person because it鈥檚 such a broken-up race,鈥� she said. 鈥淛ust don鈥檛 panic, trust yourself.鈥� Composure is key to avoiding mishaps when you鈥檙e approaching a barrier.

  4. Lose the socks (or don鈥檛)
    鈥淚鈥檓 a sock person, but I鈥檓 in the minority,鈥� she said. Socks help prevent blisters and improve foot comfort, but they get wet in the water pits. Roelle said steeplechasers are hotly divided on the topic.