The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1436409
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 ■ 21 real. I think talking about it, being like, 'Guys, we're going to win,' being pretty confident about it, helped us because it just got us more and more excited to make it a reality." Dominant wins at the Joe Piane Invita- tional in South Bend, Ind., which featured one of the top national competitors in New Mexico, plus the ACC Championship and NCAA Southeast Regional, only fueled the confidence of head coach Laurie Henes and her team. Henes, who later would be named the National Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year, is a product of the legendary Pack cross country and track and field program. From 1988-92, she was an ACC individual champ and two-time All-American in cross country, finishing fourth at nationals as a senior, and won the 1991 NCAA outdoor track 5,000-meter national title. During her years on the team, NC State had a pair of top-10 finishes at the NCAA Cross Country Championship. The pro- gram won back-to-back AIAW national titles in 1979 and 1980, the last two years before the NCAA started sponsoring wom- en's championships. Since then, the Wolfpack has finished in the top five 11 times, including runner-up on three occasions. The starting line in Tallahassee was an- other reminder that the storied Wolfpack program was looking to bring home the first non-men's basketball NCAA team title to NC State athletics. Approximately 19:45.66 later — the av- erage time of NC State's top five finishers in the race — mission accomplished. High Anticipation The morning of the race, the nerves were coming out. Sophomore Katelyn Tuohy, one of three returning All-Americans along with Steelman and junior Kelsey Chmiel from the runner-up finish in Stillwater, could not escape it. "We had this big team goal, and I didn't want to mess up or anything because I knew my teammates were giving it ev- erything they had for me," Tuohy said. "I wanted to return the favor." Hays noted before the race she was "be- side myself." Steelman and Chmiel both admitted to their nerves, too, but Steelman also took notice of the positive energy on the team. "I remember on the bus … it just seemed like nobody was quiet," Steelman stated. "It was good energy. It was good vibes all around." Tallahassee proved to be a fast course. Steelman disagreed with the perceived no- tion that it was pancake flat, noting that there were a lot of downhills with a sneaky uphill right before the finish line on the double-loop course. The start, though, was going to be hectic. "It felt like we were dead sprinting," Steelman said. That dash also provided both relief and discomfort. The nerves were gone, but the physical pain quickly arrived. "I definitely remember hurting really early," Hays noted. "I was like, 'Oh no.'" "It was definitely painful for me as well," Chmiel added. "But having everyone there just really helped." The Wolfpack cross country squad claimed the school's first-ever women's NCAA team championship. NC State placed four runners among the top 25 finishers, and its winning score was 84, nearly 40 points better than runner-up BYU. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS