Former Comet star McKayla Cole named MVC Freshman of the Year

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

When McKayla Cole decided to get a jump start on her running career at Northern Iowa, she knew she was going to get her “butt kicked” and even welcomed the whipping.

She wasn’t disappointed.

“I was always among the top runners in high school, but I knew I was going have a lot of runners ahead of me in college,” Cole said. “So I had to push myself even harder, and I expected my coaches to push me harder, too.”

Cole was willing to be taken to the brink.

“I expected the worst … and it was tough,” Cole said about the increased intensity of training at the Division 1 level, “but it wasn’t as bad as I thought.”

Last Saturday at the Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Championships in Springfield, Mo., the Charles City graduate and Panther freshman finished 10th, a slot behind junior teammate Tiffany Christensen as UNI’s top two placers

As defending MVC champions, the Panthers came up short in repeating as they finished runner-up to Bradley, which also won the men’s race.

After her all-conference performance, Cole was awarded MVC Freshman of the Year.

“I was super excited … even surprised because there were a lot of great freshman I was going up against,” said Cole, an exercise science major at UNI.

Cole’s 5K time at the MVC Championships was 17 minutes, 51 seconds — 2 seconds off her personal-best but 49 seconds faster than the time she posted almost exactly the year before when she placed second at the High School State Cross Country Meet while helping Charles City place third as a team.

That was Cole’s final race as a Comet as she graduated from high school a semester early before enrolling at UNI last winter.

“It was my decision to start early,” Cole said. “It helped with my growth … it allowed me to adjust to college life and the training I put in during the spring down there got me ready for the fall.”

Cole trains seven days a week. Though she often comes home during the weekends, she rarely takes a day off.

“They don’t have a stairmaster down at school, so I like to use the one (at the Charles City YMCA),” she said.

Cole has recently added swimming to her training regimen.

“I just started doing that this past summer,” Cole said. “It helps with my breathing.”

Next up for Cole and the Panthers is the NCAA Midwest Regional, to take place Nov. 10 in Ames. That will precede the NCAA National Championships (Nov. 18 in Louisville) that will take 31 qualified teams plus the top 38 runners from non-qualified teams.

Though the Panthers don’t return any national qualifiers, Cole believes there could be a change in the weather.

“Being from Northern Iowa, I like running in the cold … or at least it doesn’t bother me and my teammates as much,” Cole said. “Even at the (MVC Championships), some runners from schools further down south were complaining about the cold. I think that gives us an advantage later in the year.

“When it’s cold, you just dress warmer and get out there and run.”

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

When McKayla Cole decided to get a jump start on her running career at Northern Iowa, she knew she was going to get her “butt kicked” and even welcomed the whipping.

She wasn’t disappointed.

“I was always among the top runners in high school, but I knew I was going have a lot of runners ahead of me in college,” Cole said. “So I had to push myself even harder, and I expected my coaches to push me harder, too.”

Cole was willing to be taken to the brink.

“I expected the worst … and it was tough,” Cole said about the increased intensity of training at the Division 1 level, “but it wasn’t as bad as I thought.”

Last Saturday at the Missouri Valley Conference Cross Country Championships in Springfield, Mo., the Charles City graduate and Panther freshman finished 10th, a slot behind junior teammate Tiffany Christensen as UNI’s top two placers

As defending MVC champions, the Panthers came up short in repeating as they finished runner-up to Bradley, which also won the men’s race.

After her all-conference performance, Cole was awarded MVC Freshman of the Year.

“I was super excited … even surprised because there were a lot of great freshman I was going up against,” said Cole, an exercise science major at UNI.

Cole’s 5K time at the MVC Championships was 17 minutes, 51 seconds — 2 seconds off her personal-best but 49 seconds faster than the time she posted almost exactly the year before when she placed second at the High School State Cross Country Meet while helping Charles City place third as a team.

That was Cole’s final race as a Comet as she graduated from high school a semester early before enrolling at UNI last winter.

“It was my decision to start early,” Cole said. “It helped with my growth … it allowed me to adjust to college life and the training I put in during the spring down there got me ready for the fall.”

Cole trains seven days a week. Though she often comes home during the weekends, she rarely takes a day off.

“They don’t have a stairmaster down at school, so I like to use the one (at the Charles City YMCA),” she said.

Cole has recently added swimming to her training regimen.

“I just started doing that this past summer,” Cole said. “It helps with my breathing.”

Next up for Cole and the Panthers is the NCAA Midwest Regional, to take place Nov. 10 in Ames. That will precede the NCAA National Championships (Nov. 18 in Louisville) that will take 31 qualified teams plus the top 38 runners from non-qualified teams.

Though the Panthers don’t return any national qualifiers, Cole believes there could be a change in the weather.

“Being from Northern Iowa, I like running in the cold … or at least it doesn’t bother me and my teammates as much,” Cole said. “Even at the (MVC Championships), some runners from schools further down south were complaining about the cold. I think that gives us an advantage later in the year.

“When it’s cold, you just dress warmer and get out there and run.”