As the indoor track & field season comes to a close, it’s time to start preparing for the outdoor season.

The Waynesburg University women’s track & field team, coming off a second straight Presidents’ Athletic Conference title, will not rest on its laurels for very long.

Head coach Michelle Cross is proud of the performance from the indoor season, but believes the team will be even better for outdoor.

“I actually think our team is better suited as an outdoor team,” said Cross. “We have people that we can turn around and we have more places for them to go, it utilizes their skillset more.”

During the outdoor season, there are additional events added to meets. These events are ones that will play to the strengths of the Yellow Jackets and include the 3,000-meter steeplechase, the 400-meter hurdles, javelin and the 10,000-meter run.

“We have people that are just outside of scoring in the [open] 3,000-meter but when they run steeplechase they will score,” said Cross. “We have more room and more events to put our distance runners in, we have the 5k, the 10k, the 1,500 and the 800-meter.”

While the team is still transitioning to the outdoor season, Cross believes it’s important for the athletes to remain focused.

“This next week is full of a lot of classes,” said Cross. “Then they hit spring break and they want to crash and then to come back and refocus for another two months is difficult, so what I’m looking for is more mental endurance.”

According to Cross, when it comes to looking at the big picture, the goals remain the same.

“I think that it is very doable that we can get another championship underneath our belt,” said Cross.

It would be the Jackets’ third straight outdoor title, but the big-picture goals don’t end there for Cross.

“I’m also hoping that I can give some reward meets or bigger meets that we can potentially take some of our higher-end athletes to,” said Cross.

Cross believes that by sending athletes to higher-end meets, it will be an improvement for the team and give everyone an opportunity to further grow.

“When we start talking about postseason or nationals, we get the opportunity to compete in bigger meets,” Cross said. “Some of these larger Division I meets that you have, there is the potential to bring a few athletes. It is really special because it gives experience that they’ve never had before.”

Aside from winning another championship, Cross also wants to make the last couple months a pleasant experience for the seniors as they begin to exit the program.

“I hope this is an enjoyable two months especially for the seniors,” said Cross. “This is the time where they realize that these are some of the last practices with the team and that can kind of get overshadowed.”

Looking forward, the Jackets will be back in action Saturday, March 17, when they travel to Muskingum University for the Muskie Duals.