Marisa Ryan lost for the first time this season Saturday, but still placed second. Justin BeckThe Boston University women’s cross country team cared little for surprises or suspense this past weekend. With an overpowering performance in Saturday’s America East Championships at the University of Maine, the Terriers captured their 10th conference title in the past 11 seasons.
The Terriers boasted three Top-10 runners and breezed past second-place finisher, Stony Brook University, by 30 points.
Senior Marisa Ryan’s time of 17:08.4 defeated all of the meet’s runners except for the University of New Hampshire’s Catherine Parker (16:50.3). Ryan’s second-place finish ended her perfect record for the season. According to BU coach Bruce Lehane, he and Ryan had a plan for the meet.
“We knew Marisa had been running really well the whole season. At the starting line, we encouraged her not to force things, but to rely on her finish,” Lehane said. “Marisa has a good close, but Catherine did a really good job and was able to open up a gap.”
Lehane noted that Ryan was the “type of athlete you just rely on,” someone you “feel is just a given” to do well. He added that Ryan’s consistent success helps her teammates run with more confidence.
“Marisa has had a great season. When she does well, it helps the other runners think, ‘now I only have to do my job,’” Lehane said.
Lehane was right. Supporting Ryan’s strong effort was senior Abbey Sadowski, who finished fifth (17:28.8) for the Terriers. After injuring her sciatic nerve earlier this year, the conference championship was her first race since Sept. 8. According to Lehane, Sadowski’s heroic effort was a great “boost” for the team.
Graduate student Claire Robson (17:50.2) showed significant improvement at the AEC, shaving over a minute off of last season’s time to take ninth. Freshman Erin Lagasse (18:02.4) was the first of three straight Terriers to cross the finish line, taking 15th. Seniors Jennifer Malenovsky (18:03) and Anne Wighton (18:11.7) followed Lagasse to earn 16th and 17th, respectively.
Although Ryan’s streak is now over, the senior has high goals for the NCAA Regional competition Nov. 11.
“Sometimes having a bad race makes me run faster the following race. It gets me a little mad and motivated,” Ryan said. “A top-five finish would be great [at the NCAA Regional].”
Despite BU’s success, Lehane does not believe the team is becoming complacent or losing focus.
“The nature of [cross country] is kind of punishing; pain kind of clears your thinking up,” Lehane said. “You can’t get through [this sport] being arrogant because it hurts too much. The effort itself kind of levels you out. No one gets too cocky.”
Lehane also coaches the men’s team, who took fourth place at the AEC. With an 84-point differential between fourth and fifth place, the scores for the meet were a bit strange to say the least.
“It was an odd year, in that, three points separated the top three teams,” Lehane said. “We weren’t that far off at 70, and I thought we competed very well. I am particularly pleased with the front five guys.”
UNH won the event with a score of 58 and was followed closely by Stony Brook (61). Senior Nick Goodman posted a fourth-place finish, which brought BU to within eight of the University of Maine (62). Goodman’s time of 24:49.7 was a minute better than his previous personal best.
Goodman was one of five Terriers to achieve personal bests Saturday. Lehane noted that freshman Eric Ashe finished in 14th with a time of 25:28.4 and has come “a long way in just a year’s time.”
As each individual improves, so does the squad’s overall progression. The team’s average speed at the beginning of the season was 26:30, and now, with the finish line in sight, the Terriers average below 25:20 as a group.
The men’s and women’s team will compete at the NCAA Regional on Nov. 11. Lehane hopes the women will qualify for the national competition and is confident the men’s team can break the Top 12.
