Nowicki captures bronze at CCAA cross-country final

Saving her best effort for the last race of the season, Lethbridge College Kodiaks rookie Sophia Nowicki (first year, General Studies) earned a Canadian Colleges Athletic Association cross-country bronze medal on Saturday.

Competing against 130 athletes from over 20 colleges across Canada, the Bragg Creek native finished third in the women’s six-kilometre run at the 2017 CCAA Cross Country National Championships in Blainville, Que.

Racing in frigid conditions at Blainville Equestrian Park, Nowicki posted a season-best time of 22:01, finishing nine seconds ahead of fellow ACAC competitor Jordanna Cota of Red Deer College, who had gone undefeated in conference races this season.

“It’s a flatter course so it was more suitable for a runner type like Sophia, with the style of running we’ve been working on with her,” said Kodiaks head coach Bertil Johansson. “It was an amazing time. The time that Sophia achieved puts her up there with some of the all-time great Kodiaks performances in the last 15 years.”

Nowicki was also named a CCAA all-Canadian, capping a season that included an ACAC bronze medal, an ACAC allconference team berth and an ACAC rookie of the year award.

Her effort helped the Kodiaks women’s team finish sixth overall, improving on their seventh-place national ranking heading into the championships. ACAC allconference team member Emily Spencer (second year, Nursing) finished 16th with a time of 23:24, while Brooklyn Vogel (first year, Nursing) and Vildana Rekic (second year, Environmental Assessment and Restoration) rounded out the team scoring for the Kodiaks, finishing 48th and 53rd, respectively.

“As a team, the girls were pumped and ready,” says Johansson. “They wanted to improve on their national ranking and they did.”

On the men’s side, the Kodiaks finished 16th in the team standings, but did move ahead of Red Deer College, who beat them out for the ACAC bronze medal.

Spencer Jackson (fourth year, Massage Therapy) led Lethbridge with a season-best time of 27:25, good for 33rd place in the eight-km race, with Durell Rots (first year, General Studies) close behind, finishing 48th with a time of 27:48. Daniel Robdrup (first year, General Studies) and Dayton Jans (second year, Multimedia Production) finished 83rd and 91 strespectively.

“After tying Red Deer College at the conference championships, our goal for the men was to move ahead of them,” said Johansson. “We had to come back and beat Red Deer, and we did. We had a lot of personal bests and great performances.”

The Kodiaks cross country team has earned either an individual or team medal in 13 of the past 15 CCAA championships.