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Lady Roadrunners Finish NAIA Championship With Highest Result In School History

By: Dean Thompson, Women's Cross Country & Track Coach
Women's XC/T&F- 2020 SSAC Champions

Women's Cross Country | 4/10/2021 9:24:00 AM


CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - The Dalton State Women's Cross Country team traveled to Cedar Rapids, Iowa to compete in the NAIA National Championship. It was a chilly, windy, and muddy affair. It was just the kind of weather a tough bunch of ladies embrace when it comes time to toe the line. When the mud was settled, the Lady Roadrunners managed to finish as the 18th best team in the country.
 
RECAP
The Lady Birds were led by Sophomore Kathryn Vradenburgh who ran a personal best 18:16 and finished 19th overall. That was good enough for her garner All-American honors. Kathryn was 29th with less than a quarter of a mile to go and finished with a strong kick. That was the theme of the day for the Roadrunners.
 
The team was 22nd at the 2-mile mark of the race and picked up 80 places over the last mile. They also moved up one spot, from 19th to 18th over the last tenth of a mile.
 
Freshman Riley Jo Ford was the next finisher for the Lady Birds coming in at 63rd place with a season best time of 18:52. She became only the third Lady Roadrunner to finish in under 19 minutes for any 5K Cross Country race. It was a good finish for the SSAC Individual Champion. Finishing third for the Roadrunners was junior Alex Gass. Her time of 19:41 was good enough for 160th place overall, and was just 2 seconds and six places ahead of senior Kay Vradenburgh who finished 166th in 19:43. It was a personal best for Kay.
 
Rounding out the scoring for the Lady Roadrunners was sophomore Kate Roberts who ran a personal best 20:11. That placed her 211th. Also running a personal best was the number six Roadrunner, freshman Kayla Mattox. She cut 18 seconds from her previous best time when she crossed the line in 20:42. Her time would have been good enough to be third on the team not long ago. Also competing for the Lady Birds was sophomore Haley Tillery who fought hard to finish with all she had.
 
QUOTES FROM COACH
Comments From Coach Dean Thompson:
"I am so very proud of these ladies! They went to the National Championships determined to show the rest of the country what they could do and they represented Dalton State College very well. I don't know what the best finish has been for SSAC schools in the Women's National Championship race, but we finished as high as any I have seen. These ladies have a lot to be proud of."
 
"Kathryn, after battling an injury all fall, is finally back to her former self and she knocked it out of the park today. It was so exciting to see her run well. It can be tough to overcome the doubt that seeps in with an injury that hobbles you. Kathryn is a winner though, and winners always rise to the top eventually."
 
Riley Jo had a pretty good day today. The course was not yielding very fast times today, so for her to break 19 minutes and be just a few seconds from a personal best was great. She ran better than she did at the conference meet that she won back in the fall. If not for Kathryn, she would have been the top finisher from the conference again today."
Alex didn't have the race she wanted today, but it was a good performance. I was really proud of the way she kept fighting despite not feeling her best. She never lets up. If Alex is on the starting line, you will never get less than her best effort."
 
Kay ran a PR today, so that's always a good thing. Like Alex, she was hoping for a little better, but the conditions were not ideal, and she didn't feel her best. But, once again, she worked incredibly hard against the urge to give anything less than all she had in her. The result was a personal best even though she didn't feel well!"
 
Kate was so close to running under 20 minutes today, which is her goal. A little less mud, or a little less wind may have allowed her to get there, but it was still a personal best time for her. We've never had five runners under 20 minutes, but we're getting closer!"
 
Kayla ran here heart out today. Every race, she has run better and better. It's great to have a freshman like Kayla ready to be an even bigger part of the team when others ahead of her begin to graduate. I'm really proud of how hard she has worked to get to the spot she is in."
 
"Haley was a last-minute replacement for Rebecca Poe who was not able to make the trip because of health reasons. She did a great job on short notice and improved her time from the race we ran a month ago. Haley has great talent and should be really impactful to the team this fall as she fully recovers from a major surgery she incurred last year."
 
"Overall, just wow! This team has come so far in the last couple of years. It is a product of their talent, but also their work ethic. They work really hard and they believe in and support each other. They're already excited about what they can accomplish this fall as they will have everyone back. This time, with higher expectations than ever."
 
UP NEXT
This completes a great 2020-21 Cross Country season. All of these women will be back in action next week on the track in Gulf Shores, Ala. at a meet hosted by conference competitor University of Mobile. Things are looking bright for the future of Running Roadrunners!
 
#BeepBeep

 
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Players Mentioned

Alex Gass

Alex Gass

5' 4"
Junior
Kate Roberts

Kate Roberts

5' 8"
Sophomore
Kathryn Vradenburgh

Kathryn Vradenburgh

5' 6"
Sophomore
Kay Vradenburgh

Kay Vradenburgh

5' 3"
Senior
Rebecca Poe

Rebecca Poe

5' 6"
Sophomore
Riley Jo Ford

Riley Jo Ford

5' 3"
Freshman
Kayla Mattox

Kayla Mattox

5' 5"
Freshman
Haley Tillery

Haley Tillery

5' 3"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Alex Gass

Alex Gass

5' 4"
Junior
Kate Roberts

Kate Roberts

5' 8"
Sophomore
Kathryn Vradenburgh

Kathryn Vradenburgh

5' 6"
Sophomore
Kay Vradenburgh

Kay Vradenburgh

5' 3"
Senior
Rebecca Poe

Rebecca Poe

5' 6"
Sophomore
Riley Jo Ford

Riley Jo Ford

5' 3"
Freshman
Kayla Mattox

Kayla Mattox

5' 5"
Freshman
Haley Tillery

Haley Tillery

5' 3"
Freshman