Kiolbasa and Smith run toward national bid

Last Saturday, the top seven athletes from the CSB cross country team competed in the NCAA DIII North Region Championships at the Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wis.

The Bennies entered the meet ranked fifth but ended up placing sixth out of 31 teams from the North Region, which consisted of schools from both the MIAC and the WIAC.

Senior Annie Kiolbasa placed 18th at the meet and senior captain Fiona Smith won the meet for the third straight year.

With these finishes, Smith and Kiolbasa qualified for the NCAA DIII National Championships in Newville, Pa. on Saturday.

Senior captain Lucy Lyngen also ran in the meet and was proud of her team for working hard and pushing one another during the race.

The team’s goal was to finish in fifth place, but they fell just short of their goal.

“Everyone might not have been super satisfied with how they did, but we all improved so much this season and had a lot of growth even from last season. We did all this work to be here,” Lyngen said.

Lyngen’s last collegiate cross country race was bittersweet as it was the last time she would be with all the other seniors.

Coming into her senior season, Lyngen had a lot she wanted to prove to herself. Building her confidence and having this mindset helped immensely, she said.

Head coach Robin Balder-Lanoue said the team’s goal was to finish one spot higher, but there were still some good performances.

“Our women ran well, but I think too many of them are walking away not feeling satisfied,” Balder-Lanoue said.

However, Balder-Lanoue was very proud of the team for finishing sixth in a very competitive region.

“Sixth in our region is incredible, and when you take a step back and look at that, it’s pretty amazing,” Balder-Lanoue said.

She was also proud of all the returners, seeing everything they did during the off-season to prepare themselves for the season.

Smith was also happy with how her race went. A regional title was one of her goals, so she was happy to come away with it.

“I was proud of the team for doing their best and the effort we put forth for the last race of the season,” Smith said.

With regionals being the last meet with all the seniors, Smith wanted to recognize her teammates.

“All the other six girls who raced gave it their all, and everyone deserves a shoutout,” Smith said.

As Smith prepares for nationals this Saturday, she is focusing on keeping things light and fun to help with the stressful week ahead. She is grateful for the opportunity and is trying to surround herself with her teammates and people who will lower her stress.

At nationals, Smith wants to enjoy the whole experience more and take in every moment. Although it does get overwhelming, it is a very special environment, Smith said.

Kiolbasa also felt really good about her race. Despite being nervous going in, she was happy with how she was able to perform and accomplish, finishing high enough up in the race to qualify for nationals, which was her goal for the season.

With more on the line at regionals, Kiolbasa made sure to stay calm before her race and remember all the long workouts and hard work she had put in during the season.

Qualifying for nationals as an individual and being able to compete means a lot to Kiolbasa. She wants to soak up the whole experience since its her senior year and first nationals experience.

“This was definitely a very long-term goal for me and I’ve been working towards it for a while, so it’s fun to have it be a reality now,” Kiolbasa said.