Harden, TU Finish First at Season-Opener
MARION, Ind. – A rainy day with a wet course could not slow down the Trojans as they began the 2018 campaign with an emphatic victory. Taking first place, Sarah Harden led Taylor to its eighth fastest team time in program history.
The Purple and Gold came out of the gates patient, waiting for the right time to pick up the pace. Through the mud, Taylor slowly gained ground on the lead pack and took control. Posting only 24 points, TU crushed the course, finishing 16 points ahead of NCAA Division I Ball State and an incredible 87 points in front of third place. The five runners who scored for the Trojans averaged a sub-19:00 pace.
Taylor notched five top-10 and 10 top-25 finishers to complete its fifth-consecutive season-opening victory. The Trojans have now won six of their last eight regular season meets.
Harden picked up where she left off last season, setting the pace with an astounding 11-second gap between her and second place. The next non-Taylor NAIA-runner raced almost a whole minute slower than Harden. Alex Berends also put together an impressive race taking third place and notching her best time since 2015, with a mark of 18:30.1.
Newcomers Giovanna Domene and Corinne O'Leary finished just outside of the top-10 and logged fantastic times of 19:24.0 and 19:31.5, respectively, for the Trojans.
No. 2 Taylor (9-0) will return home for its next meet on Friday, September 21st.