Senior Aidan Massey has had continuous success leading into the Heart of America Cross Country Championships.

With three Heart of America Men’s Cross Country Runner of the Week awards under his belt and two first-place finishes in both the Billy Mills Classic and most recently the Mike Spielman Classic. Massey has made his mark in the conference, placing him high on the totem pole among other talented athletes.

“As a senior, I have enough experience at bigger races to where I know what to expect… I am confident in my ability to go out and compete with talented runners,” Massey said.

Setting personal records has been a reoccurring theme for Massey as he ran a 26:06.9 8k at the Gans Creek Classic on Sept. 27 and would go on to beat his record by nearly a minute two weeks later at the Billy Mills Invitational on Oct. 12.

Massey attributes a lot of his success to staying healthy, both physically and mentally, throughout the season and gradually increasing his distance during practice to maintain endurance for the race coming up.

“I try to stay on top of stretching so I can stay healthy… the biggest thing that has helped me this season was increasing my mileage up to 60+ miles a week, which in return, results in faster times,” Massey said.

Looking ahead to the Heart of America Championships, Massey “view[s] it as an opportunity to have fun and rip a fast race. I like challenging myself and aiming to get another personal best at conference.”

Both the men’s and women’s cross country teams were able to take home first in the Mike Spielman Classic on Oct. 18 and the morale is high walking into the Heart of America Championships.

The Heart of America Conference Championships take place Nov. 9 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa for both the men’s and women’s teams with the first shot up in the air beginning at 11:30.