By Connor Sindberg
[email protected]

The women’s cross-country team can only get better after dealing with a lack of experience throughout the season.

Completing the season at the Nov. 13 regional, one thing the team will preach next year is being more consistent race to race.

Throughout the season, the Hawkeyes could never find that consistency. In their six meets, they finished as a high as third at the Hawkeye Early Bird Invitational and as low as 19th at the Notre Dame Invitational. After getting off to a decent start, finishing third and fifth in the first two meets, they hit their low point of the season, finishing 19th among 20 teams at Notre Dame.

Being the first tough test of the season, the lack of experience was clearly an issue at Notre Dame. When the competition ramped up, the Hawkeyes struggled to run with the same confidence that they had at the earlier competition meets.

But the runners did gain some of the confidence at the Bradley Pink Classic, finishing seventh among 30 teams, which was arguably the best showing the team had all season.

To conclude the season at the Big Ten and regional mees, lack of experience was the same issue. 

Going into the Big Ten and regional meets, the team only had three runners with championship experience in Tess Wilberding, Marta Bote Gonzalez, and Carolyn Newhouse. And three out of the top five scorers competed on the championship stage for the first time in Madison: Waymire, Andrea Shine, and Kelly Breen.

The inconsistency is understandable because of the youth on the team. Out of the 14 runners on the team, there are only three upperclassmen. The team is dominated by youth; seven are freshmen, and four are sophomores.

The Hawkeyes will return every runner next season, unless someone leaves the program. This year’s top three scorers, sophomore Waymire, freshman Shine, and junior captain Wilberding, will be counted on to lead this team to glory next year. 

Gonzalez, a sophomore, was one of the top runners for the Hawkeyes in her freshman season, battled injuries and will try to be a major contributor next year. She didn’t compete in every race this season, and when she did, she wasn’t at her peak fitness level. If she is able to get back to form, she adds depth to the top five scoring group next season.

With a group of Waymire, Wilberding, Shine, and a healthy Gonzalez, expect to see some improvement.

Waymire will lead the way again next season after finishing the season on a historic note. She became the first Hawkeye to lead the team in all six races since Sarah Arens in 2000.

Iowa had its ups and downs. With experience gained, however, next season should bring more consistency and, overall, be an improvement.