White and Blue focused on vying for AUS titles

By Corey LeBlanc

The STFX cross country program – a perennial contender in Atlantic University Sport (AUS) – is focused on racing to the top of the podium this season.

In 2019, the last season in which student-athletes crossed the finish line in conference competition, the X-Women and X-Men both garnered second-place finishes at the championship meet.

"We have a young team that is hungry," White and Blue head coach Eric Gillis said of the X-Women.

Taylor Rasmussen (Brampton, ON), one of six new X-Women student-athletes, is one of a trio of team captains.

"It is a good recruiting class," Gillis added, noting that three of them had never been on the StFX campus until they arrived for training camp, while another has visited, but this will be her first year taking in-person classes.

Describing that part of the group as "brand new," he said that they have to adjust – not only athletically, but also academically and otherwise.

The other two first-year X-Women are quite familiar with both the university and its cross-country program.

Siona Chisholm and Mairin Canning, who finished first and second – respectively – in the 2020 Nova Scotia School Athletic Federation (NSSAF) senior girls' cross-country championships are Antigonish, NS natives and graduates of the highly-successful Dr. John Hugh Gillis Regional High School program.

"We know them well – they are very good local runners – and we are really excited to have them as part of our program," Gillis said.

He added that Chisholm and Canning – "as much as anyone in the conference" – have the ability to make the jump to AUS competition "right away."

The veteran runners that will lead the way for the X-Women include Aidan MacDonald (Antigonish, NS) and Breanna Sandluck (Thorburn, NS).

"We have a lot of goals," Gillis said, when asked about expectations for the 2021 season, including making the jump to first place in the AUS, along with a top-10 finish in the U SPORTS rankings.

The goals are just as lofty for the X-Men.

"We have most of our athletes returning," Gillis said.

With so many returnees, he noted that the X-Men's recruiting class is a "little bit smaller."

Jacob Benoit (Windsor, NS) is back to improve on his bronze-medal finish in the 2019 conference championship race.

"He has had a great summer," Gillis said, noting his student-athlete established a personal best (PB) in the 1,500-metre discipline.

In what he explained the program is calling a "pandemic year," one where there was no AUS season, the Antigonish native added that Graydon Staples (Shanty Bay, ON) has been "fantastic."

Luc Gallant (Wellington, PE), with strong showings in the 1,500-metre and 3k races, has experienced a "breakthrough," according to the X-Men mentor.

Although the 2020 conference season was wiped out, the X-Women and X-Men participating in a number of time trials on their home track at StFX Stadium.

"We also had a couple practices races that went really well," Gillis said.

He added that those opportunities have helped the X-Men and X-Women "improve their fitness."

This summer, some X student-athletes were able to compete in track and field meets.

Nevertheless, he agreed, there is nothing that can replicate AUS and U Sports competition.

"You certainly can't," Gillis said, noting the "atmosphere" created by bringing conference programs together for a meet.

The X-Men and X-Women will kick-off the 2021 AUS season when they host the StFX Invitational on the Antigonish campus course on Saturday, Sept. 18.

The women's race is scheduled to start at 12 p.m., followed by the men's one at 1 p.m.

"We have a meet every two weeks," Gillis noted.

He explained that change has been made with an eye to having more universities compete in each invitational meet hosted by AUS schools.

"It will be the most competitive race [for us]," Gillis said of the UNB-STU Invitational in Fredericton – an interlock meet that will include RSEQ programs – which is scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 16.

He added that his student-athletes will be able to "really test ourselves against high-calibre teams."

As for the move to only having races every two weeks, Gillis offered that it is "nice to get into a routine," noting the grind of meets taking place on consecutive weekends.

"It benefits our team," he added of the change, noting that "athletes like routine."

The AUS Cross Country Championships will take place Saturday, Oct. 30 in Moncton, while the U SPORTS national championship meet is set for Saturday. Nov. 20 in Laval, Quebec.

"We are excited about getting the season going," Gillis said.

He reflected on having the opportunity to coach "such a great group."

"It is a big pleasure – I am very lucky," he concluded.

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