After a cancelled meet last week, the LSU men’s and women’s cross country teams will travel to Lake Charles on Saturday as they compete in the McNeese Cowboy Stampede.
LSU will mostly take on fellow Louisiana schools, including meet host McNeese State, Louisiana Tech and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
Last Saturday, severe weather in Baton Rouge cancelled the LSU Invitational, and the meet will not be rescheduled. Losing the only opportunity of the season to compete at home caused disappointment throughout the team.
“It was kind of a bummer we didn’t get to race in front of our home crowd, not getting to see friends and family out there,” junior runner Bryan Mutell said. “From a psychological standpoint, it would have been nice to race.”
In replacement of the meet, coach Khadevis Robinson made both teams run an intense workout that he hopes replicated the real race. The practice was important because the team is still in need of experience when it comes to completing races, Robinson said.
Saturday’s race gave the team a simulation of the real race from a fitness standpoint, Mutell said.
“I think we needed the practice, I think it made us a little more sharp.” Robinson said. “In the short term, I don’t think it will do much, but in the long term, I think it will help us a little bit.”
Success has come in extensive supply for the team recently at the Cowboy Stampede. The Lady Tigers have won the meet the previous two years, and the Tigers have finished in the top three in each of the last three years.
Robinson has mentioned recruiting as one of his main focuses upon becoming the head coach. The opportunity to run well against teams in the same state gives LSU a chance to stick out to high school runners, Mutell said.
“ULL and LSU have kind of had a sort of rivalry in the past few years,” Mutell said. “It will be cool to go up against them for the first time this year, and it can definitely send a positive message to prospective runners.”
Robinson said Saturday’s race is another chance for the team to become more conditioned and qualified for the Southeastern Conference Championship on November 1.
The Lady Tigers will begin their race at 8:45 a.m., while the Tigers will begin at 9:15 a.m.