After almost a full month off, the Charger men jumped back into the fray of competition this past weekend at the University of Michigan’s Wolverine Invitational. The team worked hard to stay in shape over the nearly month long hiatus, with some athletes coming back to campus as early as Jan. 2 to continue training.
“The first meet is always a learning experience because of the break,” head coach Andrew Towne explained. “The kids go home mid-December and they have training that they are to do the whole time. But especially in this climate, if you don’t have a facility like this [Margot V. Biermann Center], it can be really hard to accomplish all that.”
The athletes had to be back by Jan. 10 to prepare for the meet. Senior captain Nathan Jones contended that mental preparation is just as important as physical.
“You have to be able to switch mindsets coming off of Christmas break when we’re at home and training alone or with a couple people,” Jones said. “But then you get right back into it and say ‘alright, we’ve got to be ready to go.’”
Towne said he wasn’t expecting the mentality shift to be immediate and definitely wasn’t expecting any personal bests. The meet, however, was a good way to establish benchmarks for the rest of the season.
“It certainly isn’t a meet where you’re expecting seasonal bests,” Towne said. “But it’s a good opportunity to get your season started and sort out what needs work.”
Towne also said the meet allowed his athletes to experience a different competitive environment. Not only is the University of Michigan a Division I school, but it also houses a banked track.
“This was the second year that we have competed at Michigan,” Towne said. “They have a brand new facility so that was a great opportunity for us. In the past, we’ve tried to be on a banked track at some point during the season, so that when the NCAA Championships are on a banked track, which happens about every other year, we’re really prepared. That’s a huge thing for us.”
In order to get on that banked track, the Chargers competed against Division I powerhouses, including University of Michigan, Michigan State, and Notre Dame.
“It can be easy, especially for younger kids who haven’t been around the block, to see the uniforms and kind of feel like maybe we don’t belong here.” Towne said. “But, as I told the team beforehand, it wasn’t a charity invitation. They know that we’re good and can add to the meet.”
Towne didn’t expect any seasonal bests, but wanted his team to be competitive. According to Senior Daniel Čhapek, the Charger men delivered on Towne’s expectations.
“People didn’t do super well, but it was also not expected that there would be crazy performances,” Čhapek said. “This was the first meet and now it is time to make corrections as we move on with the season.”
While there weren’t any seasonal bests, two Hillsdale athletes did earn G-MAC Athlete of the Week honors for their performances at the Wolverine Invitational, David Chase for his high jump of 1.98 meters and Joseph Humes with his mile time of 4:13.86. The Chargers will continue with competition Saturday, January 20th at home. The team hopes to continue improving as they near conference championships.
“Honestly, our big thing is just build off what we have,” said Jones. “If we continue to get a little bit better each week, by the time we get to one of those conference championships in late February, then we’re going to be in a pretty good spot.”
