Dwyer Leads the Way at Taylor
The Lady Wave cross country team took to the starting line Saturday morning as they raced the Midwest XC Challenge. Hosted by Taylor University, the meet brought the runners to the Trojan's cross country course – "The Farm" – for the second time this season. Senior Grace Dwyer (SR/Lake Station, Ind.) led the pack, crossing the line in a blazing time of 18:49, a season record and college best. Breaking the 19-minute barrier is always a defining moment in a runner's career, and one that had been a long time coming for miss Dwyer, who was focused, calm, and confident heading into the race.
"We really broke my race down and I was confident I could hit the times that would lead me to a sub 19:00 performance," Dwyer said. "I was very focused on running my own race, and hitting checkpoints along the way that helped me stay on pace and remain confident and relaxed throughout."
The Taylor course was an ideal meet for Dwyer to try a different approach. She focused on running for time and breaking up the familiar course into parts, treating it almost like a workout, allowing her to pace herself to that sub 19:00 finish one K at a time.
"This race was different than others because I didn't have a goal for placement or for who to beat, those things just came as a result of the time," Dwyer said, acknowledging her 13th place finish in a field of familiar faces from the CCAC Conference lineup. "Treating it like a workout made me tune in to myself and not think about positioning myself with other people. I hadn't run strictly for time all season, but that definitely played out in my favor this week."
Assistant Coach Kellyn Vale immediately took note of the strength emanating from Dwyer as she watched the race unfold, and knew this one would be a turning point for the senior athlete.
"I've never seen her look so relaxed, calm, and confident," Vale said. "This was by far the best race I've ever seen her run. She executed her race plan to a T, and earned herself a PR and confidence boost that has been in the works for her for quite some time. I always knew she was capable of this level of racing and beyond, and I hope she carries this experience with her for the next two weeks leading into Conference."
Coming off of this solid performance Dwyer feels more than prepared for Conference, and is excited to spike up again and show her stuff at the big show.
"This weekend was a huge confidence booster for me, not just because of the time, but also because it opened me up to another racing strategy that can work for me," Dwyer said. "I feel pumped going into conference with this weekend's experience and having executed a plan for a goal."
The Lady Wave will toe the starting line again on November 7th at the CCAC Conference Championships in Davenport, Iowa. There, the squad will go after some longstanding team goals and come together once more to fight for a great finish to a historically challenging season, one they've navigated smoothly in spite of a global pandemic. More details to come.