It was looking to be a wet and miserable meet at L.A. Nickell Golf Course on Friday. Rain plagued the area the whole day, and it looked like it would continue that way for Missouri cross country’s first home meet since 2014.
Yet by race time the skies had parted, the starter’s gun went off and not a single drop of rain hit the ground for the rest of the day. Running with clear skies wasn’t the only victory for the Tigers on Friday.
“The rain today made putting on the meet quite a challenge,” coach Marc Burns said. As luck would have it, the rain stopped and the sun actually came out for the men’s race. We executed the game perfectly today.”
On the women’s side, Missouri was one spot shy of a perfect meet, with a 16-60-64 route against Saint Louis University and Missouri State University. The Tigers placed four runners inside the top five and eight runners in the top 10.
On the men’s side, the one-two United Kingdom punch of redshirt senior Thomas George and senior Kieran Wood took the lead at the 2-kilometer marker and never looked back, leading the Tigers to a 1-2 finish, and a 18-44 victory over Saint Louis on the 6-kilometer course.
Leading the charge for the women’s team was junior transfer Sarah Chapman, finishing 2nd with a time of 14:00:6 in her first NCAA meet on the 4-kilometer course. In hot pursuit was the trio of sophomore Mikayla Reed, freshman Ginger Murnieks and redshirt senior Jordyn Kleve finishing together as the first unattached runners.
This was all part of the Tiger’s plan as the front pack grouped up right at the start of the race and stuck together all the way to the very end, a goal that the Tigers had coming into the first meet of the season.
“When you’re running next to somebody you know, you can communicate,” Reed said. “You get help from each other and we need that during races.”
Missouri senior Melissa Menghini was the winner of the 4-kilometer race with a time of 14:00:02 but ran the race as an unattached runner. This allowed Menghini to run in the home opener without compromising her four-year eligibility. The decision has not been made on whether Menghini will run this season. Coach Burns said a choice will be made in the coming weeks.
Similar to the women’s race, the main contributor in Missouri’s victory was its ability to group up early and to stay in those groups. While George and Wood fought up front with Saint Louis senior Aaron Dugan, the Tigers formed a five runner pack consisting of redshirt freshman Victor Mugeche, sophomore Oaklee Hauschild, sophomore Martin Prodanov, redshirt junior Dylan Quisenberry, and sophomore Marquette Wilhite. The group was able to stick together the whole race, and all five runners finished within two seconds of one another.
“That second part is going to decide the team,” senior Wood said. “Me and Tom can only achieve a certain amount individually, but as a team, we need those guys, so to see them packing tight and pushing one another is really pleasing.”
Looking ahead the Tigers will have two weeks of rest before heading to Tennessee for the Commodore Classic. Following Missouri’s trip to Nashville, the Tigers will return to Columbia for the inaugural Mizzou Cross Country Challenge. The challenge will serve as the opening meet at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course on Sept. 27.
_Edited by Wilson Moore | wmoore@themaneater.com_
