Winning one conference championship is impressive for any team, but winning six consecutive championships is almost unprecedented.
Coming off of their sixth consecutive Atlantic Sun Conference championship, the Lipscomb women’s cross country team looks to continue their success at the Regional Championships this weekend in Tallahassee, Florida.
Cross country head coach Bill Taylor knows that it has been no small feat being at the top of the conference for six straight years.
“We’re pretty blessed,” Taylor said. “It kind of hit me more this year even than it did in previous year about how hard it is to keep on winning. The other teams aren’t letting us win. I think the whole conference is getting better trying to get to us.”
Their recent success breeds a level of confidence amongst the runners on all teams that inspires them to continue working and striving for championship wins.
“In some ways it’s easier because there’s an expectation of winning. We know what we’re out to do, and we believe we can do it because we’ve done it so many times. You do have to keep going out and recruiting great kids and developing them, and I think we do a great job of that.
“We do a lot of development. Our runners probably improve more than any program in the country on a regular basis. We look for people that fit Lipscomb really well.”
As proud as he is of their Atlantic Sun titles, Coach Taylor knows the program can do more than just win conference championships.
“Our goals are actually well beyond the conference level. We haven’t achieved what we want to achieve and that’s getting to nationals and winning nationals at the division I level. We don’t take Conference lightly, but we have way bigger goals.”
In order to reach the national cross-country meet in Indiana next weekend, the Lady Bisons will need to finish in the top-two at the regional meet this Friday.
Taylor believes his program has all of the tools necessary to make it to the nationals; it just comes down to having the confidence to get there.
“I think we have the coaching, the training, the athletes. All of those things are in place. The last thing is belief. I think we’re getting close to that, but we haven’t quite got there. We need a team of girls that is willing to believe that they can run with anybody, no matter what school is written on their uniform.”
Photo courtesy of Lipscomb Athletics