Andrew Bumbalough, Georgetown’s premier cross country runner, hopes Yogi Berra was right when he said, “It’s like deja vu all over again.”
Bumbalough, coming off first place finishes in both the Big East Tournament and the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional, will attempt to duplicate those results in Monday’s NCAA Cross Country Championships. But personal accolades aren’t his prime concern.
“Cross country is a team sport,” Bumbalough said. “When you get tired, you know that any extra effort you can give at the end of the race can help your team, and that can make a difference.”
This season has been Bumbalough’s best ever, the culmination of years of steady improvement. After redshirting in 2005, Bumbalough started off his cross country career with an 11th-place finish at the Big East tournament in 2006, a personal worst. Last season, he improved to a fifth-place finish in the Big East, a third-place finish at the Mid-Atlantic Regional, and a 22nd-place finish at the NCAAs, earning All-American honors.
Bumbalough turned it up a notch this season and is proving the old running maxim, “If the furnace is hot enough, it will burn anything,” to be true. The main thing Bumbalough has been burning has been the competition. Still, he will need to turn the heat up at the NCAAs, where he will face first-class runners like Galen Rupp. Rupp, a senior at Oregon, is a member of the defending national championship team, was an Olympian this past summer, and is the best runner in the country.
Going into the biggest race of his career, Bumbalough will take the same approach he does for every event. Unlike other runners who might listen to music or have a certain routine to get pumped up, Bumbalough said he does “nothing really magical” before races. He just talks to his teammates, enjoys the moment, and, most importantly, mentally breaks down what he will do at every segment of the race.
“I’m looking to finish anywhere from 3rd through 10th,” Bumbalough said. “On a real good day, I can finish 3rd or 4th.”
Despite the enormous challenge that lies ahead, Bumbalough put the Hoyas on his back and carried them to an outstanding season. Georgetown is currently ranked 8th in the nation and, as a team, won the Big East Conference and the Mid-Atlantic Regional. The team is looking for a strong finish to its season, and with Bumbalough leading the way, they will likely get it.
