The Dawson Community College cross country team traveled to Rapid City, South Dakota and competed in their first cross country meet as a new program this past Saturday, Sept 1st. The men’s race started at 9:30 a.m. and the weather produced a slight breeze, cool morning and slightly overcast skies. The course was at Robbinsdale Park which had a few small hills, grass, and some sidewalk. The runners traversed around a 2-kilometer loop 4 times for a total distance of 8 kilometers (almost 5 miles). The young Bucs competed against four NCAA Division II universities: Black Hills State University, South Dakota School of Mines, MSU-Billings, and Chadron State College.
Dawson runners who competed this weekend included Bryce Maxson (placed 33rd in 30:57), James Estey (41st in 34:54), Eric Amaya (42nd in 35:57), Kolte Copp (43rd in 39:07), and Austin Rysavy (44th in 43:53).
DCC Coach Ben Sandy was excited for their first competition, “The team ran really well! We talked about using this first meet to set small personal goals and to focus on those during the race. What came from our first competition was positive experiences the runners can apply to improve upon in future meets. Everyone ran tough, attacked the hills, and pushed themselves. I am very pleased with al of our runners!”
The Buccaneers next competition will be at the Roy Griak Invitational in MN on September 29th, which will also count as the Region XIII Cross Country Championship.