The women’s cross country team is headed to the NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championship on Nov. 23 after a historic 2024 season. The Sharks recently clinched their first-ever Sunshine State Conference title and secured a third-place finish at the NCAA South Region Championship.
As the team prepares to compete at the national level for the first time since 2015, Jonathan Carter, head cross country/track & field coach, is sticking to the mentality that fueled their recent success.
“We’re just going into it, standing on our core principles of having tenacity, being resilient, and just being relentless in everything we do,” Carter said.
During the SSC Women’s Cross Country Championship in October, five Sharks led the team to earning their first title in program history: Jillian Thorning, Leena Saidi, Eden Toal, Ally Jakubiak and Isabella Grant.
Thorning, the SSC Runner of the Year and sophomore biology major, won the meet with a time of 21:45.2, becoming the third SSC Women’s Cross Country Individual Champion in NSU history to go along with an All-SSC First Team selection. She was also the highest finisher for the Sharks during the NCAA South Region Championship, finishing fourth with a time of 21:14.65.
“I didn’t know what to expect going into this season, so I was kind of surprised,” Thorning said. “But I have no regrets, I’m super happy with how I did and I love the team and I trust that they always go out there and do their job.”
Saidi, senior biology major, was not far behind Thorning in the SSC Women’s Cross-Country Championship, earning her second consecutive second-place finish, running 21:58.9. Her eighth-place finish during the NCAA South Region Championship landed her a spot on the All-Region team, accompanied by Thorning and Grant.
“I think that last year qualifying as an individual was exciting but it wasn’t the same, like this just feels so much happier,” Saidi said. “It’s just seeing my little sisters basically qualifying for nationals, I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
The success of the women’s cross country team can be attributed to the leadership of Carter, as he was recently named the first SSC Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year. Carter credits the team’s success to the strong bond he helped his team build over the past year.
“I think the biggest thing that changed and sparked our success was the fact that we had a year to be with the team, to learn their attitudes, their character, and what makes them tick,” Carter said. “That helped us out a lot in that one year, just getting that growth and learning our team.”
As a transfer from High Point University, Thorning has experienced firsthand the team culture that Carter describes.
“The team instantly took me in, immediately, I really felt like it was a family,” Thorning said. “And the coaches have really supported me and they’ve given me amazing training and opportunities that I never would have had.”
The impact of the team’s culture extends beyond new members, as Saidi, who is competing in her third season with the Sharks, has also noticed the shift in this season’s environment.
“This year became more of a friendship rather than teammates,” Saidi said.
With the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championship approaching on Saturday, Nov 23 in Sacramento, Calif. Thorning shares the team’s mindset going into the final stretch.
“I think a lot of us are viewing it as a celebration of all the hard work that we’ve done,” Thorning said. “There’s nowhere to go from nationals so we want to race the way that we have been racing all season and compete because it’s our last one.”
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