As runners thundered down the straightaway in the Heisman Club Field House, cheers rose from the bleachers lining the track, echoed by clamors from the track’s interior. Fans and teammates alike stayed throughout the entirety of both meets held at Oberlin over the last two weeks.
The Dan Kinsey Invitational on Feb. 6, Oberlin’s first home meet of the season, was a non-scoring meet, so teams were not competing for points against one another. Instead, this meet served as an opportunity for athletes to strive for personal records while strengthening the team’s competitive spirit. The Crimson & Gold Invitational, held a week later on Feb. 13, was also non-scoring.
Athletes on both the men’s and women’s teams had breakout meets on their home track. At the Kinsey Invitational, second-year Samantha Soto and first-year Cooper Tanski won the women’s mile and the men’s 800-meter, respectively, while third-year Abraham Cromartie V placed third in the men’s weight throw with a personal record of just under one meter.
Cromartie has been improving steadily since he came to Oberlin, and his finish at the Kinsey Invitational was another milestone the third-year has achieved.
“I was shocked to PR by that much, not to mention being in the top five,” Cromartie wrote in an email to the Review. “I didn’t expect to be improving this much so quickly, and I have to thank Coach Roberts’ critiques after every meet and practice that have allowed me to get to this point.”
Soto, a mid-distance specialist, came into this season motivated to improve upon her first year on the women’s team. As someone who is typically nervous before races, Soto chose to focus on her race plan — running alongside her teammate, first-year Lieke Everts — and enjoying the meet more than on improving her time, a message that the coaching staff has reiterated throughout the year.
“My coaches are always like, ‘A meet is almost like a workout. You should treat a race how you treat a workout,’” Soto said. “I’m someone who gets really nervous about races, so that’s really helped me.”
Racing at home on a weekday makes it easier for athletes to settle into a race, as many of them spend those days like any other school day: going to class, eating at Stevenson Dining Hall, and spending time with friends. Heading to the track, most athletes are in the mindset that they’re going to practice, which helps them to relax and stay calm before the gun goes off.
For the track team, once the meet begins, competing at home isn’t very different than away meets. For years, the mantra of the team has been to make every meet feel like a home meet by being the loudest and most energetic team there. Fourth-year and team captain Liam Newman, who placed second behind Tanski in the 800-meter, said that the Kinsey Invitational was a valuable opportunity for first-years to get the full-on experience of a home meet.
“At this meet, it was like, ‘This is what we’ve been talking about all season,’” Newman said. “We try to make every meet feel like this. So for people who haven’t felt this before, this is even more of the thing we’ve been talking about. Invite your professors, invite your friends, [invite] random people on the street who’ve never seen a track meet, and just introduce them to the energy that is a home track meet here.”
For Tanski, who also runs cross-country, competing in the same heat as his track teammates can feel more like a rivalry than running track. However, racing with Newman has felt more collaborative than competitive.
“I feel very comfortable with [Liam],” Tanski said. “He’s the team captain, and we have a good relationship, so we’re able to help each other out within the race.”
Newman echoed Tanski’s sentiments, saying that running with the first-year was a gratifying experience.
“I think that Cooper has immediately become a well-integrated part of our team,” Newman said. “It was really special to get to race with him. It was really nice to be able to do an 800 with him and have us at the front working together, making the most of what we could.”
Obies showed out again at the Crimson & Gold Invitational, with third-year Michael Dolton placing first in the men’s triple jump, fourth-year Josh Moray and second-year Josiah Howard earning second and third respectively in the men’s 200-meter dash, second-year Solana Pearl coming in first in the women’s mile, and first-year Mirabel Adams winning the women’s 3000-meter.
As the team nears the indoor conference meet, the coaching staff has continued inspiring them to push themselves and believe that they can win, no matter the competition.
“The phrase that our coaches like to use is like the one they use in football, ‘Every given Sunday.’ It doesn’t really matter what your record is coming in or how good you are,” Tanski said. “If you run the best race that day, that’s the only thing that matters. It doesn’t really matter about the history, it just matters about being prepared for each race every single week.”
This weekend, track and field athletes from across the North Coast Athletic Conference will compete in the NCAC Combined Events conference championships before the NCAC indoor Championships are held a week later.
