Freshman cross country runner shines after first-place debut
Junior Cassandra Durgy (left) and teammate freshman Gwyneth George – a first-time cross country runner – bonded this fall over sharing a high school track coach. (Courtesy of UCLA Athletics)
By Peter Frederick
Oct. 4, 2018 12:53 a.m.
As far as debuts to a new sport go, things don’t get much better than Gwyneth George’s cross country debut.
The freshman earned a first-place finish in the women’s 5K at The Master’s University XC Invite in Santa Clarita, California, with a time of 18:13.3.
“What was going through my mind the whole race was, ‘I’m at UCLA now, I have a job to do and a team to represent,’” George said. “All the girls pushed me the entire race to keep going faster, and after I got a hold of myself (postrace) I was so proud of the whole team to and to be a part of it all.”
George was a two-sport athlete at Santa Margarita Catholic High School, playing soccer in the fall and running the 800-meter dash and the one mile for track in the spring. Despite not competing in cross country in high school due to soccer, George has been quick to acclimate to the sport.
“We had some good inclinations (about George) going into the season,” said assistant coach Devin Elizondo. “(Assistant coach Austin O’Neil) said to me (before the race), ‘I think we should get ready to celebrate (George), I think she can do something special on Saturday.’”
The transition from running middle-distance events on the track to longer cross country courses can be difficult, but George says that her two-sport background has helped her adjust to her new sport.
“Being able to play soccer games for 90 minutes, I knew I’d be able to last long enough (for a cross country race),” said George. “It was nice coming in with the confidence of having my coach be ready for me to run and having the team behind me; it hasn’t been that hard of a transition because I’ve had so many good people around me.”
George said she has found a support network in her new teammates to help her make the adjustment from high school to collegiate student-athlete.
“(George) actually trained with my high school coach, Chase Frazier, and we instantly had a bond over that,” said junior Cassandra Durgy. “She’s such a fantastic teammate and racer, and she’s going to be almost like a secret weapon for us moving into Pac-12s because she just did amazing in her debut in the 5K.”
The Bruins will next compete Oct. 13 at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals and the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational.
