North Central College kicked off its newest sport, women’s triathlon, just over a month ago. Led by Coach Jenny Garrison, the roster is constructed of six female student-athletes.
“Because our team is so small compared to other sports, the six of us have grown so close over the past few months from all of the time we have spent together. Having a smaller team allows us to each build relationships with our coaches and receive a lot of helpful feedback to help us improve,” said freshman Nikki Banas.
With 2016 being its inaugural season, the team is excited about the start of the program. The Cardinals first meet was in early September in downtown Naperville at the Central Regional Qualifier.
North Central placed two finishers in the top 10 and secured three qualification spots in the National Championship in November. Freshmen athletes Banas and Grace Miller finished seventh and ninth respectively to lead the way for the Cardinals.
In late September, the Cardinals continued to build on their success at the Fighting Illini Triathlon. Banas placed first in the 19-and-under division and second among women overall with a time of 1:10:41.8.
Not to be outdone, Miller responded with a third place finish six short minutes behind Banas in the 19-and-under division, and 11th in women overall. Just three minutes later, sophomore Elizabeth Alvarado posted her individual best time of 1:19:58.9.
“I’m so excited to go to Nationals in a few weeks, I know it’ll be like nothing else I have ever done. It’ll be fun to compete in an NCAA championship setting, while also representing our school,” said Banas.
North Central has one more meet to prep before nationals this Saturday out in Huddleston, Va., at the Liberty University Triathlon. The USA Triathlon Collegiate National Championship is set for Nov, 5 in New Orleans, La.
