After a second-place finish at the ACC tournament last weekend, the North Carolina men’s cross country team rested its top runners this weekend, letting its less-experienced racers get some practice at the Three Stripe Invite in Cary.
The rest of the men’s team, and the entire women’s team, took the weekend off in preparation for the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships Friday.
Steve Rubin, an assistant track and field coach, filled in for coach Mark VanAlstyne, who had a hosting conflict and could not make the race. Rubin said the race, a 5K, was productive for developing some younger racers, two of which had never competed in a cross country race for the Tar Heels.
“It was pretty developmental in nature,” he said of the race.
North Carolina finished the race with 61 points, good for third overall. Duke came in first, finishing with just 24 points, followed by N.C. State with 45.
Though Rubin said none of the teams brought their top racers, he and assistant coach Logan Roberts stressed the importance of the race for the future of their team.
“We were definitely excited about the opportunity to race again for some of the guys that hadn’t been competing with the team (the past few meets),” Roberts said.
Junior O’Neal Wanliss and freshman Cory Nicholls raced in their first long-distance race for the team, coming in 17th and 22nd, respectively.
The top racer for the Tar Heels was Braedon Koerwitz, a junior, who came in fifth overall. Koerwitz said he was happy to get the chance to race again and was proud of how he performed in what would likely be his last race of the season.
