SPOKANE, Wash. - From the bridesmaid to being the bride, the third time was the charm for Gonzaga University's Lindsey Drake at the Inland Northwest Cross Country Classic Friday afternoon at Spokane Falls Community College.
Drake, who lost by about 600 meters at the Erik Anderson Memorial Sept. 24 at Plantes Ferry, then got reeled in over the final 300 meters at the University of Montana Sept. 30 and lost by three seconds, finally got to take her victory lap with a course record 17:17.3 as the top 13 finishers bettered the course record.
Drake led the way as the Bulldogs won the team title in their final tune-up for the West Coast Conference Championship Oct. 29. The Zags scored 51 points to edge the University of Montana, who downed the Bulldogs two weeks ago, with 54 points and Washington State University in third place with 61 points in the nine-team field.
The men's side saw Andrew Walker turn in another solid outing in his comeback and Tate Kelly record another consistent showing to help the Bulldog men to second place behind Washington State University. WSU, ranked 20th in the country, had 17 points with seven of the top 11 runners, with Gonzaga second with 73 points and Lewis-Clark State third with 93 in the nine-team field.
"It still hasn't really hit me yet," Drake said when asked about her victory. "I kind of let other people do the work this time and set me up for it in that last 200 (meters). I wasn't going to let myself get passed this time."
With the finish a 200-meter straightaway on the SFCC track, Drake found herself third when she hit the track after sitting in third and fourth most of the 5K race. But she put to use a strategy assistant coach Patty Ley talked to her about prior to the race.
"They weren't too far ahead," Drake recalled as the lead pack headed for home. "I remember Patty told me each flag as I'm coming in to accelerate every time you see a flag, and when you hit the track just go. I saw people coming closer and closer so I said just go."
But she doesn't really know what happened that last 200 meters as she passed a pair of runners to claim her first collegiate victory.
"It's all a blur," she laughed, guessing she probably grabbed the lead with 50 meters to go.
"It was awesome for her because she's been so frustrated the last couple of times, so close, so close. We kind of laughed about it at Montana. A couple of weeks ago she was 600 meters out, at Montana she was about 300 meters out and today she was just in there. We talked about how much she can do that last stretch. It's a huge step for her because it gives her that much more confidence and validates all the work she's put in this year and taking some chances," Ley said.
As the final tune-up for the WCC Championship, Drake said the pre-race strategy was to approach the race as though it was the WCC's.
"The plan was to treat it like the WCC's. Go out with the front pack and hang in there. Not go out too fast and lead it, but sit back and hang and let other girls do the work. If I was feeling it was too slow to pick it up, or if feeling good just stick in there. I was sitting third or fourth the entire time. It went back and forth among the girls but I didn't take the lead until the very end. I just sat this time," she said.
Drake, a redshirt junior, basically has not run cross country for two years, running a few meets unattached two years ago and sitting out last season with an injury prior to being cleared for the spring track season.
In addition to Drake continuing her outstanding season, the Bulldogs also got a feel-good effort from the return of sophomore Emily Thomas after missing the last two races for medical reasons. Thomas finished fifth in 17:23.5.
"It was great to have Emily back today. It's great knowing she's right there with me," Drake said.
Ley was also all smiles over Thomas' return.
"Emily is hard on herself. For being off for two weeks, being back running for really a week and getting her legs back under her it was great. With another two weeks for her to get her legs back under her I think it will be a huge improvement," Ley said of the two weeks until the WCC Championship.
Ley said it looks like the top eight runners are set for the WCC Championship with Drake, Thomas, sophomores Krista Beyer, Catherine Theobald and Emily Albrecht, and freshmen Maggie Jones, Elizabeth Ryan and Erin Bergmann. The ninth spot is up in the air.
"The top eight has kind of been there all season," Ley said. "It's that ninth spot right now. You have to look at a lot of factors. The top eight is coming around and whoever I put in that ninth spot I have all the confidence in."
The men's situation is not quite as clear cut following Friday's results.
Walker, who missed the early season and has only run in the last two meets, showed he is healthy and ready with his 24:57.1 which placed him 13th as the top 14 finishers Friday broke the previous course record. Andrew Kimpel of WSU won in 24:00.2.
Kelly, who missed the first two meets of the fall, was right on Walker's heels in 25:02.1 to place 15th. Patrick Richie was 17th in 25:06.3, Brent Felnagle 19th in 25:07.8 and Willie Milam was 21st in 25:08.9 to lead a pack that saw Gonzaga claim six of the next seven spots.
And that's where the waters get muddy as Tyson has to decide what nine runners will wear the jersey in two weeks.
"It's definitely muddy. If you were to look at the results - Walker, Kelly, Richie, Felnagle, Milam - that's great. Those five were already in the mix. Then you have these three freshmen come in right behind Milam. We're talking Kyle Branch (22nd in 25:09.4) was our number six, Alex Foote (23rd in 25:12.0) was number seven and Nick Roche (25:12.7) was number eight and they were all within three seconds of each other. Our winning guy today was 24:57 and our number eight guy today was only 15 seconds behind our number one."
But looking at the overall year is what causes Tyson a tough choice ahead.
"You have Nate Gesell who was our top guy at the Erik Anderson, and Nick Ford is another guy in the mix," Tyson said.
Gesell was 26th in 25:15.7 and Ford 27th in 25:16.0 as the ninth and 10th Bulldog runners Friday.
"Then we had one guy who had a rough day today whose had some knee problems; I don't know how he felt today if he had some stomach issues, but Robert Walgren (39th in 25:47.0 and the 12th Gonzaga runner overall) has been Mr. Steady and he's a veteran. We have to see where he fits in. It's muddy. Branch kind of messed it up for us," Tyson said of the freshmen who had his best performance of the season. "I might have to take another week to look at workouts and assess who is number eight and number nine. I owe it to Walgren to consider him in the mix."
Walgren competed in last year's WCC meet as a freshman.
But the performance of Walker and Kelly made Tyson forget, even if momentarily, the decisions that lie ahead.
"Walker ran very gutty. When you're running against WSU and you're within 14 seconds of their number five man it's amazing. I think Walker, Kelly and Richie and some of the other guys in the mix are gaining on the number 20 team in the country. Am I happy with Walker? Yes. He showed a lot of moxie today. He went out pretty tough with that lead pack, lost a little ground but held his own. Tate was so close to catching Walker, but Walker had a great stretch drive and Tate was within five seconds. Tate's Mr. Consistent and he's going to really help us at the WCC's."
