A cold, rainy, day did not dampen the spirits of the men’s and women’s cross country teams, because this year both teams have high expectations going into the season.

Last year the women came to the brink of a national tournament, and the players are ready to achieve that, this year.

They are coming into the season ranked twentieth in the nation and third in the region.

Mary Bridget Corken, women’s cross country captain, said. “Last year we were six points away from qualifying so its like nothing so I think we’re just really working hard to improve and be our best that we can be and make at the end of the season.”

Head Coach Shultz shares the same aspirations as Corken, “So I expect our women to be competing for the top two in the conference, and a trip to the national championships, which the Loras women have not done in about twelve years.”

The men’s team may come in with less hype.

However,with strong transfers and freshmen,  they are just as determined to make some noise and prove people wrong.

Shultz said, “we just have some new energy this year that I’m excited about, despite losing three of our top seven, we have a team that will finish high er in the conference and higher in the region than any of the teams I’ve had my four years here.”

The men’s team comes into the season embracing their role as a dark horse in the Iowa Conference.

Alex Eischeid, the men’s captain, said, “We’ve got a lot of new faces this year so there’s kinda of a chip on our shoulder we’re going to have.We’re going to have to really come in and make a name for ourselves this year.”

Catch both teams as they race into action this Saturday.

Tim Kelly can be reached at Timothy.Kelly2@loras.edu