Oxford College of Emory University men's and women's cross country teams made a strong showing at GCAA Regional Championships yesterday. They earned the overall victories for the men and women titles.
The men swept the top 6 finishes with dominant runs. The women swept 1st-4th place and rounded off their final scorer at 8th place. Both coaches won Region XVII Coach of the year. Coach Tony O'Kelley was honored for the men, and Coach Ella O'Kelley for the women.
Coach Ella had this to say about her runners' performance, "I am very excited --not surprised-- but excited. They have worked so hard all season. We have battled injuries, training locations, rigorous academic schedules, and illnesses but we always found a way to make it happen. That's what being a student-athlete is all about. Coach T and I do our best getting our athletes in competitive shape for our sport, but we spend just as much time getting them in competitive shape for life. I've added meditation to our plan this season and we are always in their head. We will celebrate this moment and then refocus."
Also, Coach Tony noted, "We see what exceptional human beings our athletes are, we want to make sure they see it too! They earned every bit of these victories."
The coaches said their focus is now on preparing for the national championships. Their goal is to make it on the podium as one of the top three programs in our division for both men and women. This will be an amazing accomplishment being that this is only their second year as a varsity sport and second showing at the championships. They will be departing with seven men and seven women for the championships on November 2nd and competing on the 4th. Go Eagles!