While the women's cross country team took the weekend off and the men posted a third-place finish at the Keene State Invitational, the real story this weekend was the comeback of a pair of runners that have been integral to the success of their respective teams throughout their time at Tufts.
Senior tri-captains Chris Kantos and Cat Beck both returned to racing this Saturday after hard work and dedication helped them overcome their respective injuries. The pair could not have returned at a more opportune time, as both teams are set to launch into the postseason with All-New England Championships next weekend.
Kantos, competing in his first race for Tufts in over a year, led the Jumbos by finishing fourth with a 26:49 clip for the five-mile course.
"It is always nice to have an athlete of Chris' caliber back in uniform," men's coach Ethan Barron wrote in an e-mail to the Daily. "But more importantly, it is nice to see a competitor like Chris back in uniform. It is difficult for an athlete and competitor like Chris to be held on the sidelines and not running beside his teammates. Some athletes are comfortable with being injured. Chris is not one of them."
Kantos, who took 18th at Div. III New England Regionals in 2005, last raced for the Jumbos during his sophomore campaign. He made the challenging choice to sacrifice his junior year and a year of his athletic career to study abroad in London.
"It was a very, very difficult decision to leave the team," Kantos said. "The more I thought about it, the more I really wanted to do it, but it was obviously very hard not to be here for them."
Though he may have been away from the team, Kantos was by no means away from competitive running. During his time overseas, he raced for both the University College in London and the University of London in preparation for his return to Tufts.
"I came back after I had been training all summer, and it's an understatement to say I was in the best shape of my life," Kantos said. "The workouts I had been doing were so far exceeding what I had done in my past, and I was so excited to come into the season."
But all did not go as planned for Kantos, as he suffered a deflating injury to a joint in his back about two weeks before the Jumbos started this fall's cross country season.
After weeks of cross training in the pool or on the bike and sessions with chiropractors and trainers, his fourth-place finish was a promising benchmark of his progress. Early success aside, however, Kantos is committed to returning to peak physical condition as fast as possible.
"Upon completion of the race, I had no pain, and in that sense it was very positive and I was happy," Kantos said. "But it's hard to be as happy as you possibly can be knowing you are capable of so much more.
"Running is so different than doing any sort of cross training," he continued. "It's sort of a day-by-day process - every day is so much better than the last. Even in terms of racing, this weekend in my mind will probably be my worst race of the season."
This weekend also marked Beck's return, as she joined the men as they traveled to Keene State. Competing for the first time since May, Beck ran unattached and posted an 18:41 mark to take second in the race behind Keene State senior Jennifer Adams.
"I think for her first race since May, it was a great performance," coach Kristen Morwick said. "We wanted her to go out a little more conservatively. [Adams] didn't gain any ground on her, which means she ran a sub-six-mile pace, which is really good. She tried to push a little at the end, and we were very pleased with that."
"It was a little scary to come back, but it was really exciting to get back out there and put on spikes again," Beck added. "It was kind of nice to run unattached and not feel any team pressure. I really had no idea where I was fitness-wise, and it was nice to be able to test the water with this weekend."
Beck first experienced pain in her right leg at the end of the outdoor track season, sticking it out to finish the year in grand fashion. After being diagnosed with a stress fracture in her right femur shortly before Div. III Nationals, Beck posted All-American times in both the 1,500- and 5,000-meter races before spending her offseason working to overcome the injury in time to salvage part of her senior cross country campaign.
"My running was just very restricted," Beck said. "I was getting back into it, and the pain really came back. I was very nervous about it, and I took more time and more time in the pool...I pretty much spent the whole time cross training. It was a long summer."
Although Beck's training is still limited, as her teammates head into next weekend's All New-England Championships at Franklin Park in Boston, they could not be happier with Beck's return. While the other half of Tufts' one-two punch, senior tri-captain Katy O'Brien, has been doing a phenomenal job leading the squad, getting Beck back into competition will undoubtedly provide a boost to the lineup in terms of both her physical skill and the leadership qualities she brings to the team.
"Her first workout with the team last week was awesome," Morwick said. "She's been a great off-the-field leader, but it's nice to have her out there."
"Even those couple hours I get to travel with the team for workouts are really exciting," Beck said. "I'm glad to be on my way back."
