Liberty University Club Sports Athletics
Flames gear up for Mid-Atlantic Triathlon Conference finals
10/13/2016 12:00:00 AM | Triathlon
In preparation for Saturday's third annual Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Triathlon Conference (MACTC) championships, hosted by Liberty University at Smith Mountain Lake State Park, Flames third-year Head Coach Parker Spencer put his triathletes through some rigorous workouts over fall break this past weekend.
"We worked them really hard, the hardest I've ever worked them," Spencer said, noting that the team stayed at a large house on top of Wintergreen Mountain. "The cycling up there is fantastic and we rode up several mountains on the bike and did open-water swimming every day in the lake, working on starts and technique. Doing the race this (Saturday) is going to be the easy part after last weekend."
More than anything, Spencer said the weekend getaway was a great opportunity for team bonding.
"We've never had a team this close, which goes a long way in preparing them to compete," he said. "Even though triathlon is an individual sport, how tight the group has gotten this semester has really elevated their level of performance. By feeding off of each other in practices and working as hard as they did last weekend, that has helped a lot with the morale of the team. The culture we have is exactly what I've always wanted."
Though the terrain for Saturday's Olympic-distance races at Smith Mountain Lake won't be as steep as what the Flames trained on last weekend, it will be similar to their last two Olympic-distance triathlons — the Sept. 24-25 Giant Acorn International at Lake Anna State Park in Spotsylvania, Va., and the Oct. 2 North Carolina State Championships near Greensboro, N.C.
Liberty's triathlon, which also serves as the season's final event and regional championships for the Virginia-Maryland Triathlon Series, starts with a 1,500-meter swim and features a 24-mile cycling stage and 10-kilometer run on rolling hills. The collegiate men's race will start at 9 a.m., with open men's competitors starting 10 minutes later, followed by the women collegiate and open races. More than 300 men and women are expected to compete, including 200 collegiate triathletes.
Spencer said the Flames are prepared to peak at Saturday's races, directed by Greg Hawkins of the Virginia-Maryland Triathlon Series with logistical support from Mike Morrison, director of internal operations for Liberty's Club Sports department.
"I am really excited about this year, and our team is fired up right now," Spencer said. "They know this is the best chance we've ever had to be recognized on the podium as one of the top three teams in the conference championships."
In the combined MACTC fall team standings, which factor in men's and women's finishes, Liberty is currently in third place behind the Naval Academy and Queens of Charlotte, N.C.
Individually, senior Megan Merryman, who qualified for the NCAA women's triathlon national championships, Nov. 5 in New Orleans, is ranked first in the women's standings while freshman Thomas Sonnery-Cottet is second, two points out of first, in the men's points total.
Besides Sonnery-Cottet, Greg, Schott, junior Travis Fehr, and freshman Sam Blackmon have good shots to place in the top 10 in the men's race with strong showings on Saturday.
"The guys have been ranked higher in the past, but the competition is much, much higher now," Spencer said, noting the Flames won the regional championship in 2012. "It's probably going on six or seven years since the men's team has been this strong."
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
