Sept. 30, 2011
NOTRE DAME, Ind. - Heading north for the first time this season, Auburn cross country competed in the 2011 Notre Dame Invitational on Friday afternoon and ran into an opponent it couldn't topple - the weather.
Facing temperatures in the low 50s and wind gusts up to 45 miles per hour, the Auburn runners struggled on both the men's and women's sides. The entire field faced the difficult task of tackling a course that had been soaked with rain over most of the last week and thus was very wet, featuring multiple soft spots in key locations.
"It was very cold and that was a big part of our struggles," head cross country coach Mark Carroll said. "We were freezing and just didn't get off the line. If you don't get off the line in a huge field like this, then you get stuck behind and can't pass.
"We are probably not as sharp as we need to be to compete in a meet at this level. We will come home, regroup, and then get some more work done before SECs next month."
The men stumbled to a 23rd place finish with freshman Niklas Buhner pacing the Tigers' runners by placing 83rd on the 8k course. He crossed the finish line in 25:19. The women's side struggled similarly and finished 28th overall.
Junior Alissa Fisher led the way for the Auburn women. The Huntsville native completed the 5k race in 18:16 (101st place).
"This shows us what work we need to do to make that next step," Carroll said. "Especially with an SEC team (Georgia) being here on the men's side, we got an indication of where they are at by comparison. We know what we need to do for the next month. Both teams are fired up and ready to come home and take that next step."
Auburn is in action next on October 15 at the Crimson Classic hosted by the University of Alabama.