My
Championship Experience is a diary blog written by Summit League
student-athletes detailing their experiences at each of the 19 Championships.
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IUPUI
senior Rachel Zajac writes about her
experience at the 2014 Summit League Outdoor Track and Field Championships:
This
was a bittersweet weekend, as I knew the closing of the league meet would also
mark the completion of my collegiate running career. Words can hardly convey everything that
running has taught and given me. From learning
work ethic and perseverance, to the simple daily reassurance of seeing smiles
from coaches and teammates, I would never trade the opportunity to run in
college. I’d like to extend a deep,
heartfelt gratitude to my coach, Tony McDaniel, who has run by my side since my
very first college practice, Joni Sanders, who first recruited me to come to
IUPUI, Megan Jackson, our incredible assistant coach whom I have no idea how I
ever survived without, and my supportive teammates who are there for one
another not only on the track, but in every facet of life. Pushing back the tears that are welling in my
eyes as I recollect the events of the weekend and my running career, I couldn’t
be more thankful for every friend I have gained leading up to this final
championship meet.
Tuesday, May 13th
With
the engine of the GoExpress charter bus growling louder as Driver Jim shifted the
tank into gear at approximately noon on Tuesday, May 13, so commenced our 14-hour
trek to the summit. The 2014 Outdoor
Track and Field Summit League Championships meet, that is. As we set off on the drive, I think we all
sort of forgot how far away Fargo, N.D., is from Indianapolis, Ind. It is FOURTEEN HOURS. Just in case anyone forgot from the first
sentence.
Various
lifelines helped us survive the drive. A
few movies were watched, for example- The Shawshank Redemption, a Larry Bird documentary,
and Fire on the Track: The Steve Prefontaine Story (Coach Kep’s 3 favorites), and
then of course Mean Girls… you know, we had all of the classics. For those who were not captivated by the urge
to brush up on these timeless American tales, there were other options of
activity. You could read through an
entire library, become a savant in the category of your choosing, solve world
hunger and the AIDS epidemic, have deep philosophical conversations, or take
naps on naps on naps with your head propped up against the glorious bus window
while trying to control the drool escaping your mouth.
I
opted for movies and reading.
After
a grueling seven or so hours, praise and glory were bestowed upon the state of
Wisconsin when we arrived to Moosehead Lodge (a.k.a. a Wisco-style Best Western).
Wednesday, May 14th
Yet,
the morning sun came too early, and again we were off – resuming the trip to
Fargo. With a night to refresh and the
previous day’s adventures, we were becoming well schooled in the art of travel.
We now knew to opt for naps at any possible opportunity.
Then
it happened, WE ARRIVED IN FARGO! After
throwing our bags down in the hotel we hopped right back on the bus to pay the
track a visit. Although I had been to
NDSU’s track before, there is always a nervous, excited, curious feeling that swirls
in your body as you come up to the competition site. It jolts you into focus and starts preparing
you for the weekend of events to come.
After
exploring a bit of Fargo on our run, we came back to the hotel to have a
wonderful big family dinner with both the guys and girls teams. It is always so fun when we can all get
together for things like this. Then,
coaches were off to their coaches meeting… and once they returned we were
supposed to have a team meeting. Coach
Tony had texted the seniors a few days beforehand asking all of us to think
back on our favorite memory to share with the team during the meeting. – That, my friend, is a very difficult
task. Five years complies too many great
memories to determine only one favorite.
I went into the meeting empty handed; hoping I could just wing it and
planning to word vomit about 50 different memories. From crazy team camp experiences to our deep
car discussions after meets to simply watching the team grow, these ladies have
been a constant in my life through so many years. After a very emotional team meeting, with
coach also sharing his favorite memories of each of us seniors, we were ready
to get the weekend started.
Thursday, May 15th
We
awoke to go on a light run and hit up Panera for some lunch. Then we had a little free time to go to my
favorite place in North Dakota, Scheels.
Literally an entire mall squished into one massive building. But not just any mall, a mall focused on
every single type of sport imaginable.
This must be what heaven will be like.
After
spending way too much time and money at Scheels, we rushed back to the hotel
because tonight marked the 10k! We were
excited to watch Savannah [Turner] and all of our boys race. Savannah ran very smart and it was amazing to
see all of her hard work pay off. We
couldn’t have been more proud of her for medaling as a freshman and are so
excited to see what the years ahead will bring!
Friday, May 16th
My
last college practice. We set off from
the hotel for a pre-meet run with the boys. Getting the whole family together is a rare
occasion and often a funny and eventful time.
As always, the boys were our very own mock British race announcers,
bluntly reporting any moves made during the run… and maybe being a little too
honest at times. After a few strides and
a little lunch it was naptime. One of
the best times of the day!
Waking
up five minutes before we needed to be in the lobby to head to the track for
the 800-meter trials and 3,000-meter steeplechase, we rushed around like
madwomen getting our stuff together and raced down the hallway to the elevator. A lady joined us in the elevator on the
second floor – but we thought we had hit the first floor. We rushed past her off of the elevator and
down the hallway to the lobby, but no lobby was in sight. After realizing we were on the second floor
we raced back, caught the door, and jumped in with her. Not surprisingly, we were late to the lobby
and coach wasn’t quite thrilled.
Timeliness is not always my strong suit, but I am working on it.
Alas,
we arrived to the track, ready to cheer Julie [Riggins] and Katie [Williams] on
in the 800 meters! Amy [Mattingly], Lexi
[Hunt], and Mandy [Campbell] were up next in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, the
best event that the track has to offer.
I was so happy to see Amy PR and finish her race so strongly after such
a challenging year of running.
Saturday, May 17th
The
last day of competition. – And for Mariana [Lopez-Owens], Emily [Vetor], Anne
[Mogavero], and I, the very last. First
the 1,500 meter girls were up, then it was time to race the 5,000 meters. When we got to the track, Amy, Katie, Nathan
[Westfall], and I played one more game in our weekend-long euchre tournament. Nathan and I finally won! One for three. Woo hoo! I needed to keep my mind relaxed and so a
little card playing was perfect.
It
was a beautiful day in North Dakota and I was ready for the race. Though I didn’t do as well as I would have
liked, I was elated to finally medal at the league meet. What better race to do it than my very last
one? After the race Julie [Jeszenszky] and
Kayla [Boyes] from IPFW ran up to me with huge hugs. It has been so amazing to get to know them
better through all of these years running together. I love hearing their voices during races and
likewise to cheer for them. It is so
amazing that, while we are competitors, we are at the same time supportive and
encouraging friends.
After
quick showers, a little Papa John’s, and singing happy birthday to Mandy, we
boarded the bus to drive straight through the night for home. But first – we dropped Mariana off so she
could head to CHINA for her study abroad class. She has been such an incredible friend to me
through the years and I hope she discovers so many new things through her
travels!
The
bus ride home was somewhat successful. I
almost finished reading Divergent and learned all of the tricks to playing
poker. Sleep was not an option. Whether I wanted to sleep or not, those bus
seats were simply not going to allow it.
The bus ride was long, but I didn’t mind it. I knew when we got back the trip would be
over and my racing would have officially ended.
I wasn’t dreading it. I was
definitely ready. But it’s not every day
that you get to have miserably long bus rides with 40 of your closest friends
there to keep you company and share in your agony. It is really kind of awesome.
And
so we arrived back to Indianapolis, Ind., Sunday morning, happy with the
turnout of the season, geared up for the girls to reset their focus to cross
country, and ready for a nice, long nap.
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Don’t forget to check out the next
edition of My Championship Experience as it follows the Baseball
Championship, May 22-24 and throughout the 2013-14 season for coverage at each
of The Summit League Championships.
Most of the team returned later to scout out the competition
that we would face in our next game. It was fun to relax and watch for a
change, especially on such a beautiful night under the lights. As we watched
NDSU pull out the victory, we prepared our minds for taking on the No. 1 seed
SDSU tomorrow morning at 11 a.m.
IUPUI
head women's basketball coach Austin
Parkinson announced today that Janese Banks will be joining the IUPUIwomen's basketball staff as an assistant coach.
